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HARDWOOD RECORD 



of steel freight car coustruetioD, save that it is necessary to devise 

 types of freight ears that shall be able to carry more dead weight than 

 it is possible to build from wood, and that steel freight car con- 

 struction is still in an experimental stage. 



Likewise there are apparent!}- no railroad men or engineers of 

 steel car passenger construction who attempt to defend the present 

 type of steel sleeping, dining and passenger car, beyond making the 

 same allegation that this typo of construction is still in an " experi- 

 mental stage," and that eventually it will develop into good results. 



The lives of the traveling public apparently enter very little into 

 consideration, and perhaps even less than this is considered the ex- 



traordinary and monumental expense that is being undergone by rail- 

 roads in the purchase and maintenance of both steel passenger and 

 freight cars. In defense of public safety it might be suggested that 

 steel manufacturers, steel ear makers, and railroads that employ 

 steel passenger cars should not be permitted to jeopardize the lives 

 of the traveling public until their experiments have reached a satis- 

 factory result. The public certainly would be perfectly willing, until 

 this consummation is reached, that all experiments with steel passenger 

 cars be limited to a passenger list consisting of members of the steel 

 trust, steel car builders and railroad officials who have faith in this 

 type of construction. 



B 139 — Opinion of a Recognized Authority 



on Northern Low-Grade Hardwood 



Situation 



Cadillac, Midi.. Doc. 13. — Editor Haudwood 

 Recobd : Referring to "Editorial Comment," 

 "General Market Conditions." Hardwood Record, 

 Dec. 10, 1911. You .say as follows: "Hardwood 

 culls in the northern country seem to be in over 

 supply, and such offerings as are made for round 

 lots carry a price that is very much below the 

 cost of manufacture." 



Knowing as I do your interest in the hardwood 

 industry. I am somewhat surprised at this part 

 of your article as it certainly will have a ten- 

 dency to do an injustice to the industry if 

 allowed to pass unchallenged. The fact is your 

 reasoning is based on the opposile of real condi- 

 tions, as No. 3 common or cull hardwood in both 

 Michigan and Wisconsin is in lighter supply than 

 at any time since 1907. 



Statistics compiled by the Michigan Hardwood 

 Manufacturers' Association Oct. 1 show as fol- 

 lows regarding No. 3 common hardwood : Total 

 stock Oct. 1, 1909, 70,000,000, 1910, 70.000,000, 

 1911. 50,000,000, or less than 75 per cent of a 

 normal stock, and similar conditions exist in 

 Wisconsin. 



I admit that the price paid the manufacturer 

 for No. 3 common hardwood is less than the 

 cost to manufacture, even without allowing any- 

 thing for stumpage, but there have been only 

 one or two years in the history of the industry 

 when the manufacturer has obtained manufac- 

 turing cost for his No. 3 common. 



Manufacturers have known for some time of 

 the light stocks of No. 3 common, amounting 

 to a shortage, hut the consumer has been so 

 accustomed to an oversupply, that he is slow to 

 realize that such a thing as a scant supply or 

 a shortage Is possible. Some, however, must 

 realize the fact, as they arc placing orders at 

 $1.00 to $1.50 per thousand higher than sixty 

 days ago, and this is true not only of No. 3 

 common hardwood, but this condition exists with 

 low-grade lumber of all kinds. 



— Urcce Odell. 



B 140 — Approves Hardwood Record's Anal- 

 ysis of Publicity Campaign 



St. Louis, IJcc. 14. — ICdltor Hardwood Ubc- 

 OBD : We want to express our appreciation of 

 your article bearing on the subject of advertis- 

 ing, and we fully agree with you in all your 

 statements. 



Garet.so.\-Greason I,i;.mber Co.MrANv. 



B 141 — Seeks Beech and Birch Dowels 



London, N. E., Nov. 2Q. — Editor Hardwood 

 Recobd: We should feel obliged If you could 

 pat us In touch with some llrms who supply 

 beech and birch dowels. We arc anxious to And 

 someone who ships this class of stock. 



The above letter is from a London timber 

 and veneer house, which deals heavily in 



American hardwoods. It has been supplied 

 with the addresses of two producers of beech 

 and birch dowels, and any others interested 

 in ojiening negotiations with the institution 

 can have the address by writing us and 

 referring to B 141. — Editor. 



B 142 — Wants to Market Applewood 



Kansas City, llo.. Dee. 9. — Editor Hardwood 

 Record : Kindly let us know the names of those 

 jobbers or manufacturers who li.andle applewood. 

 We have a considerable quantity of this wood 

 that will be available very shortly, and would 

 like this information if you are in a position 

 to furnish it. 



