7^S 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



interest to call vour attention to some of the 

 figures lately published by the Northern Pine 

 Manufacturers' Association showing the amount 

 of white piue on hand January 1, 1911, to be 

 about ir> per cent loss than a year ago. Stocks 

 of No. .S boards and strips have been reduced a 

 little less than 'AO per cent and No. 4 boards 

 about .'!.') per cent. There has also been a re- 

 duction in the amount of dimension, selects and 

 No. 1 and No. 2 boards and strips. It shows 

 an increase of alioiit 8.000.000 in shingles and a 

 decrease of about 37 per cent in 4-toot lath. It 

 may also be well to note that there have been 

 some large sales of box lumber made at the head 

 of the lakes within the last few weeks for de- 

 livery upon the opening of navigation. 



Your committee is greatly impressed with the 

 importance of the information given weekly In 

 the weeklv sales report. It does feel that this 

 sheet can be greatly improved, not by your sec- 

 retary, but bv each and every member of thl.s 

 body accurately and promptly making out the 

 reports requested. The advisability of this move 

 has been questioned by a number of us. I was 

 one of the parties who seriously questioned its 

 advisability and propriety. After carefully 

 watching the workings of the plan adopted I 

 have been fully convinced that it is the only 

 proper method of placing accurate and pertinent 

 information regularly in our hands. There seems 

 to be no reason for not furnishing the informa- 

 tion necessary to mal;e out these reports. 



During the last .year your inspectors have 

 made 52S calls at the various mills, and have 

 handled 2,.'i2r,.ri.1S feet — 1,. 394, 825 feet of hem- 

 lock and 00,';,413 feet of hardwood. In the 

 hemlock they found 44,819 feet above grade and 

 .30.398 feet iielow grade. The hardwood showed 

 6,680 feet above grade and 26,616 feet below 

 grade. They made inspections in but 361 of the 

 .'528 calls, being unable to make inspections In 

 167 visits on account of no loading and for va- 

 rious other reasons. 



Inspectors' services on reinspections were 

 asked on forty-five shipments. The amount re- 

 inspected was 416,633 feet, of which 13.112 feet 

 was found to be above grade and 73,785 feet 

 below grade. 



We would like to suggest that the members 

 can save a great deal of expense as well as loss 

 of time on 'the part of inspectors, if they will 

 make sure that the services of an inspector are 

 needed before sending him to the point where 

 reinspection was called for, as we find In many 

 cases that the inspectors' services are not need- 

 ed when he arrives at h!s destination. 



Reports also indicate that a large part of the 

 reinspection work is on the re.iected parts of 

 shipments only. As a matter of principle, and 

 in fairness to ourselves, we think the members 

 should insist that Inspections be made on the 

 entire shipments. This, however, is a matter for 

 your personal consideration. 



At the conclusion of Mr. Owen's report, 

 on motion of George Chapman, a vote of 

 thanks was tendered to the committee for the 

 work accomplished. 



President Landon then introduced C. A. 

 Bigelow, Bay City, Mich., president of the 

 Michigan Hardwood Manufacturers ' Asso- 

 ciation, who briefly addressed the meeting, 

 Mr. Bigelow stated that very cheerful condi- 

 tions prevailed in the Michigan hardwood 

 market at the present time, and that the 

 manufacturers were never in better shape 

 than they are today. Stocks were low; prices 

 were higher and the demand was good. He 

 said there had been a large increase in the 

 value of maple during the last few years. 



Following Mr. Bigelow 's talk came a brief 

 address from Bruce Odell of Cadillac, Mich., 

 chairman of the Market Conditions Commit- 

 tee of the Michigan Hardwood Manufactur- 

 ers' Association. Mr. Odell was entirely op- 

 timistic, but suggested if manufacturers would 

 pay less attention to saving on saw and log- 

 ging bills and study the sales end of their 

 business more, that would be one way to 

 show better balances on the right side of 

 the ledger. He then took up the question 

 of finding new uses for No, 3 common hard- 

 woods stating that a five per cent over- 

 production would make a weak market, 

 while a five per cent underproduction would 

 make a strong one. 



Following this came a report from F, H. 

 Pardoe, chairman of the Railroad Commit- 

 tee, which involved local matters in connec- 

 tion with log .shipments germane to Wiscon- 

 sin. He also discussed the increase in the 

 minimum weights on lumber which the rail- 

 roads are trying to have enforced, which he 

 thought was a mistake on the part of the 

 commission. He also deprecated the rail- 

 roads' attempts to advance lumber rates to 

 both eastern and western territory. The pa- 

 per was a very valuable and exhaustive one 

 and it is regretted that , lack of space in 

 Record precludes its publication in full. 

 Chairman A. L. Osborn made a report on 



R. E. MAC LEAN, WELLS, MICH., DIRECTOR 



the industrial indemnity bill now before the 

 legislature of Wisconsin. Mr. Osborn said 

 that he regarded the bill as incompetent for 

 an employer to plead as a defense. He did 

 not believe it justice that the employer should 

 assume the responsibility for accidents that 

 are due to contributory negligence by the 

 employe. 



The convention then adjourned until '2 p. m. 



