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A ^A^or)d''^A/^ide Lumber Study 



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A study of the lumber situation throughout the world, and particu- 

 larly of uses and manufacturing in the United States, has been 

 planned jointly by the United States Forest Service, the Bureau of 

 Foreign and Domestic Commerce and the Bureau of Corporations. 



It is said that the work will be largely under the management of 

 W. B. Greeley and O. T. Swan of the Forest Service. The investiga- 

 tions will be carried on both at home and abroad, and most of the 

 field men have been assigned to their work. In brief outline the plan 

 is as follows: 



The markets for American lumber will be investigated in Japan, 

 China, India, Australia and the Pacific Islands; and in South 

 America, including both the east and the west coasts. It is understood 

 that the plan originally included the countries of Europe also, but 

 the unexpected development of unfavorable conditions there will result 

 in leaving Europe out of consideration for the present. 

 Scope of Inve.stioation 



rle of the details of the 

 proposed study, but it 

 is learned on good au- 

 thority that it will in- 

 clude extensive travel 

 in South America and 

 in the Orient. The 

 kinds and quantities of 

 American lumber now 

 entering those coun- 

 tries is well known: 

 but the many uses to 

 which it is put when 

 it arrives there are 

 not so well known. 

 The investigation will 

 include uses. 



That would be com- 

 paratively easy if it 

 stopped there, but it 

 is the purpose to push 

 the work further by 

 looking into possibili- 

 t i e s for increased 

 trade. That, in fact, is 

 FRANKLIN H. SMITH. WHO WILL STUDY the gist of the whole 

 MARKETS FOR LUMBER IN JAPAN, CHINA, matter, for it is more 



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ed. It will be necessary 



to look into the status of wood which comes in competition with Ameri- 

 can lumber shipped abroad. This can best be done in each separate 

 country visited. It will be greatly to the advantage of the American 

 lumber exporter if he knows what kind of wood his product must meet 

 in competition on the other side; how much there is of it; how cheap 

 or expeiii-ive it is; and in what way it is bought and sold. 



In this connection, it is important to know all about transportation 

 facilities, charges, customs and usages. With that information _ at 

 hand, the American lumber exporter will know what he must meet 

 and can judge of his ability to contend successfully for the business. 



Work at Home 

 Side by side with the investigation of the foreign field, a study will 

 be carried on at home. It will relate to the uses of woods, particu- 

 larly with the manufacturing end, beginning in the forest, following 

 the wood through the sawmill, the factory, and to its final place in 

 the country 's industries. A great deal of work has already been 

 done along those lines, and the results have been published in a series 

 of state reports of wood uses and in special reports for certain woods. 

 It is understood, however, that the further study wUl be devoted 

 rather to the modus operandi of logging, transportation, milling and 



conversion in factories, with incidental consideration of side issues. 



The problem of preventing waste will be considered from every angle. 



Forces in the Field 



The field of operation covers three continents, with 

 of islands thrown in. Leaving Europe out of consideration for the 

 present, the men who will take up the other work have been assigned 

 their jobs. The Orient will be in the hands of Franklin H. Smith, 

 as was announced in the last issue of Hardwood Eecord. He had 

 been in charge of the Forest Service office of timber sales in Chicago. 

 The office in the Postoffice building was closed on August 4, and the 

 records and other property were shipped to Washington, D. C, where 

 the work will be in charge of C. J. Nellis of the Forest Service. Mr. 

 Smith has already entered upon his duties with regard to the work 

 in the Far East, but he will not leave America for some time. 



Roger E. Simmons will take charge of the South American field. 

 He was formerly connected with the Forest Service office in Chicago, 

 but was transferred to Washingtoii two years ago. He has done 

 much valuable work, 

 including reports on 

 the wood-using indus- 

 tries of North Caro- 

 lina, Kentucky, Illi- 

 nois, Maine, New 

 Hampshire, West Vir- 

 ginia and Pennsyl- 

 vania. Those for Penn- 

 sylvania and West 

 Virginia have not yet 

 been published. He 

 was formerly with the 

 Bureau of Corpora- 

 tions and assisted in 

 taking the standing 

 timber census of the 

 United States. He is 

 a native of Hagers- 

 town, Md. 



The study of manu- 

 facture and utilization 

 in the United States 

 will, it is understood, 

 be carried out by Mr. ROGER E. SIMMONS, WHO WILL INVESTI- 

 Bryant and Austin 

 Gary of the Forest 

 Service, Mr. Bryant of 

 Tale University and several examiners of the Bureau of Corporations. 



No time has been stated in which the work will be finished. From 

 the nature of the case that is impossible. The ability and experience 

 of those who have the business in hand is proof that it will be pushed 

 vigorously, fully carried out, and that the best possible results wUl 

 be achieved. 



It is no small undertaking to examine the particular requirements 

 of all the markets where American lumber is being sold, but the work 

 is only half completed when that has been done. If there were no 

 expectation of extending the markets it would be a waste of time to 

 undertake the investigation. The best campaign which can be made 

 for the purpose of opening new fields of trade for the products of 

 American forests is to acquaint prospective purchasers with what this 

 country has to offer. That requires a business knowledge of the prop- 

 erties, qualities and quantities of the lumber which our forests can 

 supply, the prices at which it can be delivered, and the time it wUl 

 take. 



It is evident that the men who have been entrusted with this mis- 

 sionary work in foreign lands will have their hands full if they fulfill 

 the missions assigned them. With few exceptions their work lies in 

 countries where foreign languages are spoken. 



GATE THE LUMBER MARKETS AND FOR- 

 EST RESOURCES OF THE VARIOUS 

 COUNTRIES OF SOUTH AMERICA 



