HARDWOOD RECORD 



An Increase in capital stock to $50,000 has been effected by the Van 

 Cleave Saw Mill Company, St. Louis. Mo. 



The H. F. Below Lumber Company has succeedcil the Below Lumber 

 Company, Stanley, Wis. 



=-< BUFFALO >.= 



The Third Liberty Loan has been absorbing much attention here for 

 the past few weelss. Ttie total quota set for Buffalo is about $30,000,000, 

 and of this it is expected to raise $900,000 among members of the lumber 

 industry. At last accounts the largest share of this amount had been 

 raised and there is not much doubt that the remainder will be. The 

 chairman of the lumber committee is Hugh McLean and the other mem- 

 bers of the committee are the following : G. Ellas, A. J. Chestnut, M. M. 

 Wall. O. E. Teager, P. M. Sullivan, H. E. Montgomery, Ganson Depew, 

 H. F. Taylor, C. W. Hurd, H. I. George, L. A. Fischer, W. P. Betts and 

 William Henrich. The subscriptions have not all been announced as yet, 

 but two for $50,000 have been published, these being the subscriptions of 

 the Hugh McLean Lumber Company and G. Ellas & Bro. 



The first lake vessels of the season sailed from here about a week ago, 

 though departures for the head of the lakes have been delayed, because of 

 the ice. The arrival of lumber cargoes is expected to be late this season 

 and the business does not promise to be heavy. 



The government plan to take over the Erie barge canal and to build a 

 fleet of 700 boats with which to operate it is of interest to the lumber 

 trade, and will no doubt result in the relief of the railroad congestion of 

 the past few months. It is stated that the principal freight handled by 

 the canal will be grain and coal, and that some of the boats will be 

 turned out in time to handle the movement of these commodities in the fall. 

 Lumber will be benefited, even if stocks are not carried by the canal, for 

 the new plan will release thousands of cars from the West at Buffalo, 

 enabling them to turn back here for more freight, instead of going on 

 to the seaboard. It is hoped to move 5,000,000 tons of freight by canal this 

 year, and double that amount the year following. 



Motor trucks are to be used in this state to a large extent, in order to 

 relieve the railroads. Frank E. Williamson, traffic manager of the Chamber 

 of Commerce, has been helping the government plan to establish routes and 

 says that these will be installed all through the state. He is now on his 

 way to organize Albany, Dtica, Syracuse, Binghamton and Rochester. 



In an estimate made here a few days ago it was stated that several 

 thousand new workers would be employed by local munition factories 

 within the next few months, and the question arises as to where dwellings 

 are to be secured, for the number empty is very small. Real estate men 

 and builders look for an active building business in the city this summer, 

 though no signs of it are yet apparent. Permits for March fell behind a 

 year ago, and the outlook is that April will do the same. Idle money is 

 not going into building construction just now, but to the aid of the gov- 

 ernment. A little later it i.s believed that more funds for building will be 

 available. The average cost of permits here during the past few weeks 

 has been below the legal English war maximum of $2,500, which shows 

 that repair work is comprising a large share of the business. 



R. D. McLean of the McLean Mahogany & Cedar Company has been in 

 the Middle West for the past two weeks on a buying trip. 



W. L. Sykes, president of the Emporium Lumber Company, has returned 

 from a vacation trip to Atlantic City. 



.< PITTSBURGH >-= 



Tom Harrington of J. C. Linehan & Co., a new wholesale concern at 527 

 Park building, has enlisted in the Forestry Regiment and is now in Wash- 

 ington waiting to go "over there." 



Frank E. Smith is now president of the Miners' & Manufacturers Lum- 

 ber Company, which has a very nice office in the First National Bank 

 building. It is an outgrowth of the old C. E. Breltweiser Lumber Company, 

 but the Breltweiser interests are entirely out of the new concern. Mr. 

 Smith is specializing in handling industrial and manufacturing trade and 

 is pushing his company right to the front in this line. 



Among the wholesalers who were out of town last week picking up new 

 business were J. N. Woollett, president of the Aberdeen Lumber Company ; 

 E. H. Schreiner, president of the Schreiner Lumber Company, and J. C. 

 Donges, president of the J. C. Donges Lumber Company. 



The Tionesta Lumber Company reports business this month pretty quiet. 

 It is still running its plant at Endeavor, Forest county. Pa., although it 

 lost sixty men out of its force of 300 in the recent drafts. 



March building in Pittsburgh fell down thirty-two per cent. This was 

 not a surprise to the building public, because reports and predictions had 

 been freely made by architects and contractors that everything was going 

 to the bad in building here this spring. There has been little this month 

 to encourage any better report In the near future. 



The Hoffman Lumber Company is a new concern in Pittsburgh organized 

 by F. C. Hoffman, J. Robert Weber and J. T. McAuIey of this city. 



It has been reported frequently of late that the Lewisburg Chair Com- 

 pany, Lewisburg, Pa., was considering closing down its plant indefinitely. 

