January 10, 1918 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



33 



See Hope in Government Control 



Lumbermen Believe Cars Will Be Better Distributed by One Head 



Officials of tlie Southern Hardwood Traffic Association, Memphis, 

 believe that <;overiinieut control of the railroads is going to bring 

 about a decided change for the better in transportation conditions, 

 as affecting the southern hardwood lumber industry, in the near 

 future and they express themselves as well pleased with this some- 

 what radical departure on the part of Washington authorities. They 

 point out the following advantages under government control: 



First : t'nrs will be dlstrlbuteil witliont reEnrd to ownership. 



Second : Motive power will be more ctinally distributed. 



Third : Traffic will move toward destination by the shortest and most 

 <llrt'ct route. 



Fourth : .Authorlt.v to say what commodities shall move and what 

 sliiill not win lie vested in a sinjile man Instead of In sl.\ representatives, 

 as under tlie old regime. 



J. H. Townshend, secretary-manager of the association, expresses 

 the view that thirty days will be necessary before any marked 

 change can be seen. In the meantime the association has thrown 

 its weight directly behind the plan of much more liberal use of 

 southern ports for the handling of export traffic. It believes that 

 this will result in a great many more empties available to lumber- 

 men for loading and that it will, at the same time, relieve much 

 of the congestion now observable in the North and East and thus 

 bring about a freer and less embargoed movement of lumber and 

 lumber products to destination north of the Ohio and East of the 

 Mississippi. The association is therefore urging all of its mem- 

 bers to write to their representatives and senators at Washington 

 ai>pealing to them to work for increased utilization of ports on the 

 Gulf of Mexico and the South Atlantic for handling export traffic. 



Mr. Townshend has recently returned from Washington and he 

 brings back the information that, in his opinion, the Interstate 

 Commerce Commission will not, even if it makes an early announce- 

 ment of its decision in the 1.5 per cent advance case, grant any 

 increases which will affect rates on hardwood lumber shipments 

 from southern territory. 



Mr. Townshend recently appeared before the Interstate Com- 

 merce Commission and protested against the proposed increase in 

 rates from Memphis to Pacific coast points and he expresses the 

 view that the lumbermen can defeat this move on the part of the 

 carriers. He has a.sked that all who have experienced, or who are 

 now experiencing, competition from Japanese oak furnish the as- 

 sociation with all details in connection' therewith. 



The association believes that all transit arrangements ought to 

 be eliminated for the period of the war. These require that lum- 

 ber must bo shipped over the road bringing in the logs from which 

 it was manufactured before the refund on the log shipments is 

 available. It is pointed out, however, that lumber ought to be 

 moved over any road that can furnish the necessary ears, without 

 reference to the particular road which brought in the logs. 



The association is much opposed to the elimination of cross- 

 town handling of lumber and lumber products and will use its best 

 efforts to prevent the railroads from putting this practice into 

 effect. J. H. Townshend is looking after the subject. Other com- 

 mercial organizations here are opposed to this measure and indica- 

 tions are that those who seek to eliminate this cross-town handling 

 in any sort of equipment will encounter the most intense opposi- 

 tion from the association as well as from other organizations. An 

 intimation of what may be expected along this line will be found 

 in the action of the Lumbermen's Club of Memphis with reference 

 to the embargo against the use of open equipment for cross-town 

 handling of lumber put into effect by the Yazoo & Mississippi 

 Valley railroad. This will be found in the report of the^ meeting of 

 that organization, published elsewhere in this paper. 



The Southern Hardwood Traffic As.sociation also objects stren- 

 uou.sly to the action of the Illinois Central system in forcing, by 

 means of an embargo, lumbermen shipping lumber in open equip- 

 ment to bulk heail it. It has had the matter m]i with the officials 



of that road and has been advised that bulk heading is necessary 

 only in the case of dressed lumber and that it docs not apply in 

 the case of rough lumber. 



