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The War and the Average hlan^ 



There appeared in the September issue of System, a magazine of 

 business, a leading editorial which carried the above title. The pur- 

 pose is to analyze the competing elements which under normal condi 

 tions strive for the commerce of the world. Three of these tempor- 

 arily at least have shut down and one, the United States, is open 

 and prepared to work overtime. The editorial contains so many good 

 suggestions that we are taking the liberty of transcribing a few for 

 the benefit of our readers. 



One keenly important point is the fact that there will be a 

 transference to American business men not only of the demand for 

 articles formerly supplied by foreign competitors, but for the very 

 supplies that must be used by them. This is the very situation 

 that will follow in this country if the European war is pro- 

 longed. It is true that certain qualifications are necessary, such 

 as the importance of shipping, increased complexity of financing 

 and of trade relations, but the one fundamental point stands out 

 above all, namely, that America will be the source of the world's 

 supply and the basis of the world's finances. 



The analysis of this demand is divided by the editorial into five 

 parts: (1) The usual American call for American goods; (2) the 

 necessity of supplying equivalents for many of the imports nor- 

 mally taken from Europe; (3) the need of offering satisfactory 

 substitutes when it is impossible to absolutely duplicate European 

 imports; (4) the requirements of the customers of the countries 

 at war; (5) the wants of the warring nations themselves. 



Regarding the first, the editorial maintains that conditions have 

 not been so promising for everyday American demand for many 

 years as they are now. This assumption is based on the bumper 

 <;rops, and on the greatly depleted stocks of all commodities. 



The first result of any considerable renewal of demand will be 

 the rapid purchasing of office and factory equipment in order to 

 work at capacity. This condition insures steady domestic buying, 

 which in turn guarantees a basic demand for new demands from 

 abroad. v 



As to purchases of American goods in new foreign markets, this 

 will be realized wherever our manufacturers can satisfactorily 

 duplicate products heretofore manufactured and imported from 

 ■othey countries. 



The third factor, while indirect in its effect, is immense in its 

 possible scope. The impossibility of filling the demand for such 

 imported articles as are impossible of duplication in this country 

 will result in the purchase of other articles of domestic make that 

 will aot as substitutes. Any purchases of this character will be a 

 direct increase and wdll not in any way affect our other lines of 

 manufacture. 



It is a well known fact that certain stages in the manufacture 

 of American articles are carried on in separate branch factories 

 in European points. There will now be the necessity of carrying 

 •on these processes in the home factories. This will result in new 

 equipment, new plants and new facilities. 



The customers of the three principal belligerents formerly com- 

 petitors of this country will offer a tremendous field for increased 

 foreign trade. In fifteen ports this business alone aggregates a 

 billion' and a half dollars a year. Our trade has been about 

 one-thirtieth of this. It will now be much greater. 



There have hitherto been rigid trade connections between Amer- 

 ican firms, European exporters and consumers in South America. 

 ■Such portions of orders as ultimately reached America came 

 through the European factors. This process, with which went 

 the loss of the most acceptible part of the profit, will now be 

 eliminated. 



The last consideration is the wants of the competitors them- 

 selves. Being now practically non-productive, they must get their 

 goods through the most logical channels. America offers to them 

 the best opportunity for filling their demands in a hundred and 

 one articles which they absolutely must have. Already active 

 inquiries are coming in in innumerable lines, and those inquiries will 



become more and more numerous as the hostilities progress. 



There are plentiful precedents for the expectation of a heavy 

 demand under present conditions. In addition to the precedents 

 established by similar conditions in other countries, it must be 

 remembered that during the Civil war manufacturing output in this 

 country surpassed that of any other previous period. 



The logical tendency would be to devote our main attention to 

 products rather than to merely reap our immediate but temporary 

 reward from the sale of foodstuffs and other materials. Then to 

 offset shortage in available labor resulting from the great exodus 

 of foreigners, it will be necessary to concentrate on labor-saving 

 devices and on organization. This will result in the creation of 

 new machinery and new devices of all kinds, thus showing further 

 that prosperity breeds prosperity. 



Hakdwood Record feels gratified in observing the many instances 

 in which the trade and class press of the country are expressing 

 the same views as have been expressed in our editorial pages. 

 Our optimism has not been vacant, but has been based on a sin- 

 cere and keen belief in the realism of the present opportunity. 

 Tremendous prosperity is imminent. It will come in spite of the 

 most rampant pessimism. It is absolutely unavoidable. However, 

 the sane course is for the American business men to foster 

 optimism and to foster the development of the opportunity which 

 is every day showing more clearly and more definitely. By work- 

 ing with these new developments, by rendering them skillful 

 assistance rather than showing a negative activity, the fullest 

 possibilities will be realized. 



Danger in Certain Woods 



The fact is well established that sawdust of some kinds is annoying 

 and injurious to those who work about sawmills and other plants 

 where the objectionable woods are used. California laurel — which is 

 not laurel but sassafras — is not widely known, and little of it goes to 

 sawmills ; but its reputation for annoyance is well established. The 

 odor from the freshly cut wood produces headache, especially sharp 

 pain over the eyes. The sawdust itself may not be directly concerned. 

 The irritation is caused by oil from the wood, floating in the air, like 

 that from a freshly-cut onion. No permanent harm results, and the 

 unpleasant malady ceases soon after the cause is removed. 



Another California and Oregon wood is clearly injurious to persons 

 about sawmills where this wood is cut. Sailors on vessels carrying 

 the lumber are sometimes seriously affected. The wood is the Port 

 Orford cedar, also known as Lawson cypress. It grows in dense for- 

 ests in the vicinity of Coos bay, in southwestern Oregon. This wood 

 was the material principally used in building Sir Thomas Lipton's 

 yachts. The crews of mills which saw the logs cannot work con- 

 tinuously, but must have frequent relief or they become incapacitated. 

 The wood is so rank with oil that it resists the attacks of ants in the 

 Philippine Islands where cargoes are sold for building purposes. 



Some oriental woods have bad reputations because of injurious 

 effects upon sawmill workers. Satinwood's odor is pleasant enough 

 when inhaled in small doses; but too much of it works great harm. 



Walnuts of different species, but chiefly the black walnut of the 

 United States, and eastern walnut, commonly known as Circassian 

 are accused of serious injury to workmen who cut much of the lum- 

 ber; but the reputation may not be wholly deserved. Some workers 

 in walnut experience no annoyance. 



Rosewood produces sneezing and headache among the workers. In 

 this instance it is believed to be the finely pulverized sawdust floating 

 in the air, rather than oil emanating from the wood, which produces 

 the undesirable consequences. 



It is said that workers in Russian mills where larch is sawed suffer 

 from headache, sore eyes, and blindness. No complaint seems to 

 have been made against American larch or tamarack, which is very 

 similar in botanical characters to the European larch. 



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