22b 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



April 10, I'JIU 



Lumber Prospects in Russia 



Russia, which together with Finland exported 52 per cent of the 

 lumber needs of the world before the war, is out of the running for 

 the next four or five years and England, France, Belgium, Holland 

 and other European nations, wliicli were planning before the Bolshe- 

 vik revolution to secure several billion feet of lumber from that 

 vast empire, must look to the United States, Canada, and to Scan- 

 dinavia, principally Sweden, for these huge needs, according to 

 Eoger Simmons, trade commissioner. Department of Commerce, 

 Washington, who recently delivered an extremely interesting address 

 to the members of the Lumbermen 's Club of Memphis, Tenn., and 

 the American Hardwood Manufacturers' Association on the results 

 of his investigations into lumber conditions in Russia, covering a 

 period of eighteen months. He attributed the elimination of Russia 

 from the export field to the chaos and economic ruin which have 

 followed the world-wide war, the Russia revolution, and the policy 

 of the Bolsheviks, especially in the nationalization of industry. He 

 declared that the deplorable condition in which Russia finds herself 

 gives the lumber manufacturers of the United States, Canada, and 

 Scandinavia the greatest opportunity they have ever had. He 

 believed that lumber interests in the United States should take 

 steps that will make it possible for them to go after this huge busi- 

 ness in a manner that will enable them to secure the profits to which 

 they are entitled, and he made it quite clear that the organization 

 of a strong combination for handling this overseas business should 

 be effected with as little delay as possible. 



Ruined by Revolution 



Mr. Simmons also dealt in a most interesting manner with the 

 Bolshevik revolution. He had no hesitancy in pronouncing Bol- 

 shevism, which is absolute anarchy tempered but slightly with 

 socialism, as the greatest menace in the history of humanity and 

 civilization, and he urged that the United States and its allies 

 should, instead of withdrawing their forces from the Archangel 

 front, throw more men into Russia and check this tremendous evil 

 by military force. Otherwise, he intimated, in striking language, 

 there is no limit to which it may not extend in a surprisingly short 

 time. He referred particularly to the ' ' nationalization of industry ' ' 

 under the Bolshevik regime, saying that as a result thereof prac- 

 tically every mill in Russia was dismantled or put out of commission, 

 with the exception of those in the Archangel district, which is eon- 

 trolled by the United States and the countries with which it is allied. 



According to Mr. Simmons, the Bolshevik do not represent more 

 than ten per cent of the population of Russia, but he pointed out 

 that they have control of the government, of the army, of the 

 finances, of the food supply and of everything that pertains to the 

 essentials of life, industry and commerce, and that, because of this 

 control, they are in position to force their will absolutely upon the 

 other ninety per cent. He said that they were ruling with an iron 

 hand and that they were responsible for more murders than any 

 other body in the history of the world. The ruling classes have 

 suffered worse than other sections of the population, a man being 

 better treated the lower he stood in the scale. For a man to show 

 any prominence in finance, in commerce, in industry or in any 

 other direction, meant that' he would be punished by starvation, 

 imprisonment, or murder. He told of the terrible punishment meted 

 out to women who were found wearing warm clothing, and of the 

 murder of women and children by the hundreds, including all the 

 boys in the schools in Russia corresponding to West Point and 

 Annapolis in the United States. 



In referring to the position of the United States army in Russia, 

 he said that the Archangel area, which is occupied by these forces 

 and by men from the allied nations, is more nearly normal than any 

 other part of that vast empire, vrith the schools in session, the rail- 

 roads in operation and the banks doing business as usual. He 

 believed that, if the allied forces were withdrawn, the Bolshevik 



would overrun this part of Russia and kill every man, woman and 

 child therein on the alleged claim that they had interfered with the 

 government of Russia in favor of the enemy. 



Change of Plans Necessary 



Mr. Simmons said that, with the exception of Ambassador David 

 R. Francis, he was, so far as he knew, the last American in Russia 

 to arrive in the United States, and thus explained why he had 

 remained in that country under the terrible conditions existing 

 under the Bolshevik regime in the following language: 



In view of the chaotic situation in Russia and the rapid disintegration 

 of all economic life, I anticipate that a good many lumbermen question 

 why I remained in Russia trying to prosecute a market investigation under 

 such abnormal conditions. Soon after my arrival in European Russia I 

 discovered that the revolution, although entirely changing the character 

 of my fitudy. made it of greater importance to .American lumbermen than 

 if carried on under normal conditions. 



For instance, the energetic efforts of the Germans to secure control of 

 important sawmill properties in Russia and to dominate the important posi- 

 tions as middle men for lumber exports indicated that the industry in thi 

 hands of the Germans would afford much more formidable competition 

 than if controlled by Russia. Further, after the Bolshevik campaign had 

 changed from a political to a social revolution and was producing rapid 

 disintegration of Russia's commercial and industrial life, it became evident 

 that Russia would not be able to export lumber for some time. There- 

 fore, to get information to determine definitely the true significance of 

 these changes was of paramount importance, particularly in regard to 

 forest devastation due to the war and destruction of sawmill properties 

 resulting from the revolution. 



Resources and Prospects 



During Mr. Simmons' travels througli Russia he collected a vast 

 amount of statistics on the subject of that country's forest resources 

 and its past trade. Some of these investigations were original and 

 resulted in bringing many important facts to light that will have 

 bearing on future lumber business in that part of the world. 



Russia has more than 400,000,000 acres of forest west of the Ural 

 Mountains, chiefly softwoods. It was Mr. Simmons' opinion that 

 the resources of European Russia in hardwoods were scarcely one- 

 tenth as great as similar resources in our southern states. Her hard- 

 wood forests lie, for the most part, in the western part of the coun- 

 try, and if exported, would naturally find an outlet through the 

 Baltic sea or across the border into Poland and westward. But 

 large hardwood exports from that region are no more to be expected 

 in the near future than are exports of softwoods by way of the 

 Baltic. 



Siberian Oak 



Mr. Simmons threw some new light on the subject of Siberian oak. 

 It has been popularly supposed that a large part of the wood reach- 

 ing the western world under the name of Japanese oak was really 

 cut in Siberia, According to Mr. Simmons, that is not the case, 

 little or no Siberian oak having been exported, and with little 

 probability that any ever will be exported. The trees are small, 

 and while they cover an extensive territory, the available quantity 

 is small. 



Th? forests of southeastern European Russia contain much large 

 timber, but not much as yet been taken out, except as staves and 

 Circassian walnut logs. Beech trees seven feet in diameter occur 

 there. It is a mountainous region and logging operations will be 

 exjiensive. 



It is related somewhere in the New Testament that a certain 

 preacher ate "locusts and wild honey." The phrase has set com- 

 mentators guessing; but a reasonable explanation is that the wild 

 locust was the mesquite tree and the honey was contained in its pod. 

 The tree, known there as carob, grows abundantly in that country, 

 and its pods and beans furnish food for men and cattle to this day. 

 Many persons in those parts live part of the time on this wild food. 

 The interpretation by former theologians to the eifeijt that John 

 the Baptist ate honey and grasshoppers is not so widely held as it 

 once was. Mesquite pods are more appetizing and sanitary. 



