i:saami2 



^■fr Me rchandising of Lumber 



Nolo 



1,.« I.* "n.l th..«.- wl.Uh ,M.|"-.ir.-.l In tli.- I.^w nf May I» 

 ,./.*,, t-rully OM- «1"> I"'.' n.ilv .u.r.uuluii.i.t nf III.' 



FROM THE STANDPOINT OF THE AECHITEOT 



Tlu- iir.hit.-.t 1ms vi..w|ioiiilH of liis own. Those wiTC l.rouKlit out 

 „ th.. .oiinM- of tlw ii.l.lross l.y Irving K. I'oinl. .lirwtor of tlio Aiiior^ 

 . an Inmilut.. of Ar.liit.vts. < liiiajto. whose tnlk to the lumbermen wUl 

 U- found in the following jinrnBraphs: 



1 lieem it a great honor to 1h> called on for the architects to express 

 my thoughts before this gathering. I un.lerstnn.l I am bille.l to speak 

 u|«)n the nierchau.lising of lumln-r. What I know on that topic prob 

 ably e«|UBl8 what the majority of you know about the intricacies of 

 .lesign or the abstractions of structural caUuliition. In fact, I prob 

 ably know less about this topic than you know about these others. 

 However, I do know something of the u.«es and application of lum- 

 iM'r in the general fiehl of domestic economy, ami so I shall confine 

 my remarks and constrain my thought in thut restricted channel. 



I was interested, in looking through the extensive and instructive 

 exposition at the Coliseum, to see a cut something along the line of 

 one published in Life a number of years ago and which, at that time, 

 stirred my imagination. It was a pictorial history of the world dur- 

 ing the life of a California redwood, an old patriarch that sprang 

 from the ground early in the fourth century and is still stretching its 

 loftj- branches into the untroubled ether, although the illustration in 

 the exhibition makes the electric waves play in violent action about 

 its a\Kx; and through this violence it pierces serene, stonding abso- 

 lutely tranquil and unmoved. I take this illustration for a text. 

 Reprinted by Request 

 Many, perhaps most of you, remember a story that appeared many 

 years ago in the Century Magazine and was reprinted by general 

 request at some time during this last year. It is called "The New 

 Minister's Great Opportunity." A pa.stor who had but recently been 

 .•alle<l to a new field found it to lie his first public duty and the one 

 in the accomplishment of which, or the nonaccomplishment of which, 

 he would in all probability stand or fall in this new community, the 

 lireaching of the funeral sermon of one of the- "oldest inhabitants" 

 who hail belonged to his flock. The man had led a thoroughly 

 • lomestic and uneventful life within the shelter of his fold and far 

 .iway from the pulse and currents of human activity. Such a figure 

 ;ind life were not calculated to inspire in the preacher any great 

 ■ motion which would arouse him to eloquence and produce a great 

 |.anegyric; but the minister arose to the occasion and detailed in 

 ^'lowing terms those great battles of thought and action which ha<l 

 taken place within the span of the decedent's life — the invention of 

 the telegraph, the discovery of the power of steam and the building 

 (if the first steamboat and railway: the Mexican War, the War 

 of the Rebellion and the putting down of slavery — all of this he had 

 witnessed and to none of this he had been a party in his long, serene 

 life. 



Symbol or an Oi,d Man's Life 

 To me the California redwood, although not yet expired, is a symbol 

 of this old man's life. In all probability the California redwood 

 stands today because it was so far removed from the battleground 

 of civilization and up to very recent times has not got into the cur- 

 rent of human activity or in the path of human progress. This expo- 

 sition discloses that with the other woods it is coming into its own, 

 and that "own" is in aiiling in the upward progress and civilization 

 of humanity. That is the real purpose for the existence of every 

 animate or inanimate thing upon this globe and nothing has fulfilled 

 its destiny which does not sooner or later minister to the needs of 

 humanity in either the realm of use or of beauty or of both, and the 

 tree, both in its natural state and as a manufactured product, does 

 fulfill its function in both of these fields and consequently has gained 

 the love and admiration of mankind. It shiiies forth in construction 

 and in art and is made a subject of poetry of the most emotional 

 type. 



