July 10. 19i: 



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The Lumbermen s Round Table 



Mahogany for Pattern Work 



The gencr;il impression tliat mahogany is a prohibitively expensive 

 wood for any purpose except one where beauty is a factor of impor- 

 tance is somewhat at variance with the advertisement which a New 

 York concern is running in trade journals reaching the foundrymeu. 

 It offers to supply mahogany for pattern lumber at less than the 

 cost of white pine, which is in general use for that purpose. It ap- 

 pears that the pattern lumber expert is able, by a judicious selection 

 of grades, to put an apparently very expensive wood into competition 

 with an apparently low-priced one. Incidentally, the operation is 

 rather interesting as demonstrating the possibilities of the dimension 

 business, for if is evidently by cutting up cull lumber that the con- 

 cern referred to is able to handle the proposition on the basis in- 

 dicated. The patterns made of mahogany are usually those intended 

 to be used a great many times. The hardness of the wood causes 

 it to last a long time in constant use. 



Put Clean Logs on the Carriage 



One way to insure jioor results in the sawmill is by not seeing 

 that the logs are cleaned before they are sawed up. Many a mill 

 which buys logs iu small lots gets them after they have lain in the 

 woods, along the road or in other places where dirt, gravel and small 

 stones are forced into the bark. If this foreign matter is not removed 

 before the logs are put into the mill, the saws are going to have to be 

 sharpened frequently, and the results will not be altogether satis- 

 factory to the sawyer. It may seem picayunish to require that the 

 dirt be cleaned off a saw-log before it is manufactured into lumber, 

 but this is an apparently minor feature to which it pays to give 

 attention. The saws hit enough matter in the form of old horse-shoes, 

 spikes and the like, where the logs are brought in from wood-lots and 

 other locations near residences, without having to be dulled and 

 broken unnecessarily. 



Goggles for Mill Employes 



Most metal-working plants of any importance now require, in the 

 interests of accident prevention, that their employes wear goggles. 

 It is unusual to find a workman in a sawmill or woodworking factory 

 with this equipment, however, although it is as desirable in one place 

 as the other. It is true that a small particle of iron can do much 

 more damage to the eye than a particle of wood, but the entrance 

 of the latter is exceedingly painful and often dangerous. 



The writer was recently in a large mill where one or two of the men 

 were wearing goggles. These seemed to be older employes, who did 

 not care to take unnecessary risks. The young fellows appeared 

 to think that only a mollycoddle would wear goggles, but as a matter 

 of fact it would have helped every man if he had protected his eyes 

 in this way. Adjustable goggles are now procurable, which are com- 

 fortable and do not interfere in any way with the work. It would 

 be a good plan for lumber manufacturers and woodworkers to inquire 

 into the number of accidents to eyes and take steps, in case they are 

 numerous, to prevent them by requiring goggles to be worn hereafter. 



With workmen's compensation laws being adopted in many states, 

 carrying specific indemnity for loss of time to the workman, no 

 matter whether the accident is his own fault or not, such points as 

 these are worth looking into. 



The Consumer's Sawmill 



Although it is generally agreed that it is not good policy for a 

 consumer of lumber to attempt to manufacture stock for his own pur- 

 poses, there are occasional instances which seem to show that it may 

 be worth while. The question that must be answered, however, is 

 whether the consumer can use all, or practically all, of the lumber 

 which he manufactures. If he can do so, well and good; let him 

 make his own stock. But if he can use to best advantage only a por- 

 tion of the material which he manufactures, then he is obviously 

 forced into the lumber business. That means that he cannot con- 

 centrate on the manufacture of his principal product, but must 

 study sales and other features of the lumber trade. In fact, such 



a man is of necessity a lumberman rather than a consumer, as far as 

 the operation of the sawmill is concerned. 



A big Indiana furniture concern which saws its own lumber and 

 veneers is reported to use ninety per cent of its output in its own 

 factory. That is a very high figure, and it is probably one factory 

 out of a thousand in this respect. The case of a large wagon concern 

 is recalled, in which the wagon company established a mill to manu- 

 facture oak spokes and save the profit that the spoke manufacturers 

 were getting. It turned out that only about eight per cent of the 

 timber the mill handled was suited for spokes, and consequently the 

 concern was forced into the lumber business on a scale that ulti- 

 mately led to the abandonment of the project. 



Millman and Salesman 



The problem of the big concerns is to make those engaged in 

 the practical work of manufacturing the stuff understand the require- 

 ments of the consumer, and lead those who sell the product to appre- 

 ciate the necessities of the manufacturing department. 



It is in order to sui)ply the lack of co-operation in this connection 

 that a certain large lumber concern, which also manufactures other 

 products, makes it a plan to have the heads of its various mills get 

 together at brief intervals with those in charge of sales. The millmen 

 tell what they are up against, give their views as to the ways in 

 which they would like to have the product sold, and indicate what they 

 think are unreasonable requirements. The salesmen, on the other 

 hand, tell what the trade wants, explain wherein, if at all, the manu- 

 facturing department has fallen down in carrying out instructions, 

 and in general give their point of view and the attitude of buyers. 

 After a conference of that kind, the salesmen know more about what 

 the mill end of the business requires, and the superintendents of the 

 mills appreciate the necessity of trying to give the customer, every 

 time, just what is needed. 



Work of this sort is bound to tell in more satisfactory handling 

 of orders, as well as in more intelligent solicitation of business. 



The Supply of Walnut 



The producers of black walnut, who have been responding to the 

 unusual demands made by the requirements of foreign governments, 

 which are purchasing rifles in large quantities in this country, have 

 been assuring the manufacturers that there is plenty of the material 

 to be had and that there is no reason to attempt to find a substitute 

 for it. Those interested in other woods, such as beech, birch, ash, 

 poplar, mahogany, gum, etc., have been endeavoring to persuade 

 buyers that they have satisfactory substitutes for walnut, and that 

 there is not enough of the latter to take care of the demand. 



If the walnut people succeed in supplying the requirements of the 

 rifle manufacturers and their foreign customers, as they seem ready 

 and willing to do, it will be an interesting demonstration that the 

 supply of black walnut is far from exhausted. When the campaign 

 to revive interest in the wood was started a year or two ago, the 

 chief dilBculty consisted in convincing consumers that it had not 

 all disappeared. Now America is supplying the world 's demands 

 for walnut for war purposes, and the supply still refuses to fade away. 



Why Costs Mount 



It is often said that lumber can be manufactured just as cheaply 

 in a small mill as a large one, and that, owing to the ability of the 

 small manufacturer to give personal attention to the work, he can get 

 better results in the way of output and grade from each log. This 

 is true, to a certain extent; but where the small mill frequently falls 

 down is in not having, and failing to supply, equipment which is 

 reaUy necessary to the economical handling of the proposition. For 

 instance, a certain small mill which is well situated in most respects 

 is attempting to get along without a derrick for handling its logs. 

 The labor and time wasted in getting the logs into the mill would 

 constitute a more than satisfactory return on the investment in a 

 derrick. Probably there are other features of equipment which are 

 being overlooked, and which are helping to hold down the returns 

 which the personal efforts of the manufacturer should be netting. 



