March 10, 1917 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



37 



Carl H. Donaldson 



Carl H. Donaldson, secretary-treasurer of the Mason-Donaldson Lumber 

 Company, Khlnelander, Wis., died suddenly a week ago as a result of heart 

 failure. Mr. Donaldson was forty years old. He has been connected with 

 the Mason-Donaldson Lumber Company for several years and in connection 

 with George W. Mason, president, has built up one of the largest hardwood 

 operations in the North, his firm being recognized as handling a quantity 

 of hardwood lumber comparable in extent to any of the Institutions in 

 Wisconsin. 



Mr. Donaldson had been a lumberman for a good many years and had a 

 very wide acquaintance all over the hardwood field. 



Possible Sources of Yellow Dye 



Tests have proved that the wood of Osage orange is a profitable source of 

 yellow dye. 



That is not the only tree in this country whose yellow wood might be 

 valuable as dye material. The tree that grows in southern Texas where it is 

 known as retama has wood of a deeper yellow than that of Osage orange. 

 The color is principally in the thick sapwood. Botanically, the species is 

 known as Parkinsonia aculeata. It is a characteristic of the tree to send 

 up several trunks instead of one large one. It is related to the locusts and 

 bears pods which sometimes cause the name "horsebean" to be given to the 

 tree. The species is fairly abundant between San Antonio and Brownsville, 

 Texas, and it grows also in Mexico, Arizona, and California. 



Another tree or shrub of the same region has wood as yellow as sulphur. 

 The species is called algerita (.Berheris trifoliata). It is seldom more than 

 three inches in diameter at the ground, and on account of small size is not 

 recognized as a tree. It grows well in cultivation, and in southern Texas is 

 planted in gardens for its berries. 



So far as can be ascertained, no attempt has ever been made to try out 

 these woods for dyes. The wood's deep color suggests that exploitation 

 might be profitable. 



This Country Leads 

 The United States now has more complete and reliable data on the 

 mechanical properties of wood than any other nation. In addition to 

 mechanical data, the government's laboratory at Madison, Wis., is arrang- 

 ing to investigate the chemical properties of the different species of our 

 woods, in order to facilitate their utilization along chemical lines, such as 

 wood distillation, pulp making, and the naval stores industry. 



Difficulties of the Lumber Business 



The following account of difficulties in the lumber industry is from the 

 pen of Edward Hines, the well-known lumberman : 



The lumber industry, most particularly Is suffering largely on account of 

 the prosperity enjoyed by what largely comes in competition with it, 

 namely, the steel industry. The war has hurt us materially, but has 

 greatly helped the steel industry. 



One illustration is Virginia. Minn., where we have the largest northern 

 pine plant in the United States located right in the heart of the iron ore 

 mines. The steel Interests in order to secure the necessary help and keep 

 their mines going, attendant on getting a tremendous price for all classes 

 of steel, and its various accessories, are working three eight-hour shifts, 

 paying from $2.To to $3.00 per day for common labor. • 



Two years ago our average wage scale paid in the woods was from $16 to 

 $25 per month and board, and it either meant that the men would take this 

 or be out of employment. Immediately following the outbreak of the war 

 the steel interests shut down their mines and threw out of employment 

 a large amount of help. 



Conditions now, with the mines running three shifts a day, and hiring 

 every available man. at wages which they claim are as low as they can 

 get their labor for, has inflicted on our industry a great hardship, for the 

 reason that our wage scale now for the same class of labor and for the 

 same kind of work, is from $40 to $60 per month, or over 100 per cent 

 higher. As we are feeding several thousand men we have necessarily made 

 careful tabulation of costs, and find that as compared with a year ago, 

 the cost of feeding alone is something like 72 per cent higher. Everything 

 we are buying in the way of steel accessories, and we buy a great deal, has 

 advanced over 100 per cent. We have had statements prepared, which 

 show that the actual cost of doing our logging this year will be almost 100 

 per cent more than it was last season. The above refers to the woods end 

 of the operation. In our manufacture of lumber at Virginia, where we, 

 of course, employ more skilled labor, our advance ranges about 33% per 

 cent higher, and with less efficiency. Then the cost of our supplies aver- 

 ages almost 100 per cent higher in the manufacturing end than a year ago. 



From a careful tabulation of figures the average advance in the price of 

 our lumber during the past year is about 10 per cent. Consider this slight 

 advance, in view of the staggering advances we have to pay to produce the 

 stock. The war has stopped the exportation of lumber, while in the steel 

 industry it is stimulated in the waj' of orders for munitions of war. 



Book on European Markets 

 The Department of Commerce announces that the Bureau of Foreign 

 and Domestic Commerce has ready for sale a book dealing with the markets 

 of the Mediterranean region, and the district known as the Near East. 

 This is a thirty-two page booklet, which may be had for five cents a copy 

 from the superintendent of documents, Washington, D. C, or any district 

 office of the Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce. The countries 

 dealt with are Bulgaria, Egypt, France, Greece, Italy, Persia, Serbia, Spain 

 and Turkey. The forest resources and lumber trade conditions of each are 

 described, and some attention is paid to the countries which have in the 

 past done most of the business, namely, Austria, Ronmania and Russia. 



