November 25, 1920 



Hardwood Record — Veneer & Panel Section 



31 



Quartered Oak Veneer Cut Is Limited 



Stocks in Hands of Producers Are Very Low; Consumers Hold Virtually None; Little Prospect of 



Lowering of Price in Future Because of Scarcity 



There is no likelihood of there ever being a glut of the enough for veneer, are becoming exceedingly scarce, and 



market for quartered oak veneer in the United States, soon the cost of getting out such logs will amount to as 



according to the information obtained by Hardwood much as the cost of producing walnut veneer logs." 



Record in an investigation just completed of the produc- Mr. Worland advised that his company had "discon- 



tion, demand, mill stocks, consumers' stocks, sales, etc., tinued the manufacture of quartered oak for the time 



of this important American cabinet-making commodity. being," because they must "purchase their flitches on the 



Regardless of the falling off in general demand for quar- market, and so far there has not been the reduction in 



tered oak veneer due to the preference of furniture manu- quartered oak flitches that the price of quartered oak 



facturers for mahogany and walnut styles during the past veneer would warrant for profitable manufacturing, 



year or so, and the present lethargic condition of the "We know that there are some veneer saws that are 



phonograph cabinet industry, there has not been, nor is being put to work along other lines, and there will prob- 



there, a surplus of this veneer nor the raw material from ably be less quartered oak veneer manufactured in the 



which it is made. future than there has been in the past, unless there is a 



This is because the very cream of white oak logs is very marked increase in the demand." 



demanded for the manufacture of sawed or sliced quar- Charles H. Barnaby of Greencastle, Ind., writes 



tered oak veneer, and there is a decreasing amount of this that "good white oak suitable for veneer is really and 



timber cut in the hardwood forests of the country today. truly becoming exceedingly scarce. We are having a 



Therefore the manufacturers of this veneer have only cut harder time keeping our veneer saws running on account 



up at any time such stock as could be disposed of readily. of the scarcity of white oak logs than ever before. At the 



They have not felt it advisable to consume a commodity present writing we haven't much of an idea where we 



so swiftly diminishing and already largely depleted as are going to get our next year's supply so scarce is this 



white oak veneer timber, except for favorable return. wood becoming. " 



There is virtually no white oak being quartered and W. W. Knight, owner of the Long-Knight Lumber 



sawn or sliced into veneer today, because of the absence Company of Indianapolis, Ind. ; James E. Stark, president 



of demand. Many of the veneer operators, who manu- of James E. Stark & Company, Inc., of Memphis; R. L. 



facture a variety of veneers, have shut down their plants, Conner of the J. W. Frye Lumber Company of Dayton, 



awaiting a revival of business, and those who happen to O. ; George B. Lapping, president and general manager 



be operating still are not cutting quartered oak except in of the Floyd County Veneer Mills of New Albany, Ind., 



extremely limited quantities. According to estimates and others confirm the statement that there is virtually 



made by G. O. Worland, secretary and treasurer of the no quartered oak veneer in the hands of consumers and 



Evansville Veneer Company, Evansville, Ind., there are only exceedingly small stocks in producers' warehouses, 



at present no more than 7,300,000 feet of sawed quar- They also declare that production is virtually nil. 



tered oak veneer and 1,300,000 feet of sliced quartered Mr. Knight declared that "during the past year there 



oak veneer in the hands of producers. There is in logs has been an unusual demand for quarter sawed white 



and flitches only enough material to manufacture about oak veneer and it is only within the past sixty days that 



5,000,000 feet more, with orders on hand of about production has anywhere near caught up with the 



5,000,000 feet more of the sawed oak and about 700,000 demand." 



feet of the sliced oak. "With anything like a demand for The recent falling off of demand for quartered oak is 



this product, there would be an absolute scarcity of goods due chiefly to the slump in the phonograph trade, in the 



to meet the demand," he declared. His estimates were opinion of Mr. Conner. This trade had an unprecedented 



run for the last two years, but is doing practically nothing 

 now, he said. 



made of conditions about thirty days ago. 



Consumers' Stocks Nil 



Mr. Worland further stated that to his knowledge there 

 are not at this time any stocks of quartered oak in the 

 hands of consumers, as they have been buying in a lim- 

 ited way for the past few years, particularly on account 

 of the high prices and on account of the decreased de- 

 mand for this material. \ 



"Good quartered oak is being made in lesser quanti- 

 ties," he said, "on account of the difficulty of getting suit- 

 able timber for the purpose. Prime white oak logs, good 



Prices Can't Drop Very Low 



When it comes to the question of the price of quartered 

 oak veneer, the opinion is general that there is no reason 

 to believe that prices will be materially reduced at any 

 time, regardless of what may be the conditions of the 

 market in other veneers and lumbers. This is because 

 of the increasing scarcity of white oak timber suitable for 

 veneer manufacture. It goes without saying when the 



iContinued on page 34) 



