August 10. 1915. 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



19 



'Vlllll|l|||||||||,„.n 



retailers in our territory liave been most iutlmate and friendl.v and 

 tlK'Se relations still exist with many of tlie retailers, but I am told 

 that there are eities in Wisconsin in which there is no yard carrying 

 hemlock lumber or white cedar shingles, and these dealers we are still 

 on ethical grounds trying to protect. In our respective states we are 

 confronted every year or two with a mass of legislalion — some of wliich 

 deserves our support and some of which our strongest condemnation. 

 We also frequently have to contend with unequal, and, what we believe 

 to be in many cases, unjust methods of taxation. Many of these prob- 

 lems can be met only by our co-operative efforis. 



Confronted as we are with the actual conditions as I have briefly 

 described them, it is evident that the work that our association has 

 undertaken deserves our support and eo-opei'ation. and what we are do- 

 ing in our own immediate held the National Hardwood Lumber Asso- 

 ciation is doing in the general field of hardwood production and dis- 

 tribution. 



I have spoken of the competition we arc facing with other producing 

 regions — much of this competition is legitimate. There are certain 

 items of lumber that can be manufactured in Texas or Washington and 

 shipped to Wisconsin 

 and sold at a lower 

 price than we can af- 

 ford to manufacture 

 and deliver those par- 

 ticular items. On the 

 other hand, all over 

 our country, lumber- 

 men are working at 

 cross purposes and 

 one kind of building 

 lumber is shipped hun- 

 dreds of miles past 

 another kind of build- 

 ing lumber, on the 

 same railroad. This 

 is an economic loss 

 which a strong na- 

 tional association will, 

 in time, be able to 

 overcome. 



I have said that we 

 are selling much of 

 our lumber at Ic;ss 

 than cost of produc- 

 tion. The hearing at 

 Chicago last week be- 

 fore the Federal Trade 

 Commission disclosed 

 the fact that every 

 other producing region 

 in the country was do- 

 ing the same thing. I 

 believe this hearing 

 has laid a foundation 

 for mucli constructive 

 betterment from with- 

 in our industry and 



from Washington. One fad was positively eslablislied — that the interests 

 of our industry and the interests of the public of the entire nation are 

 iudissolubl.v linked together. 



Some Yard Men Discriminate Against Northern Products 



M. P. ileCuUough, cliainiian of the [ulvertising coumiittee, then 

 discussed advertising work. E. A. Hanutr reported for hemlock 

 publicity and expressed himself as believing the efforts to increase 

 the markets for hemlock are not sufficient. He cited the work of 

 the e^'press association, which has twenty-five cents per thousand feet 

 available for cypress exploitation, saying hemlock is off from .$3 

 to $4, whereas cypress has increased $2. He said one cypress manu- 

 facturer contributed .$30,000 to this work. He recommended an assess- 

 ment of from ten to fifteen cents per 1,000 feet to meet the actual 

 demands. Mr. Hamar cited an instance of competition of southern 

 pine, saying tliat without some insistent effort hemlock will be deprived 

 of local markets and left decidedly in the rear. 



Referring to the question of ready-cut houses, he said that in spite 

 of advice to the contrary retailers can furnish materials for houses to 

 be finished at from twenty to thirty per cent less price. 



The question of white cedar shingle market.s and markets for hem- 

 lock was discussed by M. J. Quinlan, who maintained that certain 

 yards are discriminating against these woods. He cited one ease in 

 which three yards were involved in a certain Wisconsin town. Two 

 of these carry yellow pine lumber and red cedar shingles and the other 

 carries hemlock and white cedar shingles. The pine men maintained 



Till-: I'.M.NK LIMDEIi COMr.WYS l'L.\NT, OSHKOSII, WIS., FltOM TIIF. niVKU 



that inasmuch as the demand is for these woods they must specialize, 

 while the third retailer said this is not so; that builders want advice 

 as to the best woods to use, and liendock and white cedar can be 

 pushed if the work is done intelligently. Mr. Quinlan said Wisconsin 

 railroads should be urged to accept Wisconsin woods for certain pur- 

 poses rather than foreign woods, which are no better adajited to those 

 purposes. 



The Market Conditions Reports 

 M. J. t^uinlan took the chair as cliairniau of the market conditions 

 committee and calleil upon George X. Harder, who reported for hem- 

 lock as follows: 



After a careful survey of the situation, the outlook appears very favor- 

 able as the conditions which appear on the commercial horizon are de- 

 cidedly encouraging. There are better things in store for us in the im- 

 iiiediate future ; in fact, there is a greater demand for liemlock toda.v 

 than there was thirty days ago, although iliere does not seem to be any 



increase in values, but 

 with the demand in- 

 creased and a little 

 perseverance and <le- 

 t'Tinination on t h e 

 p a r t of all lumber 

 m a n u f a c turers wo 

 sliould soon be able to 

 ri'alize better values: 

 at least get a new dol- 

 l.ir for an old one, and 

 n <» t sacrifice o u r 

 slumpage. to say noth- 

 ing of our profits. 



Hemlock is being 

 offered toda.v by some 

 of our members at a 

 concession of ?">. 

 while we have heard 

 of some sales, of spe- 

 <ial stock, being mad<- 

 at $5..")0 and .?o.7->. 

 hut these are very 

 few, and we believe 

 1 h e average conces- 

 ■•ion. and the one 

 which represents the 

 market, is .?4.50 from 

 I'.roughton's list of 

 lebruary 2.">, 19i:i. 



.Vt the .T a n u a r y 

 iM'-eting, our worth.v 

 eliairman. M. .1. t^uin- 

 lan. read a letter in 

 \v h i c h a statement 

 was made that fir was 

 being sold in Roches- 

 ter, N. y.. at a flat 

 price of S^O.-'jO. which included all lengths up to 30 feet. I have in my 

 possession at the present time a letter from the same company, which 

 letter is dated July 20. 1915, stating that tir is no longer being ottered to 

 any extent, in competition with hemlock, \vest of L'tica, N. Y.. and very 

 little we.^t of .\lbany, X. Y. This s.ime letter states that yellow pine is 

 being now offered at a price approximat''ly ^'2 per thousand feet less than 

 is asked for hemlock. 



Your committee feels that this association should go on record as ap- 

 proving the very able presentation of facts of the situation which we are 

 struggling against as given b.v our very worth.v friend and co-la!K)rer, 

 C. H. Worcester, before the Federal Trade Commission, on Tuesday, .luly 

 -i), 1915. and show our appreciation of his activities. 



In closing, permit me to say that your committee feels that it is an 

 opportune time for us to go slow and steady and by so doing soon reap 

 our reward. 



Mr. Kaye again discussed the model silo for the benefit of those 

 who had not attended the Thursday session. ('. H. Worcester sug- 

 gested that it would be well to prepare a plan and specifications for 

 the construction of this silo for distribution among the farmers. 

 He suggested this could not be done under the present appropriation 

 and that additional appropriations will have to be levied or markets 

 lost. 



Edward Hines of Chicago referred to the recent meeting of the 

 white pine people in Chicago and reeonunended that a similar plan 

 to that adopted at that meeting be adopted by the Northern Hemlock 

 and Hardwood association, under which could be utilized the forces 

 of salesmen of members of the association to collect information 



