Publtahed In the Interest of Hardw^ood Lumber. American Hardwood Forests, Wood Veneer Industry, Hardwood Flooring, 

 Hardwood Interior Finish, Wood Chemicals* Saw Mill and Woodw^orKing Machinery. 



Vol. XXIV. 



CHICAGO. May 25. 1907. 



No. 3. 



Published on the 10th and 25th of each month by 



THE HARDWOOD COMPANY 



Henry H. Gibson. President 



OFFICES 

 7th Floor, Ellsworth Bldg., 355 Dearborn St., Chicago, 111., U.S.A- 



Telephone Harrison 4960 



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Advertisir\g copy must be received five da.vs ir\ a,.dvaLnce of 

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General Market Conditions. 



There were no particularly new features in the hardwood situation 

 during the last fortnight. While prices are being well maintained, 

 there is a slackening of demand in nearly all the trade centers. It is 

 thought that speculative building is over for some time, and the 

 business of the furniture manufacturers is not as active as it has 

 been. These two causes are primarily responsible for a slight let-up 

 in the insistent demand for many varieties of woods. 



Oak and poplar, especially wide stock, are still in active call, with 

 the good end of Cottonwood a close second. The demand for nearly 

 ,^ll kinds of hardwoods used in boxes and crates is still heavy, as 

 is the call for ash, hickory and all varieties of wagon material. 

 Maple, beech and birch are in fair demand. 



Current market conditions are entirely satisfactory owing to the 

 fact that there is a manifest shortage in practically every hard- 

 wood producing section of the country. The southern and south- 

 western districts, owing to bad weather conditions, are fully sixty 

 days behind a year ago, and the average stocks north show very 

 light assortments at milling points. The season's cut among north- 

 ern producers is already entirely sold. 



This apparent settling up and levelling of prices is going to be a 

 good thing for the trade. It will not only give it time to catch up 

 with business but for thorough adjustment of prices on a basis of 

 relative values. On the whole, the situation is decidedly favorable 

 and the season will undeniably be a very satisfactory one. 



Flooring factories report a good volume of trade with their plants 

 all busy. There seems to be an increasing demand for veneers and 

 panels, and the many plants producing this line have their facilities 

 fully occupied. There is a heavy call for mahogany and there seems 

 to be an increasing home demand for walnut and cherry, owing to 

 the immense development in the use of these woods in electrical ap- 

 pliances. 



The call for dimension stock of nearly every variety is far in 

 excess of tlie capacity of manufacturers to supply. At least ten 

 times as much of this material as is now produced could be sold. 



The Lesson and Its Warning. 



^LIBRARY 

 N8W YOR 



Luckily, perhaps, the business man, in common with all humanity, 

 is prone to forget his past troubles, but surely the wise lumbermaii '*^'^^''' 

 will profit by the car shortage experiences he has encountered at 

 regular intervals during the last few years, especially during the 

 fail and winter of 1906. There is every evidence that there will 

 be a manifest shortage in hardwood lumber of all varieties during 

 the remainder of 1907, and there is equally good evidence that the 

 extremely severe ear famine of last season will be eclipsed during 

 the coming fall. Railroad companies cannot begin to keep up their 

 freight equipment. Old cars which are about worn out, and those 

 already being abandoned, are in excess of the number they are able 

 to buy and build at the present time. 



There will surely be less cars to carry lumber and kindred products 

 next fall than there were last. The sensible buyer of lumber should 

 not fail to anticipate his wants and attempt to .secure his lumber 

 supplies for the coming season at a very early date. It requires no 

 element of prophecy to see that the men who expect to fill lumber 

 requirements from a distance after September 1 are going to get 

 their cars at rare intervals for some months following that date. 

 Right now, and perhaps for a month or two to come, cars can be 

 secured in limited numbers. If lumber can be found today, now is 

 the time to buy it and get it shipped. 



Annual National Hardwood Lumber Association. 



As the Hakdwood Record goes to press the annual meeting of the 

 National Hardwood Lumber Association at Atlantic City is about 

 to close. A telegraphic abstract of the proceedings will De found in 

 the news columns of this issue, but rather than delay the publication 

 it has been deemed wise to defer the detailed report of this meeting 

 until the issue of June 10, at which time a complete account will be 

 published, including the portraits of many distinguished members 

 of the organization. 



Business Honor and Commercial Failures. 



A review- of the commercial failures that occurred in the L^nited 

 States and Canada last year shows that ten per cent of them were 

 directly traceable to fraudulent intent on the part of the persons, 

 tirms or corporations involved. Directly due to fraud there were 

 938 failures, involving losses of more than $21,000,000. Such are 

 Bradsfr^i't's figures for 1906, drawn from the great total of 10,624 

 failures and an aggregate loss of $137,000,000. The ten other general 

 causes for failure, any one of which may have had the elements 

 of dishonesty involved, bring home to the reader a realization of 

 how widespread is the crime of crookedness in present time busi- 

 ness methods. 



In spite of these facts it should be remembered that the last 

 fifteen years have witnessed great improvement in the systems of 

 the business Vforld and in the conduct of commercial pursuits of 

 all kinds. Bookkeeping long ago became an exact science; the 

 economies of admiuistration are no longer left to guesswork or re- 

 garded as a matter of chance; fixed charges, ratio of depreciation, 

 etc., may now be anticipated with almost absolute certainty. The 

 modern business man, who is entitled to that name, has ceased to 

 guess at cost. He knows it. The one chance element above all 