Memphis railroads have appointed a committee of three, com- 

 l)Osed of superintendents, to make recommendations covering 

 changes in operating plans under government control with a view 

 to bringing about more effective handling of traffic. This com- 

 mittee has already made more than twenty recommendations, in- 

 cluding elimination of cross-town handling and the withdrawal of 

 reconsigning except on a substantially changed basis. Most of 

 these recommendations are acceptable to the Southern Hardwood 

 Traflic Association with the exception of eliminating cross-town 

 handling of lumber and lumber products. This is opposed on the 

 ground that it will work a serious hardship on most members and 

 that in the case of a few of them it will mean practically putting 

 them out of business. 



There is still quite a notable shortage of flat cars for handling 

 logs to the mills and likewise quite a scarcity of equipment for 

 transporting lumber and lumber products to destination. Most of 

 the mills are forced to operate intermittently while there is much 

 complaint regarding delay in effecting shipment because cars are 

 not furnished, as asked, for loading. As already suggested, how- 

 ever, lumber interests are inclined to believe that the machinery 

 already set in motion by the government for more efficient trans- 

 portation will soon produce results and they are therefore facing 

 the future with increased ojitimism over the transportation problem 

 as the new year opens. 



Allied Purchases in the United States 



A government report, dated December 21, and issued by the 

 Department of Commerce, Washington, contains the following 

 explanation of how purchases in this country for the allies are 

 to be made: 



For the information of .Vmerican manufacturers and others desirous of 

 seliinp: materials to the allied povernmonts. it is announced that arrange- 

 ments were entered into in tlio latter part of .\ugust. 1917, ity the Secre- 

 tary of tile Treasury, witii the approval of the President, with tlie govern- 

 ments of Great Britain, France. Russia. Italy. Belgiitm and Serbia, whereby 

 Messrs. Bernard M. Barucli, Koliert S. I.ovett and Robert S. Broolvlngs 

 of the War Industries Board wore designated a comndssion throngli whom 

 or with wliose approval or consent all purchases In the I'nlted States of 

 materials and supplies by or on behalf of these governments shall lie made. 



Under this arrangement these governments communicate their require- 

 ments for materials and supplies to tins commission through their desig- 

 nated purchasing agents in this country, and the commission then uses 

 its best efTorts to obtain offers of the materials and supplies required at 

 the best ohtainalde prices and terms, of delivery and otherwise, and sub- 

 mits tlie same to tiie purcliasiug agent concerned. It being no part of the 

 commission's duty to prepare and sign contracts, or to supervise their 

 execution, or to di'teriiiine tecbnicai details, or to carry out tlie inspection 

 of materials, all of which matters are cared for by the governments con- 

 cerned. 



The foreign governments have agreed not to make purchases In the 

 t'nited States otherwise than through or with the consent of the oom- 

 misslon. The arrangements provide that nothing expressed or Implied, 

 nor anji'tbing done or omitted l»y the commission, siiall Impose any obliga- 

 tion or iialdlily upon tlie Vnited States whether to advance moneys, to 

 estalilish credits, or otlierwise. The purciiasing commission' In carrying 

 out the terms of this agreement Is endeavoring to see first that the wants 

 of tlie governments associated with the Fnlted States In the war are 

 supplied as promptly as possible, and without Interfering with the require- 

 ments of our own government. This necessarily involves the finding of 

 a source of supply from wddcli articles needed by the allies can be obtained 

 without prejudice to contracts placed with the United States government 

 for articles of the same kind, and In many cases it has been found neces- 

 sary to develop new sources of supply — that is, to Induce some one who 

 has not licen previously making the articles needed to produce them. 

 Manufacturers who are producing or who believe their plants are In a 

 position to proline!' supplies needed by the allied governments should make 

 known tills fact to tlie .\llled Purchasing Commission, which is now located 

 in the new and temporary structure housing the Council of National 

 Defense at Eighteenth and D Streets, Washington, D. ('. 



