22 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



February 10, 1919 



V. E. Stonebraker 's address called attention to the almost complete 

 reversal of land market conditions since the association commenced 

 advertising the alluvial regions. Two years ago many cut-over land- 

 owners were seeking buyers, but today it has largely assumed the situ- 

 ation of the buyer seeking the land. It was asserted that so great is 

 the difference in price between cleared and uncleared lands, that as 

 a business proposition it is a safe investment to buy uncleared ground 

 and improve it. 



Dr. E. R. Lloyd, the newly elected agricultural expert of the farm 

 development bureau of the Memphis Chamber of Commerce, speaking 

 on ' ' diversification, ' ' said that the only solution of the serious cotton 

 problem confronting the people of the South lay in raising enough 

 foodstuffs to take care of their needs along this line. He did not 



lielieve it would be possible to reduce acreage to a sufficient extent to 

 materially curtail production of cotton unless southern farmers were 

 told what to produce that would either bring money, per se, or that 

 would greatly save money by preventing the necessity of going into 

 the open market to buy foodstuffs. 



' ' The southern farmer is just now beginuing to get some of the 

 (ir.st cheap money he has ever had," declared L. K. Thompson, presi- 

 dent of the Mississippi and Arkansas Joint Stock Land banks, with 

 headquarters at Memphis. ' ' We are loaning money on first mort- 

 gages at 6 per cent interest, without^ commissions, and we do not 

 make any limit as to the amount any individual may borrow, pro- 

 vided he has adequate collateral, nor do we impose any restrictions as 

 to the use to which the money is to be put." 



Annual Meeting ot Hemlock and Hardwood Men 



Coming at a time when export problems, tlic big ijuestiou of 

 labor, wages, domestic markets, manufacturing costs and quantity 

 production, are occupying the thoughts of every northern manu- 

 facturer, the big annual meeting of the Northern Hemlock and 

 Hardwood Manufacturers' Association, held at the Hotel Pfister, 

 Milwaukee, on Thursday and Friday, January 30 and 31, was of 

 unusual importance. It was a remarkably well attended meeting 

 not only as to numerical representation of membership, but as 

 to close attention to the execution of the program. 



The order of business included the usual addresses of oflficers and 

 a great many very valuable reports covering questions of paramount 

 importance to all northern operators. 



President George N. Harder of Eib Lake, Wis., was in the chair. 

 His address, while largely in the nature of a review of the impor- 

 tant war work accomplished through the association and its able 

 secretarial offices, made important recommendations for the future 

 in which were suggestions that the secretary be given further office 

 assistance to the end that he may have more time for application 

 to the general problems of the association. He also recommended 

 general support of the plans for increasing export use of northern 

 hardwoods, and further suggested that the trend of wood use in 

 the future is being indicated by specifications worked out by various 

 societies of technical men responsible for the installation of wood 

 in structures of different kinds. 



In his historical review of the development of the association, he 

 touched on the very efficient contact that has been maintained with 



tlie g(>\criiment tliroiigli tlie secretary's office and that of Eastern 

 Manager R. H. Jones. President Harder said that the membership 

 now is in excess of anything that has been maintained heretofore. 



In commenting on the cost of association work, Mr. Harder 

 l)ointed out that the efficient office of the secretary has been main- 

 tained at a less expense per thousand feet than that of any other 

 association in a similar position. 



The report of Secretary Swan went further into such details, 

 mentioning a membership of about ninety members, showing a 

 total cut of 800,000,000 feet. 



In his report, Mr. Swan advocated an endeavor to bring a more 

 general understanding between the producers of lumber in the 

 northern States and those purchasing and utilizing lumber and 

 lumber products. 



He then went on to tell something of the activities of the asso- 

 ciation as represented by disbursements through his office, which 

 he said now total more than .$100,000 a year. 



Bearing out the general opinion that building will be resumed 

 in spite of higher cost, M. P. McCnllough, chairman of the bureau 

 of promotion, stated in his report that there is much more call for 

 the association 's literature bearing on the character and applica- 

 tion of northern woods, including hemlock and hardwoods. The 

 increased call for this information is most marked, according to 

 Mr. MeCullough, since the signing of the armistice, the greatest 

 increase being shown in the month of December. In that nujnth, 



\ Continued on par/r. .^1 t 



hEOnOE N. HARDER. RIB I,AKE, WIS., 

 RE-ELECTED PRESIDENT 



(). T. SWAN, (ISIIKOSII, WIS., SEfRETARY 



UOY JONES, WHO GOES ABROAD TO 

 VESTIGATE EUROPEAN MARKETS 