Now Is Time to Build with Wood 



In a recent paper by Edward Hines on the lumber situation, both 

 present and prospective, he summed up the situation as follows : 



To my mind there will never be a more opportune time to build with 

 lumber. As soon as the war is over, if natural conditions prevail, Europe 

 and the old world markets having had no lumber for the past three 



years, with the enormous amount of property destroyed, and particularly 

 the railroads calling for so much lumber for ties, and other construction 

 work, it should be followed by an active demand for lumber abroad, stimu- 

 lating the price, and which, of necessity, must be reflected in our home 

 markets. 



It seems to me that there are countless advantages in mill construction 

 buildings today, as against steel construction. Firsti you can get the timber 

 and lumber promptly and, second, at a very low price, as compared with 

 steel, and extremely low compared with the actual cost of producing it. 

 Hence, it would seem to me that the architects, when acquainted with these 

 conditions, would explain to prospective builders and the public, in such 

 manner, as many having property or interested in large industrial affairs, 

 would take advantage of these conditions in lumber, and with the present 

 low rates of interest asked on money, and build now, and not wait for the 

 uncertainties of the future. I cannot see anything indicative of labor be- 

 coming materially cheaper, even after the war, or, at least, for some time, 

 and that is the only thing that the war might possibly reduce. Lumber can 

 never be cheaper, but must yearly carry with it some advance to help take 

 care of the actual carrying and interest charges. 



New Use Suggested for Tupelo 



The tupelo tree that grows in southern wet lands is characterized by 

 butts that are greatly swelled. It seems to be a provision of nature 

 whereby the tree can stand oh soft land without sinking down. It is like a 

 snow shoe which enables a man to stand on snow which would not bear his 

 weight if not so shod. Other swamp trees are slmilarily provided with 

 flaring, bell-shaped bases, among them being cypress, red g>im, water elm, 

 and pumpkin ash. 



The wood constituting the swelled base of tupelo is much lighter in 

 weight than that of the main body of the tree, and because of its lightness 

 it is frequently rejected from shipments of tupelo lumber. The problem 

 of finding a profitable use for this wood has long perplexed the lumber- 

 men, and recently samples were sent to the government forest products 

 laboratory, Madison, Wis., for tests, with the hope that some use might be 

 suggested. 



The laboratory recommended it-' for wood flour which requires a light, 

 white wood. The manufacture of wood flour is not new, but there is 

 plenty of room for it to grow. It is valuable as an absorbent of nitro- 

 glycerine in the manufacture of dynamite, is used for body in making lino- 

 leum, and for many other purposes. The supply of high-grade material 

 from the tupelo lumber regions is practically unlimited. 



A Year's Lumber Exports 



Export figures of forest products for twelve months ending with Decem- 

 ber, 1916, have been published by the Department of Commerce. Some of 

 the totals follow : 



Hickory logs $ 64,396 Staves S 3,565,142 



Oak logs 37,000 Heading 239,846 



Walnut logs 32,355 All other lumber 3,280,272 



All other logs 776.326 Doors, sash, blinds 355,393 



Firewood 203,824 Furniture 3,370,318 



Square yellow pine 3,503,826 Hogsheads and barrels. 703,767 



Other square timber. .. . 720,348 Incubators 76,667 



Lumber 2.5,520,042 House finishings 429,162 



Railroad ties 6,647,954 Woodenware 320,506 



Shingles 59,611 Wood pulp 2.121,745 



Box shooks 2,023,828 All other 8,413,278 



Barrel shooks 1,397,154 



Total $59,862,756 



Corresponding totals for preceding years were 1914, $74,965,170 ; 1915, 

 $55,277,753. 



Forest Fire Figures for One Year 



The Forest Service has published its figures concerning the forest fires in 

 the United States during 1913. The total number reported was 22,468, and 

 the compiler was of the opinion that If all had been included the total 

 would have reached 40,000. The aggregate area burned and reported was 

 3,306,650 acres, and the loss $4,009,336. The causes of the fires are given : 

 Railroads, 3,548 ; brush burners, 3,345 ; campers, 2,347 ; lightning, 2,298 ; 

 incendiary, 1,751 ; miscellaneous, 2,384 ; unknown, 3,867. Fires caused by 

 lightning were much more numerous west of the Rocky Mountains than 

 east. Lightning is more frequent in the eastern section than in the west- 

 ern, but in the former rain always accompanies lightning, while it does not 

 always do so farther west. The presence of rain doubtless diminishes the 

 number of fires started by lightning. 



A Valuable Hollow Tree 

 A mountaineer in West Virginia took twenty gallons of honey from a 

 hollow tree. A swarm of bees had taken possession of the cavity and 

 filled it with wild honey which brought the finder more money than he 

 had made during the preceding six months digging ginsing and collecting 

 coonskins. 



Many Poles Used in the United States 



The Forest Service, through its oflice of industrial investigations, has 

 compiled statistics on the number of poles purchased annually in the 

 United States. The figures represent between ninety and ninety-five per 

 cent of the total, as naturally a good many small users did not report. 

 The total figures were as follows : 1915, 4,078,000 ; 1911, 3,418,000 ; 1910, 

 3,871,000; 1909, 3,739,000; 1908, 3,249,000; 1907, 3,283,000. 



Cedar is by far the most popular wood for this use, the total in this wood 

 being equivalent in each year to more than the total of all other woods. 

 Chestnut comes second; pine, third; oak, fourth, and cypress fifth. Chest- 

 nut is materially ahead of the other woods except cedar, although pine 

 showed a decided gain from 1911 to 1915, in fact, it almost caught chestnut. 



