HARDWOOD RECORD 



37 



associations for their special products should be continued. This 

 work, together with a forest products exposition, should so 

 strengthen the market, by creating a steady use of lumber, that in 

 the future we should not have the several usual lean years with 

 one of fatness. Mineral building material, including the cement 

 and clay products, until a few years ago, was so much more 

 expensive than lumber that it was out of reach of ordinary 

 builders, but owing to the improved methods of manufacture, 

 coupleil with the fact that lumber has advanced, it is becom- 



ing more commonly used. Now that the prices of all building 

 materials have become somewhat equalized, it behooves the manu- 

 facturers of lumber to demonstrate the cheapness and superiority 

 of wood as a building material. 



When it comes to the matter of financing an organization for 

 holding an exposition, there are a number of ways in which this 

 may be done. For instance, it could be made an auxiliary of this 

 association, or a distinct organization. Whichever method is 

 adopted, the association will have to stand back of. 



'\^'iii<^^ ^'^xix^^x!ivi^M--</isxi^±mi[^ 



'•^ National Hardwood Convention 





The National Hardwood Lumber Association met at its sixteenth 

 annual convention at the Hotel Sherman, Chicago, on Thursday and 

 Friday, June 5 and 6. In addition to the natural increase in attend- 

 ance due to the increase of over one-hundred sixty in member- 

 ship during the past year, the proposed changes in rules, in addi- 

 tion to the interesting program promised, resulted in a record at- 

 tendance. The attendance set a new record, there being 743 present. 



The notable events of the meeting were a striking address delivered 

 by Harry A. Wheeler of Chicago, president of the Chamber of Com- 

 merce of the L'nited States of America, and a discussion of the grad- 

 ing rules. 



Murdock MacLeod, president of the Lumbermen's Association of 

 Chicago, delivered an address of welcome, in which he fully impressed 

 the visiting hardwood men with the sincerity of the welcome extended 

 by the members of the trade in the Chicago market. 



John M. Woods of East Cambridge, Mass., responded in a char- 

 acteristically pleasing manner. 



President Charles H. Barnaby of Greeneastle, Ind., then delivered 

 his annual address as follows: 



President's Address 



Gentlemen of the National Hardwood Lumber Association : In accord- 

 ance with an established custom it is my privilege to submit a bric>£ 

 review of the accomplishments of the association during the past year. 



One year ago you honored me by election to the office of president. 

 Those of you who were present will perhaps recall that I made no 

 promises other than to put forth my best efforts to carry out the policies 

 of my worthy predecessor, which resulted in such- substantial growth 

 during his administration. 



The National Hardwood Lumber Association was organized sixteeu 

 years ago to meet an urgent demand for inspection rules that would be 

 tmiversally recognized by buyers and sellers in all sections. During my 

 brief talk one year ago when you so generously elected me chairman. 

 I stated that we then had accomplished the objects for which we were 

 f»rganized. Possibly few doubted that fact then, but the great increase in 

 membership as well as the very important gain in the quantity of lumber 

 officially inspected during the past year prove be.vond doubt the truth of 

 the statement that in so far as hardwood inspection rules are concerned 

 there is but one association today. 



I trust you will pardon me if I dwell briefly on the past. Bein,g a 

 charter member of this association, having attended every convention but 

 one, and having served as a director and member of the executive com- 

 mittee for six years, gives license perhaps to reminisce. This associa- 

 tion was born in this city in 1S97 and its first meeting was attended by 

 loss than thirty lumbermen. That there was great need of such an 

 organization, no honest man questioned. Prior to that time every market 

 had its own rules of inspection and both buyers and sellers interpreted 

 such rules as they saw fit. In those days the question of securing fair 

 treatment on the inspection and measurement was of equal importance 

 with the financial standing of the customer. Not so today, because after 

 our investigation of credit has been made and results show a solvent 

 condition, the old problem of inspection and measurement is fully and 

 tinally solved by stipulating the official rules of the National Hardwood 

 Lumber Association. As a direct result of the work of this organization 

 the hardwood lumber industry has been placed on a high plane and today 

 ranks second to none in the entire commercial field. 