Lumber Company. 



This concern has been supplied with a list 

 of the principal users of applewood in the 

 United States, and any others interested in 

 making a connection for this variety of lum- 

 ber can have the address by writing us and 

 referring to B 142. — Editor. 



B 143 — Contemplates Manufacturing Broom 

 Handles 



Piqua, Ohio, Dec. 13. — Edior Hardwood 

 Record : Will you kindly advise whether it is 

 practical to make broom handles out of biri'h 

 secured in the northern peninsula of Michigan 

 and Wisconsin? 



Makupacturing Company. 



The writer of the above letter is an agri- 

 cultural tool handle and wood specialty turn- 

 ery house, and has been advised that Michi- 

 gan and Wisconsin maple and birch are 

 used indiscriminately in the making of 

 broom handles, and in some cases a small 

 percentage of beech is also "accidentally" 

 allowed to slip into the bundles of handles. 

 — Editor. 



B 144 — Wants Small Three-ply Gum 

 Dimension 



LItltz, Pa., Dec. 7. — Editor Hardwood Record ; 

 Can you furnish us with the names of a few re- 

 liable manufacturers of gum veneer? In the 

 process of manufacturing veneers and panels. 

 and cutting to sizes for various uses, quite a 

 quantity of waste accumulates that could be cut 

 into three-ply sizes we require, which are blocks 

 Vi" thick X 1}8" wide x 3%" long; and ,'," 

 thick X 3ft" wide x 7" long, to very good advan- 

 lage. thus realizing a certain value out of waste 

 Instead of burning It. We can use these blocks 

 In car lots. 



We would appreciate very much any informa- 

 llon you can supply us. 



CO.MPANV, 



The writer of the above letter is a foremost 

 manufacturing institution in high commercial 



repute, which has been given the names of 

 several gum panel producers, but has been ad- 

 vised that there would be no economy in at- 

 tempting to secure these sizes in carload lots 

 from panel trimmings, and that the cheaper 

 way to secure the material is by having the 

 stock made in the required thicknesses in panels 

 of suitable sizes, and then by means of gang 

 cross-cut and ripping saws reduce it to re- 

 quired sizes. Anyone interested in the in- 

 quiry can have the address by writing Haed- 

 wooD Record and referring to B 144. 

 — Editor. 



B 145 — Railroads Wake Up 



Salt Lake City, Utah, Dec. 12. — Editor Habd- 

 wooD Record : We were contemplating the pur- 

 chase of new cars of all-steel design when our 

 attention was called to the articles recently pub- 

 lished by you on this subject. Will you kindly 

 favor us with what reprints you have on this 

 subject in the near future? 



J. M. Bainbergek, Vice-President, 



Salt Lake & Ogden Railroad. 



B 146 — ^Foreign Oak Supply 



New York, Dec. 16. — Editor Hardwood Rec- 

 nisD: Under the head of B 133. JIail Bag, your 

 issue of the tenth, wo note with interest the re- 

 marks of Dr. Schenck on Spessart oak. While 

 we concede all of this to be true as to the high 

 prices of stumpage in this district, please note 

 ihat this oak is not at all plentiful in Germany, 

 nnd therefore is practically exotic in price, as 

 ihe quantity of lumber brought on the market is 

 inly sullicient to supply a limited number of 

 German cabinet makers. One should gather the 

 Impression that all ISuropean white oak stump- 

 age is so dear as might he inferred from Dr. 

 Schenck's letter. Slavonia and Croatia still have 

 much white oak stumpage of as good a quality 

 as that of Spessart and are continually manu- 

 lacturing lumber for the French, English and 

 Belgian, and last but not least German markets. 

 It is in Atistro-Hungary that one finds the 

 largest export productions of white oak lumber. 



I. IIerz. 



B 147 — Approves Hardwood Record's Di- 

 mension Analysis 



New York, Doc. IG. — Editor ILvrdwood Rec- 

 ord : ConQrmIng your letter of the 5th Instant, 

 we wish to express our warmest appreciation of 

 your article on hardwood dimension in your issue 

 of Dec. 10. We agree with you In every par- 

 ticular. Please note the following points: Elrst : 

 The stock we require Is not "dimension" In the 

 accepted sense here, I. e., only certain bills of 

 specified sizes, but rather — as you will note from 

 our Inquiry — from certain widths, lengths, thick- 

 nesses and lip according to the yield of the log. 

 The dllTerence of this production and that of 

 special sizes Is one qt day and night as regards 

 yield. 



We are prepared to take this matter up with 

 any mill or mills having a good quality of white 

 oak. which desire to enter upon such export 

 business, assuring them Ihat the same will prove 



