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HARDWOOD RECORD 



it possible for many other railroads that do not penetrate timber- 

 growing sections to have an ample supply at reasonable prices. 



It is also thoroughly believable that the Illinois Central Company 

 itself would be able to secure its ties at much less cost than it 

 does at the present time. This company is referred to simply as 

 a concrete example, as there are scores of other railroads which 

 pursue exactly the same tactics in the tie business as does this one. 



Warning Against Fakes 



Consul Arthur J. Clare of Bluefields, Nicaragua, warns Amer- 

 icans against fake companies selling stock in banana plantations 

 in that country. He says there is much valuable unplanted banana 

 land there, and many good plantations, and money can be made 

 in the business; but the fake companies have nothing better than 

 an option on the land. They have planted no bananas and have 

 made no improvements. Some of them do not even have options 

 on land, and the person who buys stock is simply fleeced out of 

 his money. ' ' The pity of it is, ' ' 



the 



by the government so far, including a number of important virgin 

 tracts, is .$5.60 per acre. 



Much credit should be accorded the Commission and Forest Ser- 

 vice notably Chief Forester Graces and Assistant Wm. L. Hall, 

 for the careful, painstaking and intelligent work they are doing 

 in making the selections and purchases of land. 



Buckeye for Core and Cross-Banding 



The favorite material for core and cross-banding stock for 

 veneer purposes is poplar. It is a wood that has become scare 

 and the log prices range high. At the average rotary veneer 

 plant poplar logs are probably worth an average of fifty dollars 

 a thousand. When this stock is cut into core and cross-banding, 

 it is very difficult for the veneer producer, at the price which 

 he obtains for the material, to secure a new dollar for an old one. 



It is suggested alike to veneer producers, panel makers and the 

 trade buying these materials that a most excellent 

 substitute for poplar is buck- 



consuming 



says Counsel Clare, "that 

 widows and orphans are usu- 

 ally the greatest sufferers by 

 these fake companies. The ob- 

 ject of this report is to warn the 

 American public against invest- 

 ing in the stock of any banana 

 companies on this coast without 

 properly investigating such com- 

 panies. " 



Banana companies are not the 

 only fakes pretending to deal 

 in the natural resources of the 

 Latin-American countries south 

 of us. There are unquestionably 

 good investments to be made in 

 that direction, but it may gen- 

 erally be accepted as a fact that 

 it is no place for the small in- 

 vestor, and that the large in- 

 vestor will investigate before he 

 parts with much money. Some 

 of the properties usually offered 

 for sale are tracts of timber 

 which, if they exist at all, are 

 inaccessible; pineapple lands in 



remote islands or valleys; mines and minerals either mythical or 

 inaccessible; and sugar lands four times as remote and not half 

 as good as those to be had in the United States. 



Appalachian National Forest 



In last issue of Hardwood Kecord appeared the first succinct and 

 authoritative account that has been prepared covering the history, 

 purposes and possibilities of the newly created Appalachian iSa- 

 tional Forest. The story has been prepared by the editor of this 

 publication, who has a deep interest in assisting in forwarding to 

 a successful consummation this most important work. From the 

 fact that he has either resided in, camped on or traveled this 

 region for nearly a quarter of a centurj', his description, analysis 

 and deductions covering this great enterprise can be regarded 

 as the result of careful study and mature thought. His belief 

 that the enterprise is of more far-reaching value and importance 

 than the Pamana Canal is well founded. 



Up to date the Appalachian Forest Commission has secured 

 approximately 270,000 acres of land for this national forest park, 

 and more than a million acres are under examination and con- 

 sideration. The purchases up to this time involve 70,000 acres 

 in Virginia, 70,000 acres in Tennessee, 60,000 acres in North 

 Carolina and 30,000 acres in Georgia. On the whole timber owners 

 in the territory involved in the proposed area are recognizing the 

 immense value of the enterprise to the public, and are exercising 

 remarkable willingness to dispose of their semi-denuded tracts 

 to the government at moderate prices. The average price paid 



To Hardwood Dimension 

 Stocic Producers 



HARDWOOD RECORD has been requested by several 

 leading hardwood dimension stock producers to issue a 

 call for a conference of those interested in this line of 

 production, to be held at Chicago early in October. 



Those inspiring this movement think a meeting of this 

 sort would be eminently desirable, as It would contribute 

 to an exchange of information on the subject of costs; 

 would gain for the participants a better knowledge of 

 hardwood dimension values; and would aid In putting this 

 product on a much better profit footing than obtains at 

 the present time. 



This publication will take pleasure in arranging for such 

 a conference, and issue a call for this meeting, if at least 

 a dozen dimension stock producers authorize it. All such 

 interested will kindly address HARDWOOD RECORD, 

 giving their Ideas on the subject of the desirability of 

 such a conference. 



Chicago, 111. HENRY H. GIBSON, Editor. 



September 10, 1912. 



eye. It is not generally known 

 that buckeye exists in any con- 

 siderable quantity in the United 

 States, but it does, since the 

 buckeye timber in at least a 

 dozen counties of eastern Ten- 

 nessee and western North Caro- 

 lina ranges well up to five per 

 cent of the total stand of the 

 timber in this region. In fact, 

 there are hundreds of millions 

 of feet of excellent buckeye 

 available for veneer purposes in 

 this section, and buckeye tim- 

 lier is being sold at about one- 

 third of the price demanded for 

 poplar. The physics of buckeye 

 are such that it is in every way 

 equal in value to poplar for the 

 purposes named. 



Philippine Timber Con- 

 cessions 



Consul General George E. An- 

 derson of Hongkong announces 

 that important American lumber interests are arranging for timber 

 concessions in the Philippines, with the object of importing lumber 

 into the United States. During the past three years the develop- 

 ment of lumbering in those islands has been rapid, but thus far 

 the shipments to this country have not been large. 



The department of the United States Forest Service, which has 

 charge of the government forests on the islands, has done much 

 during the past two or three years to make known the timber 

 resources of that region. Samples of many of the most promising 

 woods have been distributed among interested parties in the 

 United States, accompanied by descriptive circulars, which give 

 information concerning available supplies and the regions where 

 found. Most of the species are tropical hardwoods, many of them 

 very heavy, and some rich in color, and possess good grain and 

 figure. The amount of timber that may be drawn from the Phil- 

 lippines is large, and much of it will naturally seek a market in 

 the United States. 



A complete set of samples of commercial Philippine woods is on 

 file at the office of Hardwood Becokd, where the woods may be 

 examined by anyone interested. 



Erroneous Information 



Articles continue to go the rounds of newspapers predicting a 

 lumber famine in a few years. This is not a new story. It turns 

 up at pretty regular intervals. Of course, there is not as much 