—24— 



hit Inn Ik'IiI hi Chlcnuo uo Mny n iinil (I. 

 >u nnil l« iinrlli-iiliirly vnliiiililc Inimmuch ■» It n-prcwutii 

 iiinlxT hiinlni-aa The HUk'Kciillonii cunlalned In tlic |in|U'rii 

 form nn mil line of wlint uiuat niMM-niiiirlly lie done Id onlcr 

 'iirloiix KUl-Hlltuli'K (if wimhI. 



This it does not do of its own accord but through the einleiivorii 

 of the men that are represented here in thi. gathering; and, there 

 fore, civilization in paying its tribute to the trw, es|iecially the treo 

 in its manufactured stale, is paying a tribute to the genius, courage 

 and resourcefulness of you men who lay that product at the fii'l 

 of humanity. This effort on your part is not done once and for all 

 but must be ever continuing and ever seeking new fields. 

 Must Seek New Kiki.ds 



In your endeavors you are forced to stinly conservation ami jire- 

 servntion and to minimize wastefulness. You are expected not to rob 

 the soil but to produce from it and leave it in condition to produce 

 more. You must seek new fields for the use of your material liecauso 

 it is slowly, steadily and surely being puMlie<l out of certain lines. 

 Clay products, steel, cement are coming in to perform the duties 

 once performed solely by timber; but the uses for timber will always 

 continue and will always appeal to the heart and mind of humanity, 

 Iwcause wood, of all the materials for art and construction, bccauso 

 of the grain, because of its unrefractorincss, lends itself to being 

 shaped by the bond under the direction of brain and heart 



When man has been building ami decorating for his own personal 

 use and pleasure he has used the products of the forest. When he 

 has been building for the gods he has delved into the mines and dug 

 into the quarries; but the chilliness and aloofness of the rock has 

 never made in him the personal appeal that comes through the living, 

 swaying and ever-changing tree. And, therefore, for domestic pur- 

 poses it will be a long time before any material will take the place 

 of wood in the affections of the builder who loves quiet domesticity 

 ami cares to be surrounded by objects which through their beauty 

 and responsiveness to his touch appeal directly to his deejiest ami 

 warmest nature. The architect who designs, the craftsman who car- 

 ries out and the lover who enjoys the forms to which wood lends 

 itself thank most deeply and sincerely you men who place this beau- 

 tiful medium before them and make it possible to dream, to work and 

 enjoy through its liea'.itiful ami appealing inediniiislii]i. 



FROM THE STANDPOINT OF THE ASSOCIATION 



E. B. Hazen, treasurer and general manager of the Bridal Veil 

 Lumber Company, Portland, Ore., from the land of large timber and 

 of corrcs|ion(iiiigly large transactions, had his subject in hand and 

 presented it in an able manner. He showed that the jirogressive 

 lumber salesman has a number of things which he must thoroughly 

 understand, in addition to the art of making a sale when all things 

 are ready. He spoke as follows: 



Before venturing some suggestions as to the part which the asso- 

 ciation must take in a.ssisting to create better merchandising, I want 

 to beg your indulgence while digressing for a few moments into a con- 

 sideration of the necessity for such a move. I want also to discuss 

 briefly some of the false premises upon which the industry seems to 

 l>e proceeding. 



A new condition has Vieen injected into the situation during the 

 last few years, through the manufacture and sale of substitute ma- 

 terials. The producers of these substitutes have adopted modern, 

 firogressive advertising and merchandising methods. The compe- 

 tition is no longer that of one wood against another, but rather 

 wood against substitutes. The aggressive and intensified merchan- 

 dising methods of the substitute material manufacturers have not 

 only affected the sales of lumber manufacturers to the lumber dealer, 

 but have affected the dealer's business as well, because of the hard- 

 ware and other competitive merchants handling these substitute ma- 

 terials. The competitive merchant usually owns his own business 

 and consequently is hard competition for the lumber yard agent who 

 is often handicapped because of being an employe, especially if 

 managing one of a line of yards. Consequently we have a serious 



