Mnrrli ■.','.. i!Mft 



^ British Embargo on Cabinet Woods ^ 



liraJually the terini of the British i-nibarKO on cnbinot wooJi 

 ari> Ix'iiiK i'li>nri>ii u|> iiiiil tl>' ■ i»is bettor undor- 



vtooil. At lirnt thi> bnri' iiiiH' " lliiit iinpurtH uf 



ccrtuiii fiiniituri' wuodit iiit" U'll; but 



ut no wouilii wore ini<iitioiu><l I i wuoiIh" 



and "furniture wuudii" arc indcflnitt' and uncprtnin torniit, muc-Ii 

 .l,.ii),t and ronfuiiioD provaili'd in Amcrirn. It apponrg from 

 -h trado papers which have arrived in this country that the 

 viFM vrtiiinty and ronfusion were no lexH in Kni;litnd than here. No 

 one knew what womls were included in the enibnruo order. Tbo 

 l..iti.li>ii Tinihrr Trotlfn Jiiurnat intiinnti-H lliiit the men who ordereil 

 tin' .iiibari^u ilid not themselves know what it mount. 



American !>hippers were not diNlioxed to take chancrti in having 



' iirgoos turned back, so many exporters held up shipments to wait 



for fuller information. 8ome wept so far in their caution as to 



'' to forward shooks and materiiil for jmckinK boxes and 



- and bobbins for textile mills. 



.Meanwhile, the timber trade in Kni;l»nd j;ot busy. The order 

 was unpopular there becnus«> it was hasty and poorly considered. 

 The announced reason for tho embargo on cabinet woods was to 

 save space in ships for goods which are more urgently needed in 

 Kngland. One of the London trado papers asked sarcastically, 

 how much ship space would be saved by nn embargo on veneer 

 sheets which are as thin as paper. 



Pressure was brought to bear on the powers that be to induce 

 them to be more explicit in what they meant* to exclude and what 

 might still be imported. In answer to this demand the situation 

 has been cleared a little, and exporters now know better what to 

 expect. Lists of restricted woods have been published. Many of 

 the woods named do not concern lumbermen of the United States 

 because they are foreign species which do not grow in this country 

 and arc not often handled here. 



A number of species on the prescribed list vitally concern 

 American exporters, and the prohibitions are more numerous than 

 tho first reports indicated. Among the prescribed woods are the 

 roUowing: 



All veneers without specifying ] iirticular woods. 



Mahogany, which concerns Americans only indirectly. 



Basswood. This is listed simply as "bass," leaving it uncertain 

 what it may be. An examination of the books by Herbert Stone 

 .ind J. A. Baterden, descriptive of the British timber trade, fails 

 to find any mention of such a wood as "bass." What is meant 

 by the word in England is uncertain. That word used in America 

 means tiasswood. 



Cedar. If this means an American wood it probably applies to 

 western red cedar and Port Orford cedar, both of the Pacific Coast 

 states. 



Dogwood is on the prescribed list. It cornea wholly from the 

 United States and is used for shuttles in textile mills and for golf 

 club hends. It is marketed in small billets, and a considerable 

 quantity of it has been shipped to Scotland. 



Gum. This name is applied to a number of woods in the markets 

 of the world; but Americans are concerned with red gum of the 

 southern states, which in foreign countries is often known as satin 

 walnut, hazel, and hazel pine. It is ono of the finest American 

 cabinet woods, and is the best imitation of Circassian walnut. It 

 is largely exported to the United Kingdom, France, and Italy. 



Hickory. This is not a cabinet wood. It is used for vehicle 

 making and for handles. In shutting hickory out, the British are 

 depriving themselves of the best wood in the world for handles 

 where toughness and resiliency are wanted, and the best for light 

 vehicles. 



Juniper. Presumably this is the pencil cedar cut chiefly in 

 Tennessee. 



Maple. There are maples in other countries than this, but the 

 aim doubtless is to restrict the imports of the hard or sugar maple 



—16— 



of our northern titates. Canada has conaidoroblo nupplioB of this 

 wood. 



Walnut is hit by the embargo. Klurk walnut is lh<- only wood 

 of this name which has been reaching Knglaml in recent monthii. 

 It IB improbable that any CircosKian walnut can be coming out of 

 Turkey at this time. Tho Hritish nrmicR have been furnished to 

 u large extent with black walnut guustocks. I.'niess no more gun- 

 stocks ore needed, it is difllcult to understand why an embargo 

 should be placed on this wood, it is likewise* used in making 

 aeroplane propellers. 



Tin- "white" wood mentioned in the list evidently means what 

 is usually niarlieted in this country as yellow or tulip poplar. 

 "White wood" is one of its commercial names; but tho same namo 

 is applied to other commercial woods, leaving it uncertain what 

 wood is designated by "white" in the embargo list. 



.\fter studying the list, and noting its lunateurish makeup, one is 

 forced to agree with the Timber Trade Jnurmtl that "oflicials in 

 high quarters are insufficiently acquainted with the business they 



Wrong Use of a Fine Wood 



An ilhistrati-il .■irtiilp in a ri'cciit iiuiiiliir ut" llie IWittrn Pio- 

 neer Lumberman, of San Francisco, announces with something 

 of exultation, that a new use has been found for California laurel. 

 It makes good bridge planks. The opening of a new railroad 

 through the region where this wood grows most abundantly has 

 brought large quantities of it into market, and a picture shows the 

 yard of White Brothers' mill, San Francisco, piled high with log» 

 of the laurel or myrtle. 



There is no question that California laurel planks make good 

 bridge floors. Neither was there any question that Indiana black 

 walnut made good fence rails seventy-five years ago, or that Ten- 

 nessee red cedar made good barn logs at the same period. In after 

 years the Indiana walnut rails were bought up for gunstocks with 

 which to fight the battles of the Civil War, and the Tennessee 

 barnlogs have been sold to manufacturers of pencils. 



The Californians appear to be doing exactly what the short- 

 sighted easterners did with their fine woods — cutting it and get- 

 ting rid of it without regard for its real value; using it for the 

 first thing thought of without any disposition to save it for some 

 more befitting use. 



The Californians may not think much of their laurel tri?e, but 

 away from home it has the reputation of being a fine wood. It 

 has been called the finest hardwood of the Pacific coast. It has 

 been eulogized by many excellent judges of woods. The furniture 

 of the old Palace Hotel in .San Francisco — the one that was de- 

 stroyed by the earthquake — was of laurel and was admired by 

 travelers from every part of the world. 



The beautiful wood known as "black myrtle," so much admired 

 in fine furniture and decorations, is none other than the California 

 laurel which has lain under water a few months while the wood 

 undergoes a coloring process from chemicals already present. Sud- 

 worth, having in mind all the woods of the Unitcl States, says that 

 in beauty of grain none exceeds California laurel when properly 

 finished. Vet it is this wood which is being used for bridge 

 floors, and as walking beams for pumping oil wells in California. 



Tho Californians who want bridge floors should make them of 

 valley oak planks. They arc as strong, as hard, and probably 

 will last as well as laurel, and the laurel should be reserved for 

 furniture and interior house finish. The Pacific coast people have 

 80 little hardwood of good class that they do not seem to know 

 what use to make of it. 



When you start in to fix a machine, be sure that you first know 

 what ails it. 



