40 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



compared with a jjcar earlier. An increase of 20 per cent in birch on 

 hand unsold, and of 7 per cent in hard maple is more than offset by 

 decreases of 23 per cent in ash. 19 per cent in basswood, 23 per cent 

 In rock elm. 2G per cent in soft elm and 22 per cent in oak, making 

 the total amount of hardwood unsold the first of January this year, 

 slightly less than the first of January last year. The monthly reports 

 indicate that shipments of hardwood in 1011 amounted to 1)0 per cent of 

 production, while the stock reports show that of all the hardwood or 

 hand the first of January this year. 42 per cent is sold, against 36 per 

 cent sold last year. Moreover, the recent increase in demand for low- 

 grade material has reduced stocks of dry No. 3 hardwoods to at least 

 25 per cent below what they were a year ago. 



Reports gathered last October indicated a probable decrease of 14 per 

 cent In the input of hemlock logs this winter, and of 11 per cent in 

 hardwood logs— a probable decrease of 13 per cent for the two com- 

 bined. The weather this winter has not been favorable to rapid logging, 

 so it is not likely that the total input will exceed the estimates made 

 in the fall. 



Conditions Elsewhere 



A brief survey of conditions in other iocalities is must iuslructive. 

 There is no over-supply of hardwoods in southern Xlichigau. with an 

 actual shortage there, as here, in No. 3. Moreover, the hemlock situation 

 in the lower peninsula is stronger than for several years past. 



Yellow pine stocks are badly broken and much below normal. Manu- 

 facturers have orders on hand for most of the lumber in pile, and heavy 

 bookings for special stuff. E'xport trade and local demand are strong, 

 while weather conditions are forcing a heavy curtailment in cut through- 

 out the South. 



The stock reports of the Northern Pine Manufacturers' Association 

 show a little increase in dimension, some decrease in common boards and 

 strips, and less than halt tin- (piantity of No. .') boards on hand as com- 

 pared with a year ago. 



Conditions are improving on the Tacific coast, in Oregon and Wash- 

 ington a large number of mills will be closed during December, January 

 and February, and many others are shut for from thirty to sixty days. 

 The resulting curtailment in production will be not less than DOO.000,000 

 feet, which will do much to counteract the previous overproduction of fir. 



The long-continued duration of low price levels for lumber has forced 

 manufacturers everywlu're to calculate costs more clo.sely than ever before. 

 and It is leading them to decide that it is better to shut up shop than 

 to sell for prices which will not cover stumpage. manufactun' and selling 

 expenses, together with a reasonable margin of profit. 

 SfCGESTEi) Association Activities 



The future of northern hemlock and hardwoods is not discouraging. 

 If we lose some old outlets for our products, we can find or make new 

 ones. Wood ha.s a real and substantial value, notwithstanding all the 

 Inroads of substitutes, and just because a man owns both standing timber 

 and a sawmill, it isn't absolutely necessary that he should put all the 

 timber through the .sawmill in order to sell it. The pulp mills of the 

 United States wll not indefinitely contlnne to import yearly 000,000 

 cords of high priced Canadian spruce to make paper of. They will learn 

 that after all, there is an abundant supply of pulp material available at 

 home, and right here is where the experiments of the Government 

 Oroundwood Laboratory at Wausau. some of whose results are soon to 

 be oflleially published, will do much for hemlock. Moreover, if the com- 

 petition of the substitute box proves too keen for the wooden box, there 

 will still be a chance to usi> much low-grade timber for boxes, for the 

 substitute box is made of pulp, and pulp is made of timber. Still again, 

 our Lower Michigan brethren are finding the manufacture of railroad 

 lies to be a good outlet tor a lot of material which, if sawed, produces 

 chiefly No. 3 lumber. There is much opportunity for a careful investiga- 

 tion of the possibilities of diversified utilization of our woods which 

 mght well be undertaken either by the nu'iubers individually, or by thi' 

 association. 



The secretary has for some time been i)ulilishing In the weekly circular, 

 more or less Information upon stock warned and fru- sale. How far such 

 Information has been of value, he has little means of Judging, for seldom. 

 If ever. Is he Informed of any sales which result from tbesc> efTorts. He 

 believi'8, however, that here' Is a field for the enlargement of assoc'atlon 

 activity, and he has some tentative notions on this subject which he 

 would be glad to take up with an association committee. If the members 

 think them worth while. 



Statistics compiled by the Northwestern Cedarmen's As.soclntlon show 

 that the Insurance premiums paid by the members for a period of five 

 years amounted lo $413,000 for which they received only .$31,000, or 

 less than eight per cent In payment of losses. This huge discrepancy 

 between outgo and Income has lead them to adopt a form of Inter- 

 Insurance, which Is said to have proved highly successful with other 

 indnstrles. It Is probable then an Investigation of payments and receipts 

 for Insurance by the members of this association would show a similar 

 condition. Here Is another fertile field for association activity. 



