40 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



April 2;-!, 1919 



by R. H. liooilninn, jinwiiUiig for a subcmumittco of the trado 

 extension committee to jr'\'<" attention to by-produets of lumber, 

 naming Mr. W. A. (Jilelirist elinirnian, was adojited. 



Resolutions Adopted by Lumber Congress 



The Anieriean luinib r ("onfivess passed a series of resolutions 



wliirh summed up the aetion taken on a number of important mat- 

 ters during the session. A summary of these resolutions follows. 



The efforts of the l>e)iartment of Labor in the "(1wn Yo\ir 

 Home" eampaijjn was indorsed by the eongress. 



The efforts now before roiigress to establish Federal home loan 

 banks, for the purpose of furuishinj; neeessary eapital to finanee 

 home building through the medium of building aiul loan assoeia- 

 tions, were approved. 



Tlie .\nierieau Lumber (."ongress declared itself in favor of a 

 nalion-wido eanipaign of advertising and exploiting the universal 

 teehnieal ipialities and eommon uses of lumber and other wood 

 products, for structural and other purposes, as developed by the 

 technical investigations of the National Lumber Manufacturers' 

 .\ssociation and of other agencies in the lumber industry and 

 agencies of the government. 



A resolution was passed to request the National Lumber Mauu 

 facturers' Association to invite all companies engaged in the manu- 

 facture or distribution of lumber, which can be reached, to make 

 a voluntary contribution to an aggregate fund for this purpose, 

 said fund to be not less than $50,lHHl per suinum. 



The form of pledge shall provide that the funds so subscribed 

 shall be administered by the directors of the National Lumber 

 Manufacturers' Association, under the immediate supervision of 

 au advisory committee, consisting of a member of the trade exten- 

 sion department of the National Lumber Maaiufacturers' Associa- 

 tion, one representative each of the National Wholesale Lumber 

 Dealers' Association, American Hardwood Manufacturers' Asso- 

 ciation, National Hardwood Lumber Association, National Retail 

 Lumber Dealers' .-Association, one other representative of the re- 

 tail lumber trade, and the secretary-manager of the National Lum- 

 ber Matiufacturevs ' .Association as the oxocntive oftioor. 



It was the sense of the lumber congress that there should be 

 uniformity of sizes in all lumber moldings manufactured in the 

 I'nited States and that for the accomplishment of this purpose the 

 secretary-manager of the National Lumber Manufacturers' Asso- 

 ciation be requested to call a meeting of the proper representatives 

 of all associations represented in this congress in Chicago within 

 sixty days from this date. 



.-V .joint committee of lumber man\ifacturcrs and of memliers of 

 the National Retail Lumber Dealers' Association declared it to be 

 its opinion that the transit car practice is basically and economic- 

 ally unsound, and destructive in its effect upon the entire lumber 

 industry: and the lumber congress passed a resolution concurring 

 in the finding of the committee. 



t'onceruing foreign trade opportunities, the congress took the 

 following stand: 



The Bureau o( Foreign and Hoinestic Ooniniercc pul>llsUes in its Dally 

 Trade Reports lists of foreisu traile opportunities identified b.v number 

 onl.v and now j::ivcs the nanitvi of the foreiiin importers involved oni.v to 

 cstnl'lish manufacturing or exportinj; firms or Wclih taw corporations. The 

 mimes of such importers should not he withheld from associations desirous 

 of developing an export business and forming Webb law corporations : 

 tlicrefoiv the Bureau of Formkh and Domestic Oommerce is urged to 

 I'lmnjie it*> policy in this regard and give sudi names to any association 

 of producers or distributers. 



Action in regard to the proposed institute to deal with forest 

 ]n-oblems was taken as follows: 



The American Lumber Congress herewith resolves itself into the Ameri- 

 can Forest I'roducts Institute and authorizes tile president of the National 

 Lumber Manufacturers' Association to appoint a committee from the 

 several bninclu's of the wood and wood using iudiistricfi to prepare a con- 

 stituti^'U and l>y-l!i\vs whicii will then become tile conc>titution and by-laws 

 of tile .\mericau Forest Products Institute. 



Director General Hines of the railroads was voted the unbounded 

 confidence of the lumber congress. The opinion was expressed that 

 he would inaugurate plans and policies which will bring relief. 



The Mississippi waterway received the indorsement of the Na- 

 tional Lumber ^Manufacturers' Association, and the government 

 was asked to lend its immediate aid and assistance to the improve- 

 ment of all Middle West waterwavs. 



By H. C. Hallam 



Lumber Price Discussion Still 'Held Up 

 The attempt to slabili/.e v^'""' reduce') lumber prices has not 

 made much progress of late. In fact it has been at a standstill. 

 However, the situation may possibly change as the result of a 

 cablegram from President Wilson in Paris to Secretary of Com- 

 merce Redfield urging that another attempt be made to reach an 

 agreement between the industrial board of which lieorge Peek of 

 Moliae, 111., is chairman, and Walker D. Hines, director general of 

 railroads. At last reports Peek was seeking a conference with 

 Hines. 



The president naturally swings great influence among govern- 

 ment people, but it is too early yet to say what will be the outcome 

 of the situation. Secretary of the Treasury Glass is understood 

 to be backing Hines in his opposition to the Peek-Redfield scheme, 

 and he is a very resourceful person. Glass is reported to believe 

 that the plan would violate the anti-trust law. Attorney General 

 Palmer is reiH>rted to have rendered a confidential opinion to Red- 

 field on this question. If it shoxild develop that the opinion holds 

 that a price agreement plan could be carried out under the law, 

 tliere may be some sort of a compromise between Redfield and 

 Hines. It may be that the industrial board will be quiescent until 

 the president returns from abroad. It is denied that members of 

 the board jdan to resign. 



Im(>iitient of the delay, representatives of various building ma- 

 terial industries who were in Washington to confer with the in- 



dustrial board, have gone back home to await developments. 

 Meanwhile building construction is reviving and, in the words of a 

 prominent building materials man, the way things look now in- 

 dustry will beat the price stabilizers to it. "People who need 

 lumber, bricks and other material are preparing to buy it if they 

 are not already buying. The building season is here and if there 

 is going to be building — and there is — they must have the material. 

 I am strongly of opinion that industry will adjust itself naturally 

 to the needs of the country." 



According to a publication of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 

 Department of Labor, the wholesale prices of lumber have de- 

 creased somewhat since the signing of the armistice. However, 

 lumbermen who have been in Washington recently express the be- 

 lief that lumber prices are going up; that business will not be bad 

 this year and that next spring there- will be lots of orders. This 

 prediction is based in part on the recognized fact that there is a 

 big shortage of housing in a great many cities in all parts of the 

 country. Also Pacific coast lumber interests have assurances that 

 the export trade is opening up nicely. 



Airplane Patrol of Forests 



Government otlicials hope for early aerial patrol of national for- 

 ests to guard against fires. Army aviators should be llying over 

 national forests several weeks in advance of .lune 15, when forest- 

 fire danger becomes serious, according to the Forest Service, which 



