22 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



Occurrences at Washington Interesting to Lumbermen 



Personal Mentii 



the Activities of Various Boards and Cc 



ittees 



Hardwood men continue busy here. With the expansion of the 

 army program as recommended by the president and secretary of 

 war, they believe that there will be plenty of business for every- 

 body, whether the military forces of the nation are to number 

 4,000,000, or to be without limit in law. 



Charles Bigelow of Bay City and O. T. Swan of Oshkosli are in 

 Washington conferring with Bay H. Jones, manager of the Northern 

 Hardwood Emergency Bureau, and with government officials, and 

 looking over the situation generally as regards lumber orders. 



Edward Hines of Chicago is in Washington in the interest of the 

 case of his son, Lieut. Edward Hines, Jr., of the American E.xpedi- 

 tionary Forces, who is reported to be confined in a base hospital at 

 Paris. Young Hines is reported to be suffering from shell shock 

 following a period of service in the trenches. It is reported that 

 his father wants to have him brought back to the United States to 

 recuperate. 



The vehicle wood controversy is still pending. Representatives 

 of the vehicle manufacturers who have government contracts are 

 due -here for a conference with government representatives and 

 possibly with hardwood lumbermen. The vehicle interests are 

 reported to have proposed that the government fix the price of 

 hardwood vehicle stock. At the same time John M. Pritehard, 

 secretary of the American Hardwood Association, and Ralph Jurden 

 of Memphis are here keeping in touch with developments. It is 

 stated that the northern hardwood lumbermen have kept out of the 

 controversy over vehicle stock prices. Some time ago it is under- 

 stood that there was an exchange of price quotations between the 

 northern hardwood men and the army vehicle contracts, but it is 

 said that nothing definite came out of it. 



Speaking of prices serves as a reminder of the report that 

 Director of Lumber (Aarles Edgar is negotiating with yellow pine 

 men with a view to government-fixed prices on lumber to the public. 

 Gossip among lumbermen here is that Mr. Edgar will consent to 

 increasing the lumber prices to the United States government 

 departments and to the allied government if the increased price 

 is applied also on sales to the public. Counter proposals arc 

 expected from lumbermen. It is believed they are opposed to gov- 

 ernment-fixed prices to the public, but it is suggested that some of 

 them might agree to it in order to obtain an inrrmso in the price 

 on government orders. Lumbermen say tlicii' is n.. l.iw iiii|H,wcring 

 the government to enforce prices to the ]uililir, Imt thin' :iio agree- 

 ments between the government and other industrii's legarding 

 prices to the public. 



Hemlock lumber prices on government orders have been tem- 

 porarily established by order of Director of Lumber Edgar to cer- 

 tain Pennsylvania lumber concerns, whiili pri.-es have been made 

 effective in the territory east of Pittsburi;h to tlio Wisconsin hem- 

 lock manufacturers also. The prices are based on $.31 per 1,000 for 

 No. 1 hemlock at Philadelphia. 



Rumors that oak ear stock prices are to be fixed by the govern- 

 ment are denied. 



The government departments have agreed, it is understood, to 

 let the railroads purchase oak crossties that may be needed by the 

 departments in construction projects or military operations. This 

 plan is considered more economical and generally satisfactory than 

 for the government departments to buy ties from many points along 

 the roads which the government controls itself, as the railroad pur- 

 chasing agents will presumably act in the interest of the govern- 

 ment. 



The demand for walnut lumber for airplanes is so great that 

 the plywood section of the signal corps has issued instructions that 

 birch and Spanish cedar may be used in the plywood entering into 

 the fuselage of government airplanes. 



This is the second step recently to release walnut for propellers. 



the first one being the request or order to veneer mills not to cut 

 walnut suitable for propellers or gunstocks into furniture veneer. 

 That request or order, by the way, is not strong enough to suit 

 some patriotic veneer men, several of whom have asked the signal 

 corps to go further and limit the production of furniture veneer 

 to the crotch and butt wood solely. Competent authorities say that 

 ninety-five per cent of all walnut produced in the United States 

 is suitable for either gunstocks or propellers. 



Morton E. Converse, Winchendon, Mass., and Seward Bag & Trunk 

 Company, Petersburg, Va., have been awarded contracts for army 

 field desks; the Hale Company, New York, a contract for pick axe 

 handles, these being among the scores of contracts awarded by the 

 quartermaster department recently. The ordnance depai'tment has 

 awarded contracts for packing boxes to the Westinghouse ana 

 DuPont companies. 



J. C. Xcllis, formerly of the Federal Service, has been appointed 

 secretary-manager of the National Emergency Bureau of the 

 Wooden Box Industry, succeeding F. C. Gilford, who went into the 

 steel business. Mr. Nellis is fii;litiiii; Uir iMcposal for government 

 box factories at-the powder i)l.-iiits at Na^li\ille and Charleston, 

 W. Va , saying that existing box fartmiis in tliose vicinities can 

 supply the government need for powder boxes. 



A controversy has developed over the food purchase board 's 

 specifications for wirebound wooden boxes for exporting canned 

 goods in to the army and navy and the allies. It has been claimed 

 that such boxes require five per cent less tonnage space, which is 

 denied. Wooden box interests have asked a hearing before the 

 board, of which G. C. Babcoek of the Wirel>ound Corporation was 

 onee a member. 



The failure of the aircraft program has led to discussion in the 

 senate, where serious charges have been voiced as well as demands 

 for further investigation and prosecution. The investigations of 

 the aircraft situation so far have led to a reorganization of tlie 

 Aircraft Production Board and the appointment of John D. Ryan to 

 take charge of the production of aircraft. 



In connection with the discussion of the airplane scandal there 

 has been made public the report of a special committee of the 

 American Aeronautical Society, in which there is severe criticism 

 of the policy of this government in awarding contracts for airplanes 

 and parts to as few as sixty-five contractors and 400 sub-contractors. 

 The report states that wooden struts for airplanes "could be pro- 

 duced in about 5,000 plants of cabinet makers, furniture makers, 

 piano factories, toy makers" and so forth at the rate of about 

 2,000,000 a day, or many times more than would be necessary for 

 American aviation needs, instead of the production at present being 

 many times less than American needs. 



The report also says that the unwise and false publicity given 

 to the American alleged aviation program has caused Germany to 

 speed up her production of aircraft, it being reported that "some 

 400 furniture, woodworking ' and piano factories have been con- 

 verted to the new uses"; that large orders for parts have been 

 placed in Switzerland, and that the German plane production has 

 reached 700 to 1,000 per week and is growing. On the other hand, 

 it is charged American production has been very little, although 

 by next year America may be called upon to furnish 75,000 to 

 100,000 planes. Senator Hitchcock charged that the members of 

 the old aircraft board deceived the senate military committee. 



The production of passenger automobiles is to be curtailed 

 seventy-five per cent by agreement between representatives of the 

 industry and of the fuel administration and the war industries 

 board. 



Restrictions upon the movement of wood by land and sea are 

 being imposed. Besides the export restrictions reported last month. 



