34 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



The report stated that 2,000 complete reports, making a total 

 now of 32,000, were added last year to the bureau's fund of in- 

 formation, and each year's increase means considerably more 

 work than that of the previous year. 



The report of the collection department showed a balance on 

 hand of claims, March 1, 1912, $260,972, of which $134,433 is in 

 the hands of association attorneys throughout the country and 

 Canada, leaving $126,539 representing claims in the course of col- 

 lection through the association office. Net fees last year were 

 $4,800. These figures reveal a greater prestige accruing to the 

 association through handling the larger number of claims, and 

 also result in a corresponding increase in information for credit 

 files. The average fee for this work has been slight. 



The very prestige of the association has in a great man}' cases 

 helped materially in collecting bad accounts, and when attorneys 

 are necessary the best only are used. In fact, the association work 

 is largely sought by leading attorneys who desire the prestige of 

 having it known that they represent the National Wholesale Lum- 

 ber Dealers' Association. 



In certain instances where certain failures indicated that they 

 would carry others in their wake, the association immediately got 

 in touch with those likely to be involved, and assisted in plans 

 that met with the approval of the creditors and avoided failures. 

 The report then told of the credit report system and the suc- 

 cessful work of collections. In short, it indicated that the collec- 

 tion and information department is in the best form it ever en- 

 joyed and is constantly proving of more benefit to the trade in 

 every way. 



The arbitration committee report was then given, through Ed- 

 ward Eiler, chairman. During the past year there was only one 

 case of dispute between members of the association which reached 

 the arbitration committee. The case was promptly decided by the 

 unanimous vote of the three members who considered the evidence. 

 One of the members in this case was not pleased with the decision 

 of the arbitration committee. The report stated that decisions 

 have in some instances resulted in the withdrawal of member- 

 ships. 



The report said that the suggestion made in December, 1912, 

 along this line resulted in the appointment of a committee by the 

 board of trustees to investigate the present arbitration system. 

 This is now in the hands of this special committee. 



William E. Litchfield then reported for the trade relations com- 

 mittee. This committee has had nothing brought to its attention 

 during the year. Harmonious relations exist between the Na- 

 tional and other associations. The report said that wholesalers in 

 many parts of the country have in the past and up to the present 

 stored stocks in large yards, taking the stock acquired from the 

 smaller mills and furnishing them with immediate capital. Many 

 of these mills could not run without the help of the wholesale 

 yard. The report stated that the wholesaler must of necessity 

 search out an outlet for the mixed stock which he thus accumu- 

 lates; in studying the requirements of the buying trade and post 

 himself as to the thicknesses and kinds of wood for each market, 

 and must also take the lumber to center points for grading and 

 distribution. 



In speaking of the retailer, the report said that he should be 

 free from the poacher, but that he should not expect the large 

 contractors and corporations who buy in carlots to be satisfied 

 with any circumscribed area in which to make such purchases. 



The report said further that the recent government suit has 

 pointed out just how far trade organizations can gcr in the matter 

 of distributing information. The report expressed the opinion that 

 while the suit was decided in favor of the government, it appears 

 to give the privilege to every man of selling unmolested his 

 goods to whomever he chooses, and gives the buyer the right to 

 buy his lumber from whomever he chooses. 



The report then pointed out the benefits to be derived from 

 association work through increased efficiency and organization, 

 md through credit work. 

 The paper stated that companies had gotten the opinion that the 



injunction granted in the government suit would make a very 

 marked change in the position of the retailer, the wholesaler and 

 manufacturer. The lumber trade is so well organized and so well 

 established, however, that no change whatever has come about, 

 and it would seem to most people that the winning of the suit by 

 the government has cleared the atmosphere to the extent that it 

 will cause the lumber merchant to show a deeper interest in actual 

 conditions. 



In the past very often lumbermen have refrained from selling 

 wholesale orders, but the report says that with the increased 

 knowledge due to the clearing up of the situation by the govern- 

 ment 's suit, this condition will not prevail. 



The paper expresses the opinion that the government 's injunction 

 does not stop the various retail associations from giving to their 

 members such legitimate information as they may need to con- 

 serve their best business interests or to extend to each other such 

 information as wUl help in the matter of credits, etc. 



The report closes with the statement that credit organizations 

 and trade relations matter can be of great good to the country at 

 large if properly conducted, and if frequent conferences are held 

 with open discussion about the methods of improving conditions, 

 having alwaj's in mind that good must be done so that it will be 

 for the benefit of all. 



The committee on nomination of trustees, relations, etc., was 

 then appointed and the meeting adjourned until the afternoon. 



AFTERNOON SESSION 



The afternoon session was opened with a report V)y the com- 

 mittee on terms of sale and trade ethics, read by F. S. Underhill, 

 chairman. The report stated that at last year's convention the 

 committee recommended certain changes in the wording of the 

 terms of sale of the association. These changes were based on the 

 recommendation of the legal department that had found that the 

 order or acknowledgement forms used by association members 

 were defective in that they had resulted in unsatisfactory arrange- 

 ments between members on various occasions, and would be ineffi- 

 cient if used in court. These forms were changed according to the 

 suggestions by the committee, and the new order of forms can be 

 procured through the association offices. The report told of a let- 

 ter issued by the board of trustees recommending in connection 

 with terms of sale, that while it is recognized that terms of sale 

 are not uniform, still the practice used by some concerns of mak- 

 ing settlements without due or reasonable regard for the terms 

 of the shipper, is unjust and every effort should be made to break 

 it up. 



The report said that every member of the association ought to 

 take a firm stand that a discount was in no sense a commission, 

 but merely an allowance made for the express purpose of secur- 

 ing immediate or prompt payments of accounts. The report said 

 that if terms of sale were more uniform throughout the trade 

 many problems confronting the association in this matter would 

 be eliminated. 



The report further stated that the wholesaler is more delinquent 

 in insisting upon the adherence to terms of sale than is the manu- 

 facturer, and said that it is manifest that such practice as taking 

 the discount from the gross delivered amount of the invoice, in- 

 cluding freight, ought to be forcibly handled and the practices 

 broken up. The report also stated that the encouraging of such 

 terms of sales as "two per cent discount from net amount of in- 

 voice thirty days after the arrival of car," or "net cash ninety 

 days after the arrival of car" ought to be discouraged, and a 

 determined effort made to discontinue such practices. 



A discussion of this report followed. 



W. S. Fhippen, traffic manager of the association, then delivered 

 his report. The report stated that in addition to freight investi- 

 gation and collection of freight claims, the transportation bureau 

 had handled for over two hundred individual members several 

 hundred other matters such as tracing and diverting cars, locat- 

 ing and stopping delivery of shipments owing to financiaf insol- 

 vency of consignees, and straightening out cases where carriers 