On reconvening, T. A. Greene was intro- 

 duced, and made the following report as chair- 

 man of the Committee on Forest Fires: 

 Report of Committee on Forest Fires 



Tour committee has managed to grow until It 

 is now really two committees of three members 

 each, one for Wisconsin and one for Michigan. 

 This was found necessary on account of the dif- 

 ferent conditions in the two states. 



Four of your committee were at St. Paul as 

 delegates to the Lake States Forest Fire Con- 

 ference, J. T. Barber, A, R. Owen, W. A. Holt 

 and T. A. Greene. The conference was a distinct 

 success. All the varied interests present acted 

 in harmony and the resolutions adopted were 

 well received. They have since been recom- 

 mended by the Minnesota state forestry board, 

 and the committees on forestry of the Wisconsin 

 legislature. They have been well received by the 

 Michigan public domain commission. It seems 

 well to note that the general slash burning law 

 of Minnesota will probably be repealed; that 

 Wisconsin authorities do not look with favor on 

 such a law, and that Michigan is not likely to 

 have such a law. 



A number of our members have lost heavily 

 through forest fires the last summer and others 

 have been learning of heavy damage done by the 

 fires of October, which were at that time con- 

 sidered practically harmless. While It Is true 

 that there have been periods of disastrous fires 

 in the past, they were, however, pine slashing 



fires largely. In recent years the fires have been 

 In mixed timber slashings, largely hemlock, and 

 they have done great damage to standing timber 

 that has been considered pretty nearly immune In 

 the past. It seems probable that fires will be even 

 more prevalent in the future. The almanacs for 

 1911 predict forest fires in Wisconsin and Michi- 

 gan for early fall. 



It seems to be the opinion of nearly ail stu- 

 dents of the situation that something must be 

 done to prevent, as far as possible, future fires. 

 The Northern Forest Protective Association, 

 whose ultimate object is private patrol, has been 

 organized and now has a membership embracing 

 2,000,000 acres or more. Thomas B. Wyman, 

 for some years past chief forester of the Cleve- 

 land Cliffs Iron Company, has resigned his posi- 

 tion with that company to take the same place 

 with the new organization. Your committee men- 

 tions tills because it looks like a step in the 

 right direction. We think the new association 

 deserves your fullest co-operation and support. 

 Your committee suggests that you Indorse the 

 resolutions passed at St. Paul and that the legis- 

 latures of the several states be notified to that 

 effect ; also that the Michigan legislature be urged 

 to place the matter of forest protection and the 

 state fire warden's department under the Public 

 Domain Commission. 



Your committee would urge that the members 

 of this association take greater pains in the 

 futare to prevent fires through carelessness, by 

 the employment of watchmen during dry and 

 dangerous seasons and by seeing that all steam 

 logging machinery is properly equipped with 

 screens and spark arresters. 



We recommend that your committee be empow- 

 ered to recommend such forest legislation for 

 Wisconsin and Michigan as in the future it may 

 deem best. 



Mr. Greene recommended the passing of a 

 resolution of approval on the work done by the 

 Forest Fire Conference recently held at St. 

 Paul, and called attention to the resolutions 

 passed at that time, recommending to the 

 legislatures of Wisconsin, Michigan and Min- 

 nesota, the total inadequacy of the present 

 forest fire warden service to meet the exist- 

 ing fire hazard to both life and property. The 

 motion prevailed. 



On motion of George H. Chapman, the ap- 

 pointment of such a committee was passed. 



A lengthy discussion on market conditions 

 tlien took place. 



Election of Officers 



The election of officers for 1911 resulted 

 as follows: 



President — W. C. Landon. 



Vice-President — M. P. McCuIlough. 



Treasurer — George E. Foster. 



Secretary — R. S. Kellogg. 



Directors — O. W. Brightman, George H. At- 

 wood. T. A. Greene and R. E. MacLean. 



Committee on Grades and Information — A. R. 

 Owen. C. A. Phelps. C. A. Goodman, M. J. Quln- 

 lan. Prank Fountain, J. T. Phillips and Lament 

 Rowlands. 



Mr. Greene offered the following resolution, 

 which was adopted : 



Resolved. That we recognize in the forest 

 products laboratory at Madison a distinct aid to 

 the lumber industry of the United States in 

 solving the problems of the more complete utili- 

 zation of the forest. 



Resolved. That we respectfully call the atten- 

 tion of the University of Wisconsin to the need 

 of the lumber industry for men technically 

 trained in the manufacture, marketing and utili- 

 zation of lumber in order that the products of 

 the forest may be utilized to the best advantage 

 and waste prevented, and. believing that the uni- 

 versity has unusual opportunities in this field 

 by reason of the presence of the forest products 

 laboratory, we recommend that the university 

 establish "a school of forest utilization to meet 

 this need. 



Resolved. That the legislative committee of 

 this association be Instructed to present this 

 matter to the governor, the legislature and the 

 university and to ask the manufacturers of for- 

 est products to join In this request. 



Wm. L. Hall of the Forest Service addressed 

 the meeting on the subject of comparative 

 lumber production. Mr. Hall showed that 

 in a thirty years' period the increase in lum- 

 ber production had greatly exceeded the in- 

 crease in population, which was evidenced by 

 the increased per capita use of wood. 



The meeting then adjourned. 



