14 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



streams, notably those which rise in mountain regions, should be 

 given the earnest and undivided support of not only lumbermen, but 

 everyone who has the general interests of the country at heart. The 

 constantly recurring lessons in the floods arising from overflowed 

 streams, with their incident tremendous damage to life and prop- 

 erty, should warrant urging upon Congress the establishing of new 

 forest reserves, especially in the East. 



A subject of more than passing interest, especially to the hardwood 

 industry, is the crying need of a universal base of hardwood inspec- 

 tion and the working out of a practical plan for its application. The 

 sentiment in favor of this movement is growing extremely strong 

 among manufacturers, jobbers and consumers of hardwood lumber. 

 They all recognize the permanent value of such propaganda and well 

 know that it would simplify the methods of conducting hardwood 

 affairs, and at the same time practically put an end to grade jug- 

 gling and other chicanery which prevails to a marked extent in 

 many a hardwood transaction. This movement will be certain of 

 fulfillment if the radicals in various association movements will, for 

 once, consent to eliminate their selfishness and work for the general 

 good of the industry. Altogether too much importance has hitherto 

 been placed on specific grade legislation. Inasmuch as value cannot 

 be injected into a grade, but price will be determined by the grade, 

 it is not a serious matter whether grades be "high"' or "low" by 

 five or ten per cent, as compared with some of the present standards. 



There should be no selfishness in this matter on the part of any 

 manufacturer, jobber or consumer, but anything that approaches a 

 logical system of universal grading should be adopted as a national 

 and international standard for hardwood inspection, to be altered 

 from time to time, as necessity arises. Let all those interested in the 

 movement give what they must, and take what they can, but "get 

 together!" ■ • 



The Veneer Industry. 



In veneer production itself there is nothing new, but in its develop- 

 ment into an important American industry there are a good many 

 novel and noteworthy features. The pioneer veneer man, who 

 selected choice flitches from his finest logs and painstakingly sawed 

 them into veneers, had a comparatively simple proposition. He 

 could figure out cost with a good deal of accuracy, and in a moderate 

 way make some money out of his business. 



With the advent of the slicing and rotary-cutting systems of 

 producing veneers there came not only new problems, but new 

 systems of estimating cost. One of the most alluring propositions 

 in the world is to make figures on the vast profits to be attained in 

 cutting veneers. A frequent but chimerical basis of figuring is that 

 1,000 feet of logs cut to 1/20 inch will produce 20,000 feet of 

 product. As a matter of fact, 1,000 feet of selected logs — the best 

 logs of the best trees in the forest — carefully handled and cut as 

 ■ above noted, will show barely 10,000 feet of resultant product when 

 all waste is eliminated. 



Veneer making in auy form shows waste — waste — waste, through 

 every process. No log ever makes more or better veneers than is 

 anticipated. On the contrary, defects show themselves in manufac- 

 ture that are entirely concealed in the log. Logs for veneer making 

 have to be very earefully handled, because they damage very easily 

 on the ends. If the bark is removed the sapwood is apt to be 

 injured, and if the bark is left on borers are likely to attack it, and 

 serious damage results. To produce good stock, machines must have 

 good-sized spindles and chucks, which cause a tremendous percentage 

 of waste in small logs, as the core is out of all proportion to their 

 size. Attempts to utilize core waste have not been very profitable 

 up to this time. Veneers must be handled piece by piece, very 



carefully at that, and even then the broken and damaged stock 



constitutes a large percentage of the whole. 



In short, in veneer making there is loss in the log ; there is loss in 



cutting; there is loss in the core; there is loss in the clipping; 



there is loss in working to sizes; there is loss in breakage, splits, 



etc. ; and there is loss in drying. 



Numerous veneer plants have been put in commission in many 



parts of the country during the last few years by people who are not 



expert in veneer manufacture. They have been erected without 

 proper knowledge of the cost of veneer production, or of prices at 

 which it may profitably enter into consumption. While a few veteran 

 veneer makers, who have gained a knowledge of their business 

 through long and bitter experience, have succeeded in making a fair 

 profit, the majority of them, up to this time, are not conducting 

 remarkably lucrative institutions. This state of affairs is attribu- 

 table partly to the fact above mentioned — that a good many people 

 in veneer enterprises do not know how to make veneers — and partly to 

 the fact that often a faulty method of estimating cost is in force; 

 also many operators lack the knowledge of marketing their product 

 to advantage. 



It is evident that the veneer business is an industry with a great 

 future, but before it is put upon a practical, profitable basis, there 

 must needs be further mutual education among producers. Cost 

 estimates must be overhauled, and in many instances doubled, before 

 the veneer maker will be able to start right. The progress along 

 this line which has already been started and developed by the 

 National Veneer & Panel Manufacturers' Association is doing a 

 great deal of good to the few, but until this fraternal education 

 has become general, and those interested conclude that their only 

 salvation is the acquisition oi all the knowledge available, just so 

 long will the general run of veneer plants be making assessments on 

 their stockholders to keep them running. 



Scarcity of Labor. 



Complaints still come from every lumber producing section of the 

 United States over the scarcity of common labor. Increased wages 

 render the labor supply no more plentiful. There is a dearth of 

 workmen in woods camps, sawmills and lumber yards. The old 

 steady-going type of laborer who started in with a concern as a 

 boy and stayed with it during his lifetime, has practically disap- 

 peared, and now the general element is made up of itinerants who 

 have no pride in their work and care little or nothing about hold- 

 ing down their "jobs." If by their own volition they quit, or are 

 drummed out of camp, they care not a rap, well knowing that they 

 can secure employment at the next operation. 



This widespread scarcity of labor is true not only in lumber 

 operations but in nearly every line of industry. Everywhere the call 

 is in excess of the supply. Notwithstanding the great immigration 

 of the last few years, there is an insufficiency of unskilled laborers 

 in the country to meet requirements, and the demand for skilled and 

 trained workers is not being fully supplied. Without doubt the 

 farmers will find more difficulty in harvesting their crops during 

 the present year than for many years past. The railroads are not 

 now able to secure sufficient workmen for construction and main- 

 tenance of tracks. Building is being retarded in many cities by 

 lack of labor supply, and many manufacturing enterprises would 

 increase their output if they could have a guarantee of all the labor 

 they would need. 



It is noteworthy that this labor scarcity is not confined to the 

 United States. Some of the European countries are having a like 

 experience, due mainly, it is thought, to the large immigration from 

 them for several years past. This is the situation in southern Italy, 

 from which the most extensive immigration has taken place, and 

 Spain is also beginning to feel the effect of loss of population upon 

 her industries. In several other foreign countries the supply of 

 labor, both skilled and unskilled, is not equal to the demand and 

 appears to be growing less, so that several of them are already 

 making plans for checking the outflow of population. 



This paucity of labor will undoubtedly continue so long as the 

 present enormous industrial and commercial activity is maintained. 

 Say what you please, it is a healthy condition, despite the incon- 

 venience incidert to it, but without doubt the time will come when 

 an adjustment of labor supply and demand will be inevitable. 



Annual National Association. 



Every day shows added interest in the May annual meeting of the 

 National Hardwood Lumber Association at Atlantic City. It 's going 

 to be a great success. 



