December 23, 191S 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



21 



stock and sales reports had Ix'en iiroperly arranged, saying tliat tli(> 

 object has been to make it easy for the meniljei's to send in their 

 reports and to refer to the information later. He snggested that 

 members send in copies of all orders, leaving off customers' names, 

 if they wished, stating that this would make a very simple and easy 

 way of gathering this information. He maintained that the reports 

 have very great value and insisted that no member can keep prop- 

 erly informed on markets without them. 



There were no reports from the following committees: Inspec- 

 tion rules, terms of sale, costs, rotary veneer department. 



Report on Dimension Stock 



E. L. Muse in speaking at the close of the morning session in 

 behalf of the dimension members, said that that business is very 

 freakish, due to the class of labor employed by the manufacturers 

 and to the lack of accurate cutting knowledge on the part of both 

 the manufacturer and the laborer. The result is that the business is 

 very hazardous, but the most hazardous part is the sales price. He 

 deplored the general and overwhelming ignorance which makes it 

 imjiossible to arrive at uniform figures at which the material should 

 be sold. 



He also deplored the fact that most lumber manufacturers cut 

 out a certain amount of dimension materials as a side line, figuring 

 that it is a side issue, and are willing to dump it for almost any 

 amount they can get for it. Mr. Muse stated that the dimension 

 business must show some profit just as does any other business or 

 the manufacturer will eventually be bankrupt. 



Among the forty members of the dimension department there ex- 

 ists very little co-operation, and hence it is difficult to get more mem- 

 bers. This in spite of the fact that, according to Mr. Muse, over 

 12,000 mills cut dimension stock; ten times as many as cut hardwood 

 lumber. This is divided np, however, into small units, there being 

 myriads of small mills which will always remain small because of 

 lack of organization and knowledge of the business. 



Appointments 



President Jurden then appointed as members of the resolutions 

 and officers' committee, K. O. Robinson, chairman; C. L. Harrison 

 and J. W. McClure. 



Afternoon Session 



James L. Hamill opened the afternoon session, offering a resolu- 

 tion putting the convention on record as favoring the maintenance 

 of an American merchant marine, continuing the building of ships 

 and so controlling the operation of the merchant marine through 

 legislation so that it can successfully compete with foreign business. 

 The resolution was submitted to the resolutions committee. 



Manss Delivers Wonderful Address 



II. \V. Manss, chairman of the War Service Committee of tho 

 ilmrTiber of (lommorce of the United States, gave a wonderfully 

 stirring address ile\<i1iil to industrial and business problems that 

 confront the country. He referred to the successful war effort of 

 the United States, saying that this success was made possible by 

 the spirit of tho nation and the efficiency of the individual. Paral- 

 lel witli this, according to Mr. Manss, is the record of the groups 

 of manufacturers who never before had such an opportunity to ex- 

 hibit the real spirit behind their work, and to belie before the 

 world the accusation aimed at America that its citizens are prompted 

 always by the motive of the dollar sign. Contrary to what is usii 

 ally the case in normal work, individuality and personalities were 

 not behind this successful record. Rather it was soon shown in 

 organizing the national industries that success could not be accom- 

 plished on this basis and steps were laid to proceed on different 

 lines. 



Mr. Manss made the statement that one of Gerumny 's greatest 

 errors was that she counted on the impossibility of the government 

 mobilizing American industries as a unit. According to Mr. Manss, 

 the war has brought many good lessons, one of the most pointed 

 of which is the realization that theoretically enacted laws can not 

 be made to fit practical business. He had in mind the Sherman law, 

 which he said had ceased to be useful under the stress of war con- 

 ditions. This has been proven by the lack of success under indi- 

 vidual operation and the remarkable success obtained when the en- 

 tire industries of the country were put under the direction of a 

 few men. 



Mr. Manss gave some very interesting figures stating that prior 

 to the war we were producing 32,500,000 tons of steel, and at the 

 close of the war 45,000,000 tons. He said that if the war had been 

 continued the United States would shortly have been producing 

 oue-half of all the steel produced in the world. He then asked what 

 is the best means of providing for surplus manufacturing capacity. 



Outline of Wonderful Conservation Methods 



Going further along the same lines, Mr. Manss said that the coun- 

 try had to provide for the soldier thirteen times as much wool and 

 five times as much beef as for the individual, which, with many 

 other similar conditions, presented grave problems to those in 

 charge. Due to the stress of circumstances, this excess requirement 

 had to be provided by economj- rather than increased production. 

 This was accomplished by a careful analysis of users' needs, through 

 standardization of articles and in other similar ways. For instance: 

 Thirty to forty million yards of woolen cloth were saved through 



II. C. WKISS, CHAIRM.VN FOR GUM 



E. 0. ROBINSON, CHAIRMAN RESOLUTIO.VK 

 COMMITTEE 



.T. \V. McCLURE. ME.MBER RESOLUTIONS 

 COMMITTEE 



