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1^ or them Lumbermen Meet 



The fall quarterly meetiug of the Northern Hciiilook and Hard- 

 wood Manufacturers' Association was held at Eau Claire, Wis., 

 October 29, where the members of the association were guests of 

 the John H. Kaiser Lumber Company and the New Dells Lumber 

 Company. The treasurer's report showed a balance on hand of $3,- 

 7b8.i3. The condition of the association was discussed in the report 

 of the secretary, E. S. Kellogg. He said that the usual number of 

 reports upon proposed logging operations this winter indicate about 

 the same hemlock input as last winter, but quite an increase in 

 hardwood logging. 



The reports upon woods wages show an increase of about five per 

 cent over 1912, or about the same increase that 1912 showed over 

 1911. Following is the schedule: 



Avcrasp woods wages per month including l>oard at present compare as 

 follows wiUi reports in October, 1911 and 1912 : 



1913 1912 1911 



Choroboys 29.90 28.50 26.00 



Uoadraen 30.80 29.10 27.40 



Swampers 31.00 29.30 26.40 



Cookees 32.80 30.80 29.00 



S.nwyers 34.30 32.90 29.80 



Barnmen 35.00 34.50 31.90 



Hookmen 35.60 34.20 31.30 



Teamsters 35.80 34.20 31.40 



Top Loaders 39.60 37.80 34.80 



Blacksmiths 59.25 55.90 56.50 



Cooks : 67.50 66.50 64.75 



Engineers 68.88 68.20 73.00 



Indications point to a good supply of laborers, but it is thought 

 that the cost of feeding them will be greater than last year. Beef 

 in particular is higher, but a suggestion was offered that soups, 

 dumplings, and other things that a good cook could prepare might 

 partly take the place of beef. 



The Industrial Commission, with free employment offices at Mil- 

 waukee, Oshkosh, La Crosse and Superior, has supplied a good many 

 woodsmen, and it is said that with the benefit of previous experience 

 and records which are being compiled, these offices are now able to 

 supply a better grade of labor than when they were first opened. 

 Arrangements are practically completed for the establishment of a 

 fifth free employment office by the Industrial Commission which 

 will be located in Wausau, so firms whose operations are easily ac- 

 cessible from' that point will doubtless be able to get considerable 

 help through the new office. 



The association has subscribed for forty-five shares of stock in 

 the Forest Products Exposition Company, and an appropriation for 

 the exhibit of $2,500 was made to be expended by the advertising 

 committee, if mutually satisfactory to the Michigan association 

 which has appropriated a like amount. It is proposed that the two 

 associations join in making an exhibit. 



It was recommended that the association become a member of the 

 National Conservation Congress which meets in Washington, D. C, 

 November 18-20. The membership fee is $25, and the principal 

 advantage to lumbermen would consist in giving them a voice in 

 many important conservation matters that will be before the public 

 from time to time, some of which vitally concern timber interests. 



Trade conditions were reported excellent for northern hemlock and 

 hardwoods, and there is no indication of a coming change for the 

 worse. Building operations have been good, and there is no danger 

 of an over supply of lumber in Wisconsin and Michigan. 



Cut and shipments, Oct. 1, 1912, to Sept. 30, 1913 : 



Cut Shipped 



Hemlock ''X).n63.0no 400.514.000 



Ash r,06C,000 8,742,000 



Basswood <7,044.000 53,536,000 



Birch . . . .^ 85,374.000 99.869,000 



Elm ! 26,070,000 30.559,000 



Maple 80.850,000 83,540,000 



Oak 3,119,000 3,268,000 



All hardwoods 328,551.000 314,155,000 



Reports upon log input and woods wages have been received from 

 seventy representative firms throughout Wisconsin and northern 

 Michigan. 



—32— 



The log input of the reporting firms last season ami tlie logging 

 planned for this winter compare as follows: 



Hemlock Hardwood I'ine 



M Feet M Feet M Feet 



Lo?ged 191213 341,551 232,473 76,733 



Expect to log 1913-14 351,800 271,950 07,252 



Feet 



Logged 1912-13— an kinds 650,777,000 



Expect to log 1913-14 — all kinds 691,002,000 



An address describing methods of kiln-drying lumber was given 

 by H. D. Tiemann of the United ^tates Forest Service. Mr. Tie- 

 mann is the inventor of a dry-kiln, the patent for which has been 

 dedicated to the public. His address began with well-known facts 

 that: 



Lumber must be dried before used. 



Lumber when seasoned is in a condition it has never been in before. 



Drying lumber is not simply the evaporation of moisture but a material 

 change in an interwoven structural material. 



Kilns are not all giving complete satisfaction as indicated by the inqui- 

 ries we receive from all parts of the country. 



Speaking of the structure of wood he said that it was similar to 

 honey comb, the difference being that the cells were longer. Water 

 is in wood in two conditions — one from the water filling the cells 

 and the other imbibed water in the fibre of the cell walls. The re- 

 moval of water from the cells of wood makes no change in the struc- 

 ture, but removal from the cell walls changes the wood and causes 

 shrinkage and also makes it stronger. 



He said that the chief objects of drying lumber were (1) to re- 

 duce the shipping weight (2) to reduce the quantity of stocks in 

 the yards; (3) to improve the quality of the woods, especially hard- 

 woods; (4) to prepare lumber for the uses to which it is to be put. 



Mr. Tiemann said there are three types of kilns, first, the dry air 

 type, which is now becoming obsolete ; second, the moist air system 

 of which there are many kinds, and third, superheated steam kilns. 



In the average kiln as used at present actual loss in the stock 

 varies from one to three per cent, due to checking, warping, etc. 

 With some woods, such as gum, it goes as high 'as thirty per cent or 

 more. Air drying lumber does not invariably produce good lumber 

 chiefly because no control can be exercised over conditions afl'ecting 

 the seasoning. With proper kiln construction drying can be better 

 controlled and proper kiln drying saves the loss that comes from air 

 drying. Lumber proper kiln dried will not absorb as much moisture 

 as air dried lumber, thus eliminating much of the liability to shrink 

 or swell. In drying lumber in kilns care should be taken that evapo- 

 ration from the surface is not faster than transfusion from the in- 

 terior. If the surface is dried too rapidly checking or case hard- 

 ening will result and then the interior of the wood will cheek. In 

 proper kiln drying three things can be accomplished: (1), the control 

 of humidity which is one of the most important things in a kiln; 

 (2), the control of temperature — soft woods are less affected by high 

 temperature than hardwoods, and (3) the control of circulation. 

 The control of humidity, circulation and temperature f:re necessary 

 to the best work in drying lumber. 



The advertising committee reported that the publicity campaign 

 had brought highly satisfactory results. More than 1,400 replies 

 had been received from the birch advertisement alone, chiefly from 

 architects, builders, contractors, and carpenters. The committee 

 closed its report with the following pointed paragraph : 



Some members have expressed themselves as believing that the remark- 

 able firmness in hemlock prices and the advance in birch prices this year 

 in the face of adverse conditions elsewhere in the lumber industry have 

 been due to our advertising campaign. AYhile we do not feel like claiming 

 such large results in so short a time we do believe that our advertising 

 appropriation has been fully Justified, and that it should be regarded not 

 as an office expense, but as a judicious investment which is bound to have 

 a most beneficial effect in the sale of our products. 



W. J. Kessler, chairman of the insurance committee, then read 

 the following exhaustive and instructive report: 



Beport of Committee on Insurance 



Your committee on insurance has. within the brief time that has been 

 allowed, gone into the raatt'-r of fire insurance as thoroughly as possible. 



