10 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



JiMiuary 1". 19- 



Southern Hardwood Traffic Association 

 Holds Ninth Annual Meeting 



President Nickey Expresses Belief That Relief from High Freight 

 Rates Will Soon Be Secured; Secretary-Manager Townshend 

 Reviews Year of Achievements Unequaled in the 

 History of the Industry 



"I feel that tlie decision of tlie Interstate (/omnuTce t 'unimissidii 

 in the hardwood rate case will be handed down shortly and that 

 we will obtain the much needed relief from present exorbitant 

 freight rates," S. M. Nickey, president of the Southern Harwood 

 Traffic Association, told the 250 members of that organization who 

 gathered at Memphis, Tenn., at the Hotel Gayoso the afternoon of 

 January 6 at 12:30 for the ninth annual of this body. 



The meeting was featured by the address of President Xickcy; 

 by the annual report of J. H. Townshend, secretary-manager, show- 

 ing the gceatest achievement in the history of the industry in every 

 field of traffic endeavor; by the excellent report of the financial 

 condition of the association as reflected in the report of the treas- 

 urer, Elliott Lang; by the urgent appeal of J. V. Norman, general 

 counsel, to members of the association to continue the fight for a 

 general reduction in rates on hardwood lumber and forest products; 

 and by the address of C. P. J. Mooney, editor of the Memphis Com- 

 mercial Appeal and director in the Eighth Federal Reserve Bank at 

 St. Louis. 



President Nickoy, after extending a warm welcome to the large 

 assemblage of lumbermen, following enjoyment of a delightful 

 luncheon, briefly reviewed the efforts^ the association had made 

 during 1921 to secure a readjustment of freight rates on lumber 

 moving to consuming destination and on logs moving to the mills 

 and deplored the unwonted delay in the decision in that case at 

 the hands of the Interstate Commerce Commission which he attrib- 

 uted primarily to the unfortunate accident which befell Commis- 

 sioner Cox before the formal complaint of this organization was 

 heard in September after all preliminary conferences with the 

 Interstate Commerce Commission and the carriers had failed to 



living any results, lie dwelt at length on the time, energy and 

 money which the associtaion had spent in the effort to .secure relief 

 and declared his belief that a favorable decision would be forth- 

 coming at an early date. 



President Nickey called the particular attention of the member- 

 ship to the fact that the association had been successful during 

 the year in bringing about substantial- reduction in ocean freight 

 rates and greater stabilization therein, thus causing material in- 

 crease in exports and thus putting manufacturers of hardwood 

 lumber in the southern and southwestern territory on a more favor- 

 able competitive basis so far as Japanese interests are concerned 

 for business on the Pacific coast. 



In conclusion he tendered his own thanks, as well as those of the 

 entire membership, to Mr. Townshend, secretary-manager, for the 

 wonderful work he had done during the year and said that he won- 

 ilered where the industry would now be but for the ability and 

 efficiency the latter had displayed in looking after the welfare of 

 shippers of hardwood lumber. 



The report of the treasurer, Elliott Lang, showed that the asso- 

 ciation enjoyed a gross income of .'1)126,716.91 during the year, that 

 its expenditures reached .^120,514.55, leaving a net gain of $6,202.56. 



The "Hard Luck" Case 



J. V. Norman, Louisville, Ky., general counsel for the association, 

 termed the hardwood rate case the "hard luck" case, declaring 

 that every untoward thing that could happen did happen therein. 



He thought that the association took too seriously the injunction 

 of the Interstate Commerce Commission to exhaust every means 

 of .securing adjustments at the hands of the carriers before coming 



J. H. Townshend. Re-elected Secretary-Manager 



S. M. NICKEY, Re-elected President 



James F. McSweyn, Elected Vice-President 



