38 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



May 2a, 1919 



Big West Virginia Timber Deal 



The largest West Virginia timber deal of recent years was closed at 

 Huntington on May 20 when the Rockcastle Lumber Cuiiipany, of which 

 C. L. Bitter, M. N. Offutt and B. B. Burns are the principal stockholders, 

 bought 30,000 acres of virgin hardwood timber, which is located in Boone 

 County, West Virginia. Those from whom the tract was purchased arc 

 Pennsylvanians, several of whom have been in Huntington for more than 

 a month discussing various terms of the trade. These men are Col. D. G. 

 Matson of Ithaca, N. Y. ; Major McCreight of Dubois, Pa. ; Charles Heid- 

 rick, George Matson, R. M. Matson and N. B. Matson. 



There Is on the property a modern double band mill ready for immediate 

 operation, several miles of standard gauge railroad with the necessary 

 locomotives and cars to begin logging at once. The mill is located at 

 Seth, Boone County, W. Va., on the Big Coal River branch of the Chesa- 

 peake & Ohio Railroad. 



Change in Memphis Firm 

 The Brown-Evert.s Lumber Company, Memphis, Tenn., has been or- 

 ganized under the laws of Tennessee with a capital stock of $200,000 

 to act as southern operating company for the Brown Land & Lumber 

 Company, Rhinelander, Wis. 



The officers are : L. E. Brown, president, Rhinelander, Wis. ; G. W. 

 Everts, vice-president and manager, Memphis ; L. M. Borgess, secretary, 

 Chicago ; E. S. Everts, treasurer, Memphis. 



G. W. Everts was manager of the Brown Land & Lumber Company at 

 Rhinelander for several years prior to January, 1918, when he took active 

 management of the southern operations. 



The Brown Land & Lumber Company at Rhinelander with a capital 

 stock of $1,000,000 is widely known as a leading manufacturer of hard- 

 wood lumber in the North and the South. Henceforth the southern end 

 of the business will be operated by the Brown-Everts Lumber Company. 

 The southern organization has two hand mills in operation, one at 

 Helena, Ark., and one at Allen. Miss., giving the company an average 

 yearly output of 20,000,000 feet. The cut runs to the usual variety of 

 hardwoods, its specialty being gum and oak. 



L. M. Borgese has charge of the selling office at Chicago selling for 

 both organizations. Additional sales offices are maintained in Detroit, 

 Minneapolis and Milwaukee. 



Scotch Importer Believes High Prices Are Permanent 

 Although present prices of hardwood lumber in England are staggering, 

 there is nothing to indicate that there will be any material recession In 

 values, according to Stanley McCowen, of the timber importing firm of 

 A. Baird & Co.. Glasgow, Scotland. He bases this view on labor condi- 

 tions in the United State.s and England, on the enormous demand for 

 American hardwoods in the British Isles and on the high ocean rates of 

 transportation. 



Mr. McCowen thinks it possible that high prices may bring about some 

 curtailment of buying, but he points out that there is more demand at the 

 present high level than the quantity of lumber available or that can be 

 brought over under present scarcity of tonnage justifies. He is there- 

 fore inclined to believe that the price-level now obtaining will be pretty 

 well maintained and that American exporters have practically nothing 

 to fear if they are able to secure the quantity of ocean shipping room that 

 will insure a large movement of hardwood lumber overseas. 



Mr. McCowen, who spent a day or two in Memphis calling on members 

 of the hardwood trade, left May 17 for New Orleans. He is recognized as 

 an authority on lumber conditions, as he traveled extensively in Russia 

 and the Orient in the interest of his firm prior to the war. He says that 

 Russia has a great supply of timber, but that, from a quality standpoint, 

 it is not at all comparable to American hardwood timber. 



Pertinent Information 



American Hardwoods in England 

 It is reported in the London Timber Trades Journal of April 26, that 

 business in American hardwoods has recently quieted down, not due to 

 any slackening in the demand, but simply owing to scarcity of supplies 

 and the great difficulty of arranging freight. It would appear that ship- 

 pers are now finding the utmost difficulty in securing space for anything 

 like prompt shipment at almost any rate, and in many instances further 

 business is, for this reason, being declined until the freighting of orders 

 on hand can be overtaken. Imports thus tar have been on a relatively 

 small scale, and it would seem evident that shipowners are not disposed 

 for the present to allocate more than a limited amount of space for 

 timber consignments. Less bulky and more weighty cargo meantime gets 

 the preference, which is not, of course, in any way surprising. Spot 

 prices are decidedly firmer again, but there is only a trifling quantity of 

 stock offering. Plain oak is in active request tor furniture-making pur- 

 poses, and one or two, car-load lots were sold during the week at very 

 full prices. It had been expected that the second public auction of na- 

 tional hardwood stocks would have been announced ere this, but so far 

 no indication has been given as to when same will be held. It would 

 be imagined that with the market gasping tor supplies some effort would 

 be made to expedite matters. 