While I do not propose to weary you with statistics, I cannot refrain 

 from calling your attention to the rapid growth of our inspection depart- 

 ment. In 1905 we had four salaried inspectors, whose earnings in inspec- 

 tion fees were not sufficient to cover the salary and expense the asso- 

 ciation was put to in maintaining them. Today we have thirty-five 

 salaried inspectors, who for the fiscal year ending May 1, 191.3, together 

 with the fee inspectors, measured and inspected a total of nearly 180.000,- 



iiOU feet, with practically no expense to the association. This is an 

 increase of 47,000,000 feet over 1912. or about thirty per cent. During 

 the year re-inspections have been called on l,D94,69o feet, which is less 

 than one per cent of the total amount. The result of these re-inspections 

 shows a difference of four per cent, or more in money value on only 

 261,469 feet, resulting in claims paid by the association of $345.30. I 

 submit these figures as positive evidence that great progress has been 

 made toward securing a more uniform application of the rules by the 

 inspection force. It is my belief that much credit is due our chief 

 inspector for this improved showing, and I do not believe it would be 

 possible to engage a more competent corps of inspectors than our present 

 force. 



The increase in membership is also gratifying. One hundred and sixty 

 new members have been admitted "during the year, bringing the total to 

 859. I wish to call your attention to the fact that gains have been 

 made in territory new to the National Hardwood Lumber Association. I 

 refer to our neighbors in Canada, and if you will consult the present list 

 you will find we now have twenty-one members in Canada, as against 

 three one year ago. The inspector stationed in Toronto has made a 

 creditable showing and I believe even greater progress will be shown in 

 that territory during the coming year. 



There is no longer opposition to the rules and official inspection of the 

 National association in Greater New York. We now enjoy the support 

 of forty-six firms in that market, so that this year marks an increase of 

 nearly one hundred per cent in our numerical strength in that important 

 center. 



In a large mjijority of the distributing markets and producing centers 

 our support today is practically unanimous, and this fact is surely corrobo- 

 rative of the claim that there exists today but one recognized set of 

 inspection rules for hardwood. 



In the revised b.v-laws adopted at our last annual meeting, article nine, 

 section one, roads as follows : 



"The inspection rules of this association can be changed only at an 

 annual meeting by two-thirds majority vote of the members voting 

 thereon." 



Section two : 



"No change in the inspection rules shall bo considered or voted upon by 

 the membership unless such proposed change shall have been submitted in 

 writing to the chairman of the inspection rules committee not less than 

 ninety days prior to said meeting. The inspection rules committee shall 

 submit to the membership through the secretary's office its recommenda- 

 tions regarding such changes not less than thirty days prior to the annual 

 meeting." 



Article ten : 



"These by-laws may be altered or amended by the usual two-thirds vote 

 of the members present at any annual convention, except article nini', 

 which may only be amended, altered or changed bv giving notice of the 

 proposed changes to the so.cretar.v-treasurer thirty daVs prior to the annuiil 

 meeting, such notice to be signed by not less than' ten members. The 

 proposed changes to be submitted to the convention and voted on in the 

 regular way." 



In conformity with article nine, section two, the inspection rules com- 

 mittee, in its annual report, will submit at this meeting to the member- 

 ship its recommendations for changes in inspection rules as have ijeen 

 proposed by members of the association. In further conformity with 

 article nine, section two, these recommendations have been printed and 

 were mailed to each member from the secretary's office on Apr. 5, 1913. 

 As to the advisability of the proposed changes being adopted, your chair- 

 man ofl'ers no comment. It is much more vital to every member that the 

 association be maintained in its present condition of efficient usefulness 

 than can be the particular wording of any inspection rule. Our corps of 

 inspector,?, however, is amply able to carry on inspection work for the 

 membership at large, whether changes are made or not. 



I have received, during the past sixty days, many letters from all 

 branches of the trade in every section of the countr.v, some favoring slight 

 changes and others opposing any change. I have invariably replied that, 

 inasmuch as it takes a two-thirds vote to change the rules of inspection. 

 I was perfectly satisfied that no change detrimental to the association 

 or trade at large would be made. The only criticism that has reached 

 me during the year regarding our official inspection is to the effect that 

 some of the inspectors are at times rather technical in the application of 

 the rules. This criticism has by no means been general, but, in fact, has 



