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HARDWOOD RECORD 



November 2.', 1917 



Central 1!. I(. of New Jersey — Wooileii patterns hetween ISrooklvu unci 

 New York stations and ailjacent territory and Hethlelieni and Sonlli 

 Betlileheni, I'a., riillllpsburt;, N. .1.. anil other stations. 



K. H. Boyd, Afc-ent— Sash, doors and blinds from St. Paul, Counell 

 Bluirs, la., and varlons points to Illinois. Iowa and other stations. 



L. 10. Chalenor. .Ayent — faneellation of throiif^h coniniodity rates on 

 lumber from .Southern liy. Memphis division stations to I'hicaKo and 

 Milwaukee. 



li. K. Chalenor, .\gent — Cottonwood, cypress and Kuni lintiber from ICast 

 St. I.ouls, III., to .Mton, 111., and points taking the same rates In section 

 2 of I. C. C. A-9.-). 



L, K, I'haleuor, .Vgent- I.umlier and articles taking liimlier rales from 

 Charleston, S, C, to Jacksonville, Eustport and rernandina, I''la. ; fr<un 

 Kastport and Jaeksitnvillc to Charleston, S. C., and from Kastport ami 

 Jacksonville to Iteaufort and I'ort Itoyal, S. C. 



.M. P. Washlinrn, ,\genl- Luml>er from Mississippi Valley territory 

 points to stations on the C, & O. IJ. R. 



.Missouri Pacific Ry. — I.undier and forest products from pcdnts In 

 .\rkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi. Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas to pidnts 

 in C. F. .\. territory, Wisconsin and Ontario. 



Lumber anil log rates from tlie southwest to Pailueah, Kv., are 

 to be iiitroiUieed umler a recent ilecision by the supreme court 



in the case of St. Louis .Southwestern Ry. against the Interstate 

 Commerec Commission anil the I'nited (States government. The 

 ilecision affirmed the ,iuilgment of the lower federal courts and of 

 the Interstate Commerce Commission in the Padueah lumber rate 

 case, which was briefly to the effect that the 22 cent rate to 

 Padueah was unreasonable and .should not exceed 15 cents, the rate 

 to Cairo from tlie southwestern blanket territory, and that the 

 railroads should put into effect an alternative through route with 

 joint rates from the southwest to Padueah via Memphis, 



The Cotton Belt and Iron Mountain carried their fight against 

 the commission's finding into the federal courts, but did not get 

 very far with it. They argued that the commission has exceeded 

 its power; that their constitutional rights had been invaded, and 

 many other fine points, most of which the supreme court dismissed 

 with scant consideration. The court held that the commission had 

 the ])ower to do what it did do and that the carriers could not 

 obtain an injunction against enforcemeiit of tlie commission's 

 order. 



S yii;;5tfJ^OT>MCTiTOOTStTOi»^^ 



Situation in Memphis Territory 



According to officials of the Southern Hardwood Traffic As- 

 sociation, Memphis, there is no improvement in the car situation, 

 either with respect to inbound movement of logs or outbound 

 movement of lumber. t)n the contrary, they state that the 

 scarcit.v is becoming rather more pronounced and that it is becom- 

 ing increasingly difficult to secure cars for handling either logs or 

 lumber. It is estimated that, in the matter of outbound ship- 

 ments, lumber interests are not securing fifty per cent of their 

 requirements, taking the Memphis and valley territories as a 

 whole, while in some localities manufacturers are having to con- 

 tent themselves with as little as twenty-five per cent. Mills at 

 Memphis are, in some instances, already closed down because the.y 

 cannot secure enough cars for handling logs while others are 

 threatened with forced suspension in the immediate future if there 

 is not a radical increase in the number of ears and therefore in 

 the number of logs available. 



Hardwood production is therefore substantially smaller than it 

 was a month ago and indications are that there will be a still 

 further reduction in the output. The car shortage is the greatest 

 handicap the manufacturers are experiencing but the.v are also 

 suffering to an appreciable extent from the shortage of labor and 

 the high cost of the latter resulting from this scarcit.v. Members 

 of the open competition jdan of the Hardwood Manufacturers' As- 

 sociation, during their meeting here recentl,v, laid particular 

 emphasis on two facts: 1 — That hardwood production is already 

 sharply below normal because of the car shortage, and 2, that it 

 promises to become much smaller if there is not a change for the 

 better in the number of cars available and in the cjuantity of 

 labor to be had. Memphis lumbermen generally are inclined to 

 share this view. 



The transportation problem is rapidly resolving itself into a 

 question, so far as lumber itself is concerned, of "who is the 

 buyer and for what purpose it is intended." The government is 

 seeing to it that cars are promptly furnished by the carriers for 

 all lumber that is going to be used, either directl.v or indirectly, by 

 the government in the winning of the war. And those who are 

 selling to the government arc finding their transportation troubles 

 disappearing very quickly. Those who are catering to private in- 

 dustries, however, are meeting with increasing difficulty in secur- 

 ing cars and are absohitel,v at the merc.v of the railroad war board 

 and the railroads themselves. The.v are getting some equipment 

 but they are having a hard time of it. Priorit,v order No. 2 was 

 a serious blow to certain classes of lumber, notably high grade 

 gum and oak, used in furniture manufacture. Gondola cars can 

 not be used for its shi|iment and there are very few box cars 

 available. 



Recent developments disclose much more effective co operation 

 between the lumbermen of this territorv and the government than 

 heretofore. The enlargement of the Southern Hardwood Emer- 

 gency Bureau and the mobilizing of the hardwood industr.v of the 

 country through that bodv have brought about much more satis- 

 factory results all around and have forced realization of the fact 

 that non-essentials must be eliminated. Iiumbernien are beginning 

 to appreciate the fact that the government is determined to win 

 the war and to put forth every energy possible to this end. Thev 

 are also beginning to appreciate the fact that they can help, and 

 help a great deal, in this patriotic work bv aiding the government 

 in securing its supplies in the way of hardwood lumber and tim- 

 bers. And they are also more appreciative now, than ever before, 

 of the fact that, in hcl])iug the government, they are helping them- 

 selves, since the government sees that they get all the cars needed 

 for filling its orders. 



There is also some prospect tluit the government will under- 

 take to insure larger hardwood production bv requiring the rail- 

 roads to furnish more flat cars to the manufacturers of lumber 

 who are working on government orders. The lumber or timbers 

 cannot be shipped before being manufactured and the providing 

 of cars for handling logs for the mills is just as essential as pro- 

 viding cars for handling the products of these logs. Indeed, in 

 the last anal.vsis, log cars should come first, in the opinion of mem- 

 liers of the trade here, and cars for handling tlie products of these 

 logs should come second. 



One of the largest manufacturers of lumber in this part of the 

 countr,v toda.v said that he issued instructions to the sawyer at his 

 jilant to cut only specified lengths, widths and thicknesses until 

 further notice. He said his aim was to produce nothing that could 

 not be used by the government in shipbuilding or other depart- 

 ments of its activities, and there are other Memphis lumbermen 

 now who are tackling the proposition from verv much the same 

 angle. 



As we learn to utilize more and more of the tree to advantage, it 

 looks like the gasoline engine is the logical thing to replace the wood 

 burner as a driving engine for the portable sawmill. 



Many splendid ideas are advanced by enthusiasts at the trade con- 

 ventions, but one trouble is in that most every advocate of an idea 

 thinks that his own particular hobby is pretty near the whole works, 

 while most all of them are merely parts of the complex problem of 

 business and industry. What we need is more co-ordination of parts, 

 more teamwork and less starring of individual ideas. 



