August 10. 1919 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



39 



dieted that labor would orgauize the Uuited States Steel Corpora- 

 tion and establish alu eight-hour day for its employes. 



It is announced, according to a statement August 6, by the chief 

 inspector of the New York police department, that more than 110 

 separate strikes are in progress in New York Citj'. 



The Mechanics and Metals National Bank states that by far 

 the most significant economic development of the preseint year is 

 the downward movement that has occurred during the past few 

 weeks in foreign exchanges. 



The Wall Street Journal states that incomes between $3,000 and 

 $5,000, numbering 167,409 in 1916, increased to 560,763 in 1918. 



Anjnouneement is made that saving bank deposits in New Hamp- 

 sliire increased over $6,000,000 during the year ending June 30. 



Bepreseutatives of Brotherhoods of Bailroad Engineers, Firemen, 

 Conductors and representatives of the American Federation of 

 Labor issued a statement to the public August 4, saying: "We 

 ask that the railroads of the United States be vested in the public; 

 that those actually engaged ib conducting that industry, not from 

 Wall street, but from railroad offices and yards and out on the rail- 

 road lines, shall take charge of this service for the public. 



The Washington Post, August 6, says: "Lines were drawn last 

 night for the greatest economic struggle United States has ever 

 known as the country divided upon the demand of the railroad 

 unions for the natiolnalization of the railroads." 



Pensacola Open to Memphis Shippers 



Memphis exporters, including those who are sending hardwood 

 lumber and forest products overseas, will be given opportunity at 

 an early date to use vessels of the United States Shipping Board 

 operated out of Pensacola to the United Kingdom, according to 

 advices received by W. H. Haley, acting secretary of the Memphis 

 Chamber of Commerce, from U.S. Senator K. D. McKellar of Ten- 

 nessee. 



Senator McKellar in transmitting this information enclosed copy 

 of a letter from W. F. Taylor, assistant director of operations of the 

 United State Shipping Board, in which the latter stated that Pen- 

 sacola-built vessels would be put in service between Pensacola and 

 the Uuited Kingdom "with a special view to taking care of the 

 requirements of Memphis shippers." 



The favorable decision of the United States Shipping Board in 

 this matter is regarded by local export interests as one of the 

 greatest victories they have won in the fight for larger export 

 facilities. Pensacola can be as easily reached as New Orleans, and 

 the opening of another clearance point will, it is believed, greatly 

 increase the quantity of shipping space available. 



In the meantime shipping conditions are improving daily, accord- 

 ing to a circular just issued to members by the Southern Hardwood 

 Traffic Association. This condition, according to this authority, 

 is due to two facts: (1) Leasing of tonnage from relief routes, 

 and (2) building of new vessels. There were eighty-four vessels 

 from the ways of the American yards during the month of May, 

 says the circular. It also registers complaint against the length 

 of time American vessels are held in British ports, and points out 

 that steps should be taken immediately to see that they discharge 

 their cargoes and return more promptly, thus providing that much 

 more tonnage for the handling of hardwood lumber and forest 

 products, as well as other overseas tonnage. 



' ' The South has been getting more vessels recently, and this 

 increase in the number of ships has already greatly relieved the 

 export situation," said J. H. Townshend, secretary of the associa- 

 tion, in discussing export conditions immediately prior to the 

 embargo against coastwise movement of commodities incident to 

 the strike of oilers, engineers and others employed on ships clear- 

 ing from American ports. 



Quarter-sawed Oak Chair Posts at Plain-Sawed 



Prices 



By proper handling at the rip saw, a plain-sawed oak board can 

 be cut so as to yield a slight amount of true quarter-sawed and a 

 large amount of semi(iuarter-sawed material. All of this material 

 is suitable for bending; in fact, tests by the Forest Products Labora- 

 tory, Madison, Wis., in cooperation with a large chair manufacturer, 

 have shown that the semiquarter-sawed stock can be bent in the 

 hot-plate bender with less surface cheeking than either the true 

 quarter-sawed or the plain-sawed stock. This is of particular sig- 

 nificance to the chair manufacturer, for it means that the purchase 

 of 2-inch quarter-sawed oak plank for chair-post stock is unneces- 

 sary. 