Kefcrence was made a year ago to the ni-ed of advertising our northern 

 woods. Since then, a general campaign to advertise wood against sub- 

 stitutes has been proposed which will probably be undertaken by the 

 National association, but whether this Is done or not. In no way altccts 

 the need of wider publicity for the merits of our own i)roducts, and 

 especially of birch. Wisconsin produces 40 per cent of all the birch 



lumber cut and nearly three times as much as any other state. Wis- 

 consin also leads in basswood, elm, and hemlock, without counting upper 

 Michigan, whose products and interests are in common with Wisconsin's. 

 This association, which represents both sections, could advertise the real 

 merits of these woods eO'ectlvely for probably one-half of the sum now 

 spent by the members individually in making general statements (never 

 read by the consumer) that "The Dryasdust Lumber Company manufac- 

 tures hemlock" or that nobody else can possibly iiroduce as good hard- 

 woods as the John Smith Company. Trade-bringing publicity catches 

 attention, arouses interest In the article to be sold, carries conviction as 

 to its merits, and creates desire for its possession. Has such an adver- 

 tisement ever appeared over the name of any member of this association'? 

 Plenty of money has been spent for ailvertising which has not brought 

 results. It is time to consider what changes in methods are necessary. 

 The least the nssocialiciu should do is to appoint a live c(uumittee to 

 study into the yuestion most thoroughly. To steal a quotation- "He who 

 finds he has something to sell, and goes and whispers it down a well. 

 is not so likely to collar the dollars as be who climbs a tree and hollers," 



The GENEit.lL Outlook 



Beginning with the latter part of October, the business tone has stead- 

 ily improved. Optimism has replaced pessimism, and the man who before 

 could see only the bole in the doughnut, now realizes that there is a 

 possibility of also getting some of the dough. General trade in 1911 

 has been fitly characterized as being in the state of repression rather than 

 depression, but unless all signs fail, there will be less repression this 

 year. This does not mean any immediate boom in any line, but it does 

 mean healthier activities undertaken with more confidence. A sage brush 

 philosopher remarked the other day that the man who talks the least 

 has the most sawdust to sell, and attention to this principle in 1012 

 will counteract all the prophesied evil effects of state and presidential 

 elections. We have always had elections, and will have them so long as 

 the present form of government endures. We ought not to take them 

 too seriously. After all, the main business of life of most of us Isn't 

 talking politics — it is attending to our own particular affairs, and doing 

 the best we can to meet conditions as they arise. 



On motion this report was accepted and filed. 



On motion the chair was authorized to appoint a committee of 

 five to take up the recommendations made by the president and 

 secretary and report at the afternoon session. The president 

 appointed as this committee Messrs. McCullough, Chapman, Green, 

 Earle and Schtilz. 



Railroad Matters 



W. G. Collar, chairman of the railroad committee, said that his 

 committee had no tangible report to present, although some things 

 occurring in connection with railroad affairs were encouraging. 

 The efforts to secure lower rates from the northern roads had not 

 met with success; while northern roads were willing to make reduc- 

 tions, southern roads leading to the North were not willing to 

 participate. The ear stake matter was again discussed. One rail- 

 road claimed that it would take a quarter of a cord of wood to 

 equip a freiijht car with stakes, which was worth more than the 

 cost of the material and the freight. The committee firmly be- 

 lieved that the safety appliance rules would eventually oblige 

 railroads to equip open ears with bunks and chains, Mr, Collar 

 said the distance tariff matter in Wisconsin had been indefinitely 

 postponed, and he believed lumbermen had nothing to fear from 

 that source, Mr. Collar suggested that if the association continued 

 to fight for car stakes it might be possible to get some relief from 

 state commissions; that many thousands of dollars had been spent 

 in a fight before the Interstate Commerce Commission, with no 

 results. 



The report was accepted. 



Legislative Matters 



A. L, Osborn, chairman of the legislative committee, said that his 

 committee had not held a meeting during the ptist year, but that 

 a number of matters had come to his attention .'ind he had been 

 able to do something for the association through the Wisconsin 

 Manufacturers' Association. One of the legislative problems with 

 which it had to contend was forest fire protection, and he believed 

 everyone was gratified with wha't had been acc(iin|ilislii'd abiiig 

 these lines. One of the things looked after w.'is a liill that was 

 introduced in the state legislature, making every election day in 

 the state a legal holiday, iiml providing a fine for every manu- 

 facturer who ran his jilaiit on those days. Mr. Osborn said that 

 under presr-nt conditions such a bill would make it bad enough 

 for nianufaeturers, but with the jirospect of inltiativi', refcriMi.biin 



