i6 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



J. E. Ehodes an aggregation of speakers, such as has never lieen 

 equaled by the National Lumber Manufacturers' Association, was 

 gotten together. As a result the delegates unquestionably left 

 Kansas City feeling the inspiration caused by the many words of 

 wisdom delivered at the sessions at that place. The addresses 

 included talks by experts on workmen's compensation, Mississippi 

 river regulations, forestry and conservation, timberland sales, na- 

 tion-wide economic questions, and various other absorbing topics. 

 The resolutions presented and adopted proved that the association 

 was willing to make every effort within its power to secure 

 changes and reforms for the direct good of the whole of the 

 lumber manufacturing contingent of the United States, as well 

 as business in general. 



The meeting of the National Hardwood Lumber Association at 

 Chicago developed the fact that the membership of that organi- 

 zation is held together by a distinct spirit of harmony and broad- 

 mindedness. The much-talked of proposal of radically changing 

 the grading rules was worked out to a successful conclusion with- 

 out friction, by compromises on the part of the various factions 

 interested. Here also the attendants were permitted to listen to 

 addresses by men who know, on many subjects of vital interest. 

 Most notable among these was an address by Harry A. Wheeler, 

 president of the Chamber of Commerce of the United States, 

 whose remarks were listened to with an absorption which was a 

 just tribute to the man delivering them. Altogether the two con- 

 ventions will go down in history as of imposing interest and 

 benefit to the lumber trade of the country. 



A Remarkable Manifestation 



'T'HAT THE BUSINESS INTERESTS of the country are in 

 * imperative need of a closer association with the politics of the 

 city, state and nation has been the contention of various men in a 

 position to closely observe the economic transition that has been 

 going on in this country for several years. These contentions 

 have been in the past largely theoretical in that they merely 

 pointed out the condition and did not in many cases suggest a 

 remedy. The two big lumber conTentions in the past week, how- 

 ever, brought out a world of suggestions along these lines, which 

 indicates that the business element of the country is awakening 

 to a realization of the conditions which it must face in order to 

 make secure the prosperity with which our nation has been 

 blessed for so long, and wliioli has made it the great nation whicli 

 it now is. 



The speakers at these conventions demonstrated the fact tliat 

 some of the best minds in the country have concentrated on this 

 question, and have actually worked out ways and means of ap- 

 proaching the condition on a businesslike basis. 



The address of A. B. Cruikshank, a prominent attorney of New 

 York City, as delivered at Kansas City before the National Lum- 

 ber Manufacturers' Association, was remarkable for its forceful- 

 ness and the clearness with which it laid the condition before the 

 listeners. According to that speaker the great drawback of our 

 government is the fact that it is not run, as a rule, by business 

 men, and that the legislators are not fully competent to pass and 

 administer legislation to fully take care of the requirements of 

 modern business. The suggestion was a nation-wide organization 

 of the business element of the country with the idea of keeping 

 closely in touch with national legislation in order to effect meas- 

 ures that are absolutely necessary for the successful continuation 

 of business in this country. 



The tenor of the talks of other speakers before that convention 

 was very similar, and on the whole pointed out the necessity for 

 business men changing present condition from, as Mr. Cruikshank 

 suggested, "the government of business" to "the business of 

 government." « 



The same thought was followed out at the meeting at Chicago 

 of the National Hardwood Lumber Association, which thought 

 was exemplified in a talk delivered by Harry A. Wheeler. Mr. 

 Wheeler said that there are nine problems which must be faced 

 by the nation, and must be faced soon and squarely and em- 

 phatically. These problems are divided under three heads: Social, 



economic, and industrial, and really typify the work of the asso- 

 ciation of which Mr. Wheeler is president, namely, the Chamber 

 of Commerce of the United States of America. 



The object of this editorial is to call the attention of the lum- 

 ber business, as the third largest industry of the country, to the 

 enormous importance of the work suggested by the speakers above 

 noted, and generally suggest that the lumber element as a unit 

 render its earnest and hearty support to the solution of these 

 problems through a sincere co-operation in any method proposed 

 for this purpose, one of which is the Chamber of Commerce of the 

 United States. The proceedings of this organization should be 

 closely followed and its purpose heartily endorsed. 



The organization of business men, as suggested by Mr. Cruik- 

 shank, might, it appears, be very easily consummated through the 

 National Chamber of Commerce if that body has sufficient moral 

 support to successfully carry on this work. 



Mahogany Prices Not All Velvet 



THE RAPID INCREASE in the selHng price of mahogany in 

 various markets of the country might be considered by those 

 not conversant with the various conditions which affect manu- 

 facturers of mahogany as being merely an attempt on the part 

 of those manufacturers to increase their profits from operation 

 at a bound. The opinions of prominent manufacturers, however, 

 indicate that such advances as have been noted have been abso- 

 lutely necessary and have been effected entirely by two factors 

 operating in the opposite direction, — namely, increased cost of 

 logs and increased transportation charges across the ocean. The 

 first condition is the result of various causes operating in differ- 

 ent mahogany producing sections of the world, but is an actual, 

 concrete condition which apparently has no immediate remedy. 



The second condition probably is the result of a natural in- 

 crease in export business to various large countries of the world 

 and the fact that ocean transportation companies have not been 

 able to keep pace with this increased volume of business in the 

 matter of providing sufficient steamers to acommodate that trade. 

 The most active factor which has had its effect in the last year 

 or so has been the increasing interest in the possible trade to be 

 derived from the opening of the Panama canal. The interest in 

 the canal has greatly increased the demand for shipping bottoms 

 and has resulted in a remarkable incre^ise in ocean freight rates. 

 One large mahogany lumber manufacturer in the South makes the 

 stavement that recent freight rate advances, as announced by 

 steamship companies, directly increase the expense of the manu- 

 facture of mahogany lumber by about $5.00 a thousand feet. This, 

 according to the manager of the company referred to, had to be 

 met by an increase in the price of mahogany. 



It is not probable "that, aside from any temporary fluctuations 

 in the mahogany market, anything will arise that will retard the 

 advance or reduce the selling price of mahogany in the near future. 

 It is quite likely that a large number of new steamers will be 

 constructed to take care of the Panama trade, but this increase 

 in shipping accommodations will not have any effect in the imme- 

 diate future. The statement on the part of various large steam- 

 ship lines crossing the Atlantic that they have made practically no 

 profit in the past year and must necessarily increase rates during 

 the next year would not indicate that there will be any relief for 

 gome time at least. 



A Blow at the Commerce Court 



ALMOST SIMULTANEOUSLY WITH THE PASSAGE of a 

 resolution by the National Lumber Manufacturers' Associa- 

 tion assembled in convention at Kansas City last week, endorsing 

 the Federal Commerce Court, comes the news that Representative 

 Sims of Tennessee has introduced his bill in Congress at Wash- 

 ington, D. C, providing for the abolition of that body. The bill 

 was referred to the House Committee on Interstate and Foreign 

 Commerce. Inasmuch as the committee has not been re-organized 

 and possibly will not be re-organized during the extra session of 

 Congress, the Commerce court is placed in a peculiar situation. 

 The appropriation for the court continues only until July 1 of 