A common type of back post is 1 inch by 2 inches in cross sec- 

 tion, with the quarter-sawed surfaces appearing in the front and 

 back or narrow faces. Considerable saving may be effected by the 

 selection of as much true and partly quarter-sawed back-post stock 

 as possible from a 1-inch plain-sawed oak board. The flat grained 

 portion of the board may then be used for other chair parts where 

 the flaked surfaces are not essential. 



When the chair part to be bent is square, as is frequently the 

 case, it is obviously unnecessary to purchase any quarter-sawed 

 material at all. An entire plain-sawed board can be worked up into 

 quarter-sawed parts. 



With the Trade 



Fire in Tennessee Mill 



The Southern Star Lumber Company, McKenzie, Teun.. advises that It 

 suffered a small loss by fire in the boiler room of the McKenzie mill on 

 July 30. The loss approximates from .$1,500 to .$^,000 ana entailed a shut- 

 down of only a few days for repairs. The Are did not materially affect 

 the business nor cau,«e any delay or loss in time of shipments. 



F. L. Zaug Starts New Factory- 

 Frank L. Zaug recently resigned as vice-president and general manager 

 of the Wisconsin Cabinet & Panel Company of New London, Wis. 



Mr. Zaug has been prominent in northern woodworking circles for a 

 good many years and has been in charge of the big northern operations 

 which eventually evolved into the Wisconsin Cabinet & Panel Company, 

 one of the most important phonograph cabinet factories of the Edison 

 phoiiograph interests. Mr. Zaug is thoroughly schooled in the veneer and 

 paupl business and has now organized the American Plywood Company 

 in which he has fifth interest. The other members are stockholders in 

 the Berber Trunk and Bag Company, Philadelphia, Pa. The new factory 

 will be located at New London. 



The company is incurporated with $200,000 capital and will build a fac- 

 tory on what is Isuown as the old Jennings mill site at New London. It 

 has a ninety-nine year lease of a tract of land at the east end of this site 

 which provide-s a spur track malting certain excellent shipping facilities. 



The plans are to erect a one-story brick and concrete building, the main 

 plant to be 240 feet long and SO feet wide. One end will contain a veneer 

 cutting mill 70 by 70 feet and the other end the office and shipping depart- 

 ment. The plant will employ 125 men in the beginning and has a certain 

 market for its entire output which will be veneers and panels for various 

 purposes. 



Mr. Zaug is the general manager and will remain in charge at New 

 London. 



New Box Factory for Black River, Wis. 



The new plant of the Black River Box & ISIanufaeturing Company is 

 now nearlng completion at Black River, Wis. The building is of concrete 

 and steel construction and it is expected that the steel work will be 

 shortly under way. All the machinery is now purchased and it is antici- 

 pated that the job will be completed by the end of September. 



Chicago Mutual Company Growing 



At the recent seuii-aunual meeting of the Lumbermen's Mutual Casualty 

 Company gratifying expansion in the company's business -was reported. 

 The meeting was held at the offices in the Lumber Exchange building. 

 The report of manager James S. Kemper .showed an increase of 64 per cent 

 in volume written for the first halt of 1919 compared with a similar period 

 of 1918. A new feature is the installment of a service department for 

 the purpose of offering advice to lumbermen on various matters co-related 

 to insurance, such as methods of preventing accidents and provision for 

 the elimination of fire hazards and other features, the understanding of 

 which is essential to the modern operator. The total cash assets of the 

 company were .$4G8,000. June 30 this year, an increase of $196,000 over 

 the same date the previous year, while the total resources of the company 



