April JO, 1919 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



19 



Important Announcements from Washington 



By H. C. Hallam 



There will soon develop a cousiderable demand for hardwood 

 flooring and interior trim, and for other hardwood materials and 

 manufactures and other lumber and its products in the countries of 

 western Euro])e, according to John R. Walker, who has returned 

 after absence since August, 1917, as lumber trade commissioner 

 for the bureau of foreign and domestic commerce of the Depart- 

 ment of Commerce. He will submit a full report to the Chicago 

 lumber congress and from there he will start on a tour of the United 

 States to tell various lumber trade associations, conventions and 

 other meetings about the prospects of the American lumber indus- 

 try in European markets. His itinerary is being mapped out by the 

 National Lumber Manufacturers' Association. He predicts that 

 America will be the chief source of hardwood for western Europe 

 and that ocean freights will soon come down. 



He does not agree with the iiopular idea of the reconstruction 

 of devastated areas in Europe. He does not think that there will 

 be immediate and literal reconstruction. This belief is due to the 

 fact that many whole cities and a great many industries have been 

 wiped out in northern France. People and industries have moved 

 away into other parts of France and become established there during 

 four years of war. Many of them will not go back to their old 

 locations, and in any event reconstruction will be gradual. 



However, even assuming that there is complete reconstruction 

 undertaken in France, for instance, the total requirements for lum- 

 ber will not be so great as might be supposed. On that basis the 

 French government has estimated that 1,000,000,000 feet of con- 

 struction timber will be needed, also 300,000,000 feet of interior 

 trim and flooring, 1,200,000 doors and 1,200,000 windows. The 

 above is understood to apply to buildings of various kinds. 



The requirements for timber are large for the rebuilding of rail- 

 roads, bridges and canals. The fighting generally followed the lines 

 of railroads, highways and canals and the result was large destruc- 

 tion. The canal lock gates and lock floors generally have been made 

 of wood and need replacement throughout the battle areas. There 

 is an opportunity for American timber. The same is true of rail- 

 road and car materials, which are needed badly in France to remedy 

 lior transportation shortage. 



The destruction in Belgium was much less than in France, prob- 

 abh- half. 



Little Salvage Possible 



French forests produced much oak before the war, but they were 

 drawn on very heavily during the period of hostilities to obtain 

 material for artillery roads. Three-inch planks were used for this 

 purpose, to enable the heavy artillery to advance beyond the rail- 

 roads. Much of the finest timber was sacrificed in this way, the 

 ]>roduet being worth easily $250 per 1000 feet. It was suitable 

 for furniture, but was laid in the mud and was ground under the 

 tractor wheels. It is believed that there will be little salvage in 

 this material. The American forestry troops tried to produce and 

 accumulate a surplus of this oak planking for the expected cam- 

 paign last winter, but were unable to do so, owing to the rapid 

 advance of the allied armies during the latter part of 1918. Even 

 the American forestry units used this high-grade oak for roadways 

 around their camps. 



The French furniture industry is believed to be handicapped by 

 the utilization of its material as above indicated and by the Ger- 

 mans, and by the latters' removal of machinery from the woodwork- 

 ing establishments in the northern part of France. 



Mr. Walker also saw fine ash timber they had cut in France to 

 make airplane material, but which they were forced to leave in 

 the haste of their retreat. He saw no evidence in Belgium that 

 the invader had requisitioned pianos and furniture and interior 

 trim from Belgian houses to cut up into propeller stock. 



"Tliere is a growing demand for plywood and veneer in Europe," 

 said Mr. Walker. "Formerly much of the supply of these materials 

 came from Eussia, but now there is an opportunity for American 

 exporters." 



The European markets need education in the interest of American 

 lumber. There is a considerable lack of knowledge about the kinds, 

 properties and uses of American woods. Trade and technical pub- 

 lications are short on such information. These conditions, and 

 trade practices, over there result in discrimination against American 

 woods. Nobody had ever before worked in Europe in the interest 

 of American woods. 



Mr. Walker had planned to return home last fall, but the signing 

 of the armistice changed conditions and it was thought best that 

 he stay on the ground for a while and bring back an up-to-date 

 report on the situation. Before the armistice the belief was held 

 by many that government control of business and industry and 

 commerce continue for a long period after the war, especially as 

 regards the control of tonnage, restriction of imports and exports, 

 purchase of materials, allocation of it to different members of a 

 trade, etc., but it did not take long for other economists and for 

 government officials to adopt another view. 



Germany May Pay in Timber 



The result is that government is withdrawing its control of indus- 

 try. Prices were high. There was a shortage of many things, or 

 there would have been at pre-war prices. Accumulations of the 

 stock of lumber in the hands of government and government con- 

 tractors are said to have been sufficient to meet immediate needs. 

 The demand is said to be no greater than the supply at existing 

 prices, but it is predicted that the demand will increase as prices 

 decrease. 



It has been predicted that America's opportunity to export lumber 

 to France may be curtailed to some extent by the peace conference, 

 if it adopts the French policy of forcing the Hun to repay France 

 for the devastation of her forests by furnishing lumber needed for 

 reconstruction purposes. 



Northern French forests were largely destroyed by artillery fire, 

 and trees left standing are so full of bullets and shell fragments 

 that they will be of little use. The destroyed forests will gener- 

 ally have to be replanted, as will much of the shell torn battle 

 ground. The latter is useless for agricultural purposes at present, 

 but can be brought around into agricultural condition again by 

 forestation and the resulting addition of humus to the ground and 

 filling of shell holes, the trees being cut off after many years, leav- 

 ing the ground good for farming. 



Belgium, Italy, and even England, are asking for indemnity from 

 Germany in timber on account of the forest losses suffered by allied 

 countries. 



The War Finance Corporation has announced its readiness to lend 

 money at 5% per cent to foreign trade concerns organized under 

 the Webb law. These concerns include those built up in the lumber, 

 furniture and other trades. The latest one of these, the export 

 sales corporation of the National Bureau of Wholesale Lumber 

 Distributors, has a committee now in Europe studying lumber mar- 

 kets, but, according to information received from there, it is not 

 being flooded with orders as yet. 



Looking Southward for Markets 

 W. W. Ewing, trade commissioner of the Department of Com- 

 merce, is author of a report recently published covering the market 

 for construction materials, etc., in South America. This report 

 shows that American lumber for construction and cabinet work 

 and various other articles enjoys a preference in Chile, also that 

 yellow pine and Douglas fir lumber will continue to find a ready 

 market in Peru. 