The American rate of exchange keeps fairly steady at round about 

 4.G5-4.66, and there is a growing impression that it will be maintained 

 at about the present level for some little time. The Americans are 

 specially anxious that It should he so, and It may be relied upon that 

 they will use every endeavor to keep It up as high as possible. 



May Buy Australian Ships 



It was recently reported from London that negotiations are under way 

 between the commonwealth of Australia and United States shipping in- 

 terests that may result in the sale of the Australian fleet of wooden ves- 

 sels, which have been built on the Pacific coast at Olympia. An an- 

 nouncement was made at the offices of the Australian commissioner in 

 Washington that the ships were on the market, and that American ship- 

 pers were Interested. 



The Australian government. In an effort to build up an emergency fleet 

 during the war, let contracts in the United States in 1917, for the con- 

 struction of fourteen ships of the 3,500 deadweight type. Nine were to 

 be outfitted with Diesel oil-burning engines, and five were to be equipped 

 with steam. Six of the vessels have been delivered to the commonwealth 

 for sea service, while the other nine are nearing completion at the 

 Olympia yards. 



While no announcement was made as to the figure at which the com- 

 missioner had offered to sell the ships, it was reported reliably that It 

 was far below the $685,000 quoted by the United States shipping board 

 for its wooden ships of similar types. The Australian government does 

 not feel that the wooden ships are suited to its needs, Inasmuch as their 

 tonnage Is not very large, and the voyages are necessarily long. 



High Lights from Washington 



It was recently announced at Washington that unless $600,000,000 

 is appropriated by Congress for the work of the Emergency Fleet Cor- 

 poration before the end of June, every shipyard in the country will be 

 obliged to suspend operations on government orders. 



Ship building during the year 1919 has continued the fast pace set 

 during the war. From January 1 to May 7, American yards turned out 

 204 steamships with a gross tonnage of 781,980 tons. All except thirty- 

 nine of these were of steel construction. 



The President has cabled the announcement of his decision that Ameri- 

 can shipyards may accept the contracts for foreign account so far as 

 work can be carried along without Interferring with the construction of 

 the .American merchant marine. 



The Army Air Service submitted plans to Secretary Baker on May 

 13 which if approved would award contracts for at least 500 airplanes 

 of the latest types of American manufacture. 



It is announced that eleven steel companies submitted practically iden- 

 tical bids on May 13 for 14,000 tons of steel for the navy, thus duplicat- 

 ing the situation which caused rejection of bids on the same material 

 submitted on April 4. 



Of Importance to American manufacturers Is the action of the New 

 Canadian Trade Commission which has addressed circulars to all Canadian 

 housewives urging them to buy no household goods except of Canadian 

 manufacture. 



The Paris Furniture Company of Paris, Tex., has announced profit- 

 sharing plans by which all employes who have been with the company for 

 one year will profit. 



Industrial readjustment has begun In France as Indicated by the fact 

 that on May 16 the minister of reconstruction relit the blast furnace at 

 Maubeuge, the first furnace to be opened in liberated territory In northern 

 France. 



It is announced from Washington that L. Birkenstein, a Cliicago manu- 

 facturer, has been selected to take charge of the surplus property division 

 of the War Department on June 15. 



F. Furnier has come to America at the sanction of the French govern- 

 ment, to assist in re-equipping and refitting France. 



According to a New York announcement, a German syndicate with a 

 capital of $12,000,000 has been organized at Berlin to re-establish busi- 

 ness at .\rgentlna. 



Mahogany and Its Substitutes 



The Journal of Forestry recently published a contribution by Samuel J. 

 Record of Yale University, on "Mahogany and Some of Its Substitutes.*' 

 This has now been reprinted in pamphlet form, and is thus made acces- 

 sible to the general public, or so much of the puijllc as may be Interested 

 in the subject. 



Mr. Record has undertaken to show how to tell the differences between 

 various woods that pass for mahogany or that may be offered as sub- 

 stitutes for that wood. The subject is technical and not easy. Mr. 

 Record has done his best to sImplLty it, and has succeeded about as far 

 as anybody may expect to succeed in this difficult undertaking where so 

 much depends upon seeing what the microscope reveals, and Interpreting 

 It. The seeing is less difficult than the interpreting. The author says, 

 concerning the apparatus necessary In examining woods : "The only equip- 

 ment necessary to use the key is a very sharp pocket knife and a small 

 hand lens magnifying from ten to fifteen times." 



Examinations are made after the wood has been sliced in very thin 

 cross sections so that the different elements composing the wood are 

 visible under the lens. 



The key contains descriptions of thirteen tree families and twenty- 

 seven genera, including mahogany and most woods which are offered in 



