HARDWOOD RECORD 



Mareb 2r>, 1010 



intollif^ntly as tli» furnitura buiinats is (n>o<l >» tlio nmin, and it 



dut 



lure Ijuvorn uro hUll 



Most otlicr lilies of consumers arc biij . noriimlly. In 



fancy woo«l» prices have soared to on extrcin. , ittioiit tlio possi- 

 bility of their wenkeninj;. Coincident wiOi rntlicr frwuu-nt nnnoiincc- 



.f sales of very 

 in convincin); 

 buyers tliut tLe iiiuliu|{uuy biuiutiun c^n iiut jtuMiUy clinngo for the 

 worse. 



W:Utuit and (turn are cstablislu -'ly montli 



by month and energetic efforts in i ""g in that 



wood Retting increasing volume of trade from various factory lines. 



Of the standard domestic woods onk scetns to bo making loss prog- 

 r«as in new directions than any other. It is true that it also has felt 

 the ■ ^ ts of tlie unusual conditions that have obtained - 



for • or six weeks. This docs not mean that onk itself 



can take any oredit. At the same time oak is still an excellent prop- 

 erty and is being sold at better prices as the spring demand 

 approaches. 



The fact that the winter i.s really over is being reflected in the 

 mobilization of construction forces, and the active pushing of con- 

 struction work in cities and out-lying districts as well. 



Railroads are probably doing a little more than they have been. 



On the whole the situation is, relatively speaking, in the same 

 alignment as it was two weeks ago. That is, if there have been any 

 material changes those changes have merely been a little further 

 strengthening in all values, but there has been nothing startling with 

 the exception of the continued increased seriousness of the car 

 situation. 



The Cover Picture 



SPRINT, IS EXERTING ITS FIRST INFLUENCE in the north- 

 em forests. The picture on the front cover of this issue 

 of Hardwood Record represents a scene familiar to those who 

 travel or sojourn in the woods in the northern country about 

 this season of the year. Patches of snow and patches of bare 

 ground cover the landscape like a leopard's spots. 



Many a debate, not always in good humor and sweet temper, 

 has been carried on to decide the question whether snow lies 

 longest in the shade of trees or in the open ground. Foresters 

 have usually taken the side of the shade and have maintained 

 that snow melts first in the open ground where there is no tim- 

 ber; but people who are inclined to oppose the government's 

 conservation policies have maintained that the latest snowdrifts 

 in the spring are found in open ground. They cite examples of 

 remnants of drifts remaining on the leeward crests of ridges, 

 where there is no timber, when the ground covering has disap- 

 peared from the forests. 



This is a question not easily decided one way or the other, 

 because ev-idence can be brought forward to prove both sides. 

 It is a fact that several things should be considered besides sun 

 and shade. The depth of the snow and its exposure to air cur- 

 rents are impbrtant factors. A drift ten feet deep in the open 

 will likely last longer than snow one foot deep in the shade of 

 a neighboring forest. Persons familiar with forests and open 

 ground in the spring have opinions of their own on this sub- 

 ject, and many of those opinions are so firmly fixed that more 

 evidence than a single photograph would be required to change 

 them. 



The cover picture is not put forward as an argument one way 

 or the other. It shows a forest scene where winter is slowly- 

 yielding to the influence of spring, with patches of snow and 

 areas of bare ground interspersed. 



It is a mixed forest with hardwoods and softwoods mingled. 

 Some logging was done there some years, as may be inferred 

 from the presence of partly decayed stumps in the foreground; 

 but there was no clean cutting, as is proved l>y the merchantable 

 timber yet standing. 



More cutting is In contemplation, and the woodsman is filing 

 ' i- iToi-scut now nn<l making it rca<ly for active operation*. 



.••ry log cutter should be able to keep his own saw in order, to 

 the extent at least of touching up the points of the cutting tooth 

 uuil slightly swaging the rakers at least once a day. Hut fre- 

 quently a lugging crow hn.n some mnii wlio keeps all the saws in 

 order. That may be the occupation of the man shown in the 

 picture. The scone is in Minnesota. 



Don't Expect the Association to Do It All 



IT IS TRUE that the hardwood associations of national scope 

 employing regular corps of inspectors have always stretched them- 

 selves to just a little further effort to t4iko care of unexpected 

 demands hero and there, but it should not be considere<l by asso- 

 ciation members as a function of the organization to which they 

 belong to take care of all private inspection, tluis obviating the 

 necessity for the individual firms, either producers or purchasers, 

 maintiiining tlieir own men. In other words, no hardwood lumber 

 should be shipped or accepted without thorough inspection by the 

 most capable inspectors the buyer or seller can employ. Nobody 

 should merely tally the stock from or into the piles without the final 

 thorough examination, counting on the fact tliat the association 

 inspectors are back of them anyway and they can secure this service 

 if anything wrong turns up. 



It is obviously impossible for the association inspectors now work- 

 ing regularly to go over all the hardwood lumber manufactured in 

 the country. As a matter of fact, a very small percentage is 

 handled by the official inspectors of the associations interested in 

 the hardwood business, and their purpose is merely to afford an 

 official means of checking up on the inspections of the privately 

 employed men, so tliat in the event of any dispute arising there will 

 be in effect a legal court of appeals whose decision ba.sed on official 

 inspection will be final. Any firm not enough interested in saving 

 the useless expense of association inspection and rcinspcction by a 

 careful checking over of grades as well as tallies on its own hook 

 should really not he entitled to the privilege of verification of the 

 original inspection by the authorized association inspectors. Of 

 course, it might often be a convenience for the dealer or even the 

 manufacturer to use the association inspection for the original work, 

 but he should bear in mind the fact that these inspectors arc employed 

 for a specific service, and to load them with work which can and 

 should be taken care of by iirivi(,>iy employed men !•- unfair to the 

 rest of the trade. 



Utilizing the Short Lengths 



THERE IS PLENTY OF ROOM for deep thought in the plan for 

 selling short lengths of lumber as originally instituted by an 

 Oregon department store. The short-length bugaboo has been one 

 of the greatest obstacles in the way of true conservation in saw- 

 milling. The impossibility of marketing any quantities of this 

 stock except in isolated and special cases has been the cause of a 

 very fair proportion of the sawmill waste in all directions. 



Every layman who is at all handy with the saw and hammer 

 will appreciate the opportunity of being able to secure for a 

 reasonable price that particular short board or two that he desires 

 for a new shelf, the new cabinet, or for one thing or another about 

 the house for which he ordinarily would have to purchase a long 

 and more expensive board, and cut it up to suit the requirements. 



Furthermore, anybody who has purchased a board or two of 

 lumber knows the usual inconvenience of delivery. If' he goes 

 to the local carpenter shop or to some other place, he has to 

 burden himself personally with the task of transporting the board 

 to his home, and is often deterred from making his purchase by 

 the inconvenience necessitated by the absence of proper delivery 

 conditions. This of course is particularly true in the city. 



If it were possible for anyone to go into his favorite department 

 store and pick out just what he wants to suit his own purpose, 

 and have it delivered by the first delr\-ery wagon right to his 

 door, there is no question but that a vast amount of lumber in 



