August 25, 191."). 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



17 



brought about in recent years could be increased by the mention 

 of many more, but the foregoing are sufficient to illustrate the 

 point that the more highly developed the farm methods are, the 

 greater the -demand for lumber on the farms. Much is now being 

 said on the subject of pushing the use of lumber into new places, 

 but many persons overlook the fact that the agricultural colleges 

 have done more to increase the demand for lumber than nearly any 

 other agency that has been at work, and it has been done without 

 noise, without display, and witliout cost to the lumber interests. 



Eucalyptus to Have Recognition at Exposition 



T N MUCH GLOWING PHRASEOLOGY the editor of the Conven- 

 i lion News Bureau at the Panama-Pacific International Exposition 

 announces that the California growers of the "wonder-tree," the 

 eucalyptus, are to meet in eonventiou in the Lumbermen's building 

 on September S. 



Evidently the eucalyptus growers are hard after the trade, but, in 

 view of the result of the government 's tests, it would seem to be bet- 

 ter for them to be a little more cautious, or at least eonseivative in 

 their statements of the remarkable characteristics of this "wonder- 

 tree." According to the glowing statement by the press agent 

 eucalyptus, while growing ten times as fast as hickory, oak or ma- 

 hogany, yields lumber harder and better than these native woods. 

 Eucalyptus is hard, that is granted, but the statement that it is 

 "better" is pretty broad. An}- one contemplating becoming in- 

 terested in eucalyptus as a commercial possibility would do well to 

 consult the Forest Service officials as to the result of their thorough 

 investigations along these lines. 



Undoubtedly there must be something in the eucalj-ptus game or 

 it would not attract the type of men who seem to have been push- 

 ing it of late. Eucalyptus has always suffered from the ridiculous 

 and extravagant claims of wild-cat promoters, but this newest claim 

 of the remarkable properties of eucalyptus would not seem to be 

 very far from the character of sfeitcmcnts formerly made by less 

 responsible operators. For their own protection and in order to • 

 avoid tlie appearance of backing this wild-cat scheme, responsible 

 operators connected with the Eucalyptus Hardwood Association of 

 California should either omit extravagant claims of vast superiority 

 oi- should substantiate these claims by official tests made by duly 

 recognized authorities. 



"Out of Date " 



A NUMBER OF YEARS AGO the Bureau of Corporations col- 

 lected enormous masses of figures on all phases of the lumber 

 business and forest resources. Practically the whole country' was 

 covered in that series of investigations. Voluminous reports on 

 some of the topics were published. The fourth volume alone of the 

 report contained nearly a thousand pages. Some of the reports 

 have not yet been published, and one such is said to contain data 

 on the cost of producing lumber. 



The former Bureau of Corporations which collected that data has 

 now been superseded by and merged into the new Federal Trade 

 Commission. The latter body has inherited the left-overs of the old 

 Bureau of Corporations, among which heirlooms are the statistics 

 on the cost of producing lumber. 



It happens that the Forest Service is now working on the cost 

 of lumber, which is the identical subject which was supposed to 

 have been covered by the Bureau of Corporations. Naturally, it 

 looks like one branch of the government is going over the same 

 ground which another branch has already covered. In order to 

 avoid this, it appears that a request was made to allow the Forest 

 Service to use the old Bureau of Corporations' unpublished data 

 on lumber cost, thereby saving the time and expense of going over 

 the ground again. 



It has been announced from Washington that the Federal Trade 

 Commission has refused to turn these figures over to the Forest 

 Service, giving as an excuse that they are ' ' out of date. ' ' 



The excuse is a good one. Many people do not believe that the 

 figures were ever in date. They were so long in collecting and com- 

 piling that they were as moss-grown as the "Old Oaken Bucket" 



before they left the hands of the compilers. If they contain any- 

 thing of value, it would seem that the Forest Service ought tt> be 

 allowed to utilize them in its present investigation of lumber cost; 

 but the chances are that little is being lost in consigning that 

 collection of data to the silence of oblivion. If these figures may 

 be correctly judged by the four reports on the lumber industry 

 which the Bureau of Corporations permitted to see the light of day, 

 oblivion is wholly appropriate for what remains. 



It thus appears probable that the famous seiies of reports on "the 

 lumber industry" has finally faded away, dwindled to a vanishing 

 point, maneuvered itself "out of date," and "gone glimmering 

 through the dream of things that were. ' ' — Pax vobiscum. 



What the Low Building Cost Means 



ANYTHING WHICH WOULD GIVE a measure of increased 

 o)itimism to the lumber trade has been welcomed in the last few 

 months, but it is doubtful if lumbermen in general (and this applies 

 to all classes handling every character of forest products), have fully 

 appreciated just what the period of low cost of raw material and labor 

 signifie.*^; Industrial investments have not ordinarily been particularly 

 enticing to capital, which has been seeking means of investment 

 enabling it to take advantage of the present demoralized state, to the 

 end that an unusual improvement in value in the future would insure 

 more than ordinary returns. It has been especially attracted through 

 this consideration to the prospect of investment in real estate and 

 building, where the circumstances seem to promise soundness for the 

 future, and where there was a reasonable inducement to carry such 

 investments over present depression. 



As to the contributing factors, the generally low real estate values 

 and unusual depressed values for building material and labor wages, 

 liave resulted in an attractive situation for a certain element of 

 investors, who have taken advantage of these circumstances to secure 

 investments with a minimum outlay of capital, which promise through 

 accentuated values in the future to return excellent profits. In no 

 small measure the continued good situation in the building trades has 

 resulted from this forc-ight on the part of investors, and it is quite 

 likely that the activity will continue with this as a primary reason. 

 In a lesser degree the individual home builder has also profited by 

 the opportunity for securing a home for one-fourth to one-third less 

 than he could secure the same structure under ordinary circumstances. 

 The building records will substantiate these statements. 



The Prospect Is Bright 



LUMBERMEN MAY CONSIDER THEMSELVES FORTUNATE 

 that the beginning of the recession from the old selfish, discon- 

 certed effort began in a period long enough ago so that the tendency 

 toward amalgamated and co-operative action is now well established. 

 There are all too many striking illustrations of the fact that a dis- 

 jointed defense against organized opposition from any quarter is dis- 

 astrous. The activities of wood substitutes in all lines is illustra- 

 tive of this point. 



Now that the lumbermen ai-e confronted with two of the biggest 

 problems which they have to face they are indeed fortunate in 

 being able to utilize some central body and to act concertedly, sub- 

 merging the selfish interests of the individual and the local associa- 

 tion to the best interests of the trade as a whole. 



In opposing the railroads' endeavors to effect a general increase 

 in rates through re-classification and in opposing further encroach- 

 ments of substitutes in legitimate markets for lumber, results can be 

 accomjjlished only if the entire lumber trade is acting as a unit. 

 Without this united action defeat and the inauguration of even more 

 discouraging fundamental conditions is assured. With this concert 

 of effort it is practically certain in the one instance that the lumber- 

 men can make a strong enough case to maintain rate making on a fair 

 basis, and in the other to do effective work toward acquainting the 

 consuming public with the merits of wood in its rightful uses. 



It is time for some of those who have been waiting for things 

 to liven up to do a little waking up themselves or they may soon 

 find themselves following instead of leading the procession. 