 These reports, according to C. T. Fairchild, general manager of the plant, 

 are entirely without foundation, as the factory has plenty of business and 

 plenty of fuel and has secured contracts for a year's supply of the latter. 



The Neville Dock Company is arranging to build a new plant on the 



Monongahcla river at Grays Landing under the management of George 

 Nolden. It will use the new docks for repairing barges and other river 

 craft. 



The Kendall Lumber Company reports business fairly rotten all around. 

 Demand is not pushing forward at all and although the company has a lot 

 of good contracts and is keeping its mills running, there is no edge to the 

 business. 



The Acorn Lumber Company, according to President H. F. Domhoff, 

 finds that a good deal of hardwood can be sold if the wholesaler has the 

 right kind of stock. There is no trouble about getting first-class prices. 



Building operations in Tri-State territory are going to be found In 

 certain lines this summer and will be noticeably absent in others. There 

 is sure to be a large amount of work on new mining plants. Also, those 

 industrial towns which have a big era of prosperity on at present are 

 going to do a lot of building, chiefly in cheap houses. Manufacturing 

 plants are building additions that require a large amount of hardwood, 

 hut the general run of business that contributes ordinarily to the profits 

 of hardwood men is going to bo very small, according to .tII the reports. 



=-< BOSTON >.= 



At a recent meeting of the ilirectors of the Massachusetts Wholesale 

 Lumber Association, Inc., a iirtitost was formulated on the closing of the 

 so-called commercial traflic oflices in Boston by authority of the railroad 

 controller. This was forwarded to Washington and replied to in effect 

 that the measure was intended as an economical step to avoid duplication 

 and cut down the employment of non-operative labor, but that such func- 

 tions of these offices as had been valuable to the roads and patrons would 

 be continued either by combined offices of representatives or a substitute 

 system established to facilitate transaction of freight business in the large 

 centers. 



At the same meeting the board authorized the holding of a general meet- 

 ing of the whole trade of Metropolitan Boston at Youngs Hotel, Boston, 

 Tuesday evening, April 23. This will be in the nature of a patriotic gather- 

 ing in evidence of the loyalty and interest of the local trade In supporting 

 war objects, the principal feature being the illustrated lecture on experi- 

 ences during and since the battle of the Marne by Baroness Iluard, daughter 

 of the famous comedian, Francis Wilson. The entire proceeds of all her 

 lectures go to the support of Hospital 232 in Paris, maintained by the 

 Villiers Fund. A business meeting of the association will precede the 

 dinner and lecture. 



The Calvin Putnam Lumber Company of Danversport, Mass., has Incor- 

 porated under Massachusetts laws for $50,000 with the same title. Presi- 

 dent, John E. Scales of Boston ; treasurer, Isaac D. Pope, and secretary, 

 F. E. Commerford. 



The raising of embargoes on the Grand Trunk and Boston & Maine roads 

 have relieved the local freight delivery conditions to some extent. The 

 reduction of over-normal cars in the eastern territory from 160,000 to 

 30,000 promises a fairly early opening of the long closed southern routes. 

 While tight embargoes have prevailed on the southeastern roads, the author- 

 ities are now promising to co-relate the carrying capacity of the northern 

 and southern regions, as well as to get in contact with the lumbermen to 

 establish and maintain a practical plan to move as much lumber as cir- 

 cumstances will permit, although it is expected that authorizations will be 

 restricted to avoid dangerous blocking of lines and equipment for a long 



=■< COLUMBUS >= 



The name of the Lowell Planing Mill of Marietta has been changed to 

 the Lowell Building & Supply Company. 



At Edmond, Ohio. Frank Buell has purchased the business of the Thomas 

 Hollls Lumber Company. 



Columbus lunibcrmen are enthusiastic oyer the activities of the Columbus 

 Lumbermen's Club, which has permanent headquarters at Chestnut and 

 Higli streets. Luncheons are served every noon and this is the means of 

 bringing many of the lumbermen together. 



E. W. Ilorton ot the W. M. Ritter Lumber Company reports a good 

 demand for hardwoods In central Ohio territory. Factories are the best 

 customers at this time, although retailers are also buying more liberally. 

 Prices are strong all along the line and all recent advances have been 

 maintained. Shipping is being held up by embargoes and railroad con- 

 gestion. 



J. A. Ford of the Imperial Lumber Company reports a good demand for 

 West Virginia hardwoods with prices firm all along the line. 



Lumber circles in Columbus and central Ohio are stirred by the announce- 

 ment that the federal government will erect a large depot storage house 

 on the Pennsylvania and Baltimore & Ohio just east of Columbus. A tract 

 of 175 acres has been acquired for that purpose. In all there will be eight 

 large structures, each of which will be SO by 1,500 feet, and in addition 

 a large barracks to accommodate the permanent guard. Much lumber 

 will be required in the construction work. 



While building operations in Columbus are not as active as in some 

 previous years, still there is more liveliness shown then was anticipated 

 several months ago. The new work runs largely towards dwellings, apaft- 

 ments and additions to factories. One of the best features is the large 

 number of dwellings which have been projected. 



