HARDWOOD RECORD 



19 



market inices at wliicli that other fellow is sell- 

 ing, conditions of markets as to trade, etc. I 

 think that is a good point to emphasize, and 

 not a lot of personal items cut out of some local 

 paper. I also think wood chemical plants are 

 going to cut quite a figure in our business, and 

 that the matter is worth elaborating. 



& Co. 



I wisli to tliank you for your frank letter 

 of criticism. Jly view.s are entirely in liar- 

 mony with your own on this subject, but I 

 think you will concede that the Hardwood 

 Record contains less of the matter which 

 you deprecate than any lumber trade paper 

 you ever saw. Again, I believe our news 

 covers a wider rauge and is more complete 

 in its character than that furnished by any 

 other periodical of similar nature. In other 

 words, I believe we are running a paper that 

 jjretty nearly suits your ideas of what a 

 lumber newspaper should be. My reason for 

 not publishing more matter on the subject of 

 wood chemicals is the fact that I have seen 

 wood alcohol go to 19 cents a gallon, which 

 meant ruin for everyone engaged in the 

 business. Today these people are making 

 just a fair profit owing to the iniquitous 

 legislation passed by Congress last winter, 

 in the denatured alcohol bill. I therefore did 

 not think it wise to encourage new plants on 

 account of the present and prospective pau- 

 city of demand for these products. I think 

 attempting to educate people up to the finer 

 manipulation of their product and the manu- 

 facture of dimension stock promises surer 

 returns than the manufacture of pyroligne- 

 (Uis acid and its products. — Editor. 



the specimen you sent the stain has pene- 

 trated clear beyond that point. — Editor. 



Discoloration From Stickers. 



I'lTTSmRc;. May l(i. — IDditnr II.\hi>W(iod Kec- 

 oiiii : We are expressing to you a piece of hard 

 maple for your examination and wish to call 

 your attention to the conversation we had re- 

 cently relative to the discoloration you will find 

 in the sample we are sending. Our customer has 

 rejected a (luantity out of a car, claiming that 

 tliis discoloration in the wood is the first stage 

 nf decay, (lur Judgment is quite to the con- 

 trary; we claim that it is merely the calico 

 color which is a peculiarity of maple, and wliich 

 iu no way affects the strength or durability of 

 the wood. We would like very much to have 

 your opinion on this subject foi- guidance in fu- 

 ture, and also for adjustment of this complaint. 



LU-MBEU CO^[I■.lXY. 



Referring to the specimen of hard maple 

 which you send — this piece of wood is un- 

 deniably discolored by the stickers, and if 

 such discoloration was general in the ship- 

 ment, in justice tlie stock should have been 

 graded down. In all probability this lumber 

 ^^as stuck on old stickers which had com- 

 menced to materially decay. There is just 

 as much danger of discoloring lumber by 

 the use of stickers in this condition as in 

 the use of green ones. In fact any stickers 

 cutside of red gum and sycamore, after they 

 ha^•e been used two or three times, are more 

 likely to stain lumber than green ones. Man- 

 ufacturers generally seem to think that if a 

 sticker is old it can be used with safety in 

 green lumber, but such is not the case. As 

 a general principle of inspection, stain which 

 will not dress off is a defect. In the case of 



Keeping Busy. 



>I.\RQi-ETTK, Micii., May 31. — Editor IIakd- 

 woOD REconii : In our territory here, along the 

 south shore of Lake Superior, the hardwood in- 

 dustry up to the present time has been almost 

 exclusively in the hands of Providence and re- 

 lated solely to the year by year laying on of 

 those thin rings of wood under the bark oif our 

 hardwood trees : but the business of converting 

 these trees into material tor news in the Record 

 has begun, and the men so far engaged in the 

 business have found upon opening up these 

 frees that the work of I'rovldencc as above men- 

 tioned has been exceedingly well done, and are 

 greatly pleased thereat. Both i|uality and quan- 

 tity are found satisfactory and more new saw- 

 mill enterprises are being initiated each year ; 

 this district will ere long fill an important place 

 in the hardwood markets for all varieties of tim- 

 licr native here. .T. il. Lo.xgyeak. 



Hickory Dimension Stock Market, 

 Cincinnati, tl.. May 2',). — Kditor Hardwood 

 Record: Can you consistently put us on the 

 track of someone wanting small pieces of fine- 

 grade thoroughly seasoned hickory, say from t! 

 inches long up to 1 foot long, and from 1 inch to 

 about IV2 inches in diameter? A good deal of the 

 timber is all white. There are a thousand things 

 in this world that could be made from it and 

 are made, if we knew where to get into com- 

 munication with the parties. & Co. 



There are doubtless many consumers who 

 would like to get hold of this stock, and the 

 address of the correspondent may be had 

 on application to this office. — Editor. 



Wants Market for Gum. 



Beloit, Wis., May is.— Kditor IIaruwood 

 Record : Our company has begun work on its 

 new mill in Missouri, and will manufacture lath 

 and shingles and saw southern hardwoods. We 

 will have a good deal of short ends, say 24 inches 

 long, from gum, and would be obliged if you will 

 tell us of a market for them. We could saw 

 them to any required length or thickness. I'lease 

 enter our subscription to the Hardwood Record. 

 Lumber Company. 



Anyone in the market for gum dimension, 

 as above offere<l, would do well to write for 

 this correspondent 's address. — Editor. 



Wants Oak for Sleigh Runners. 



riTTSRURO, I'A., May 17. — Editor Hardwood 

 Record : We are in the market for some straight- 

 grained white oak to be used for sleigh runners. 

 This stock is to be 2%x3% inches, 7 feet. Will 

 you be good enough to advise us the names of 

 any parties you may know who are likely to 

 furnish this stock'; & Co. 



The writer has been furnished a few ad- 

 dresses, but others who would like to com- 

 municate with him may do so through this 

 otfice. — Editor. 



Persimmon Waste. 



New Orleans, I, a.. May 'Ml — i;ditor Uard- 

 wnoD Record: We should be obliged if you 

 could, through the medium of your valued jour- 

 nal, assist us to find a market for our persimmon 

 waste. We manufacture shuttle blocks out of 

 this timber and have a considerable quantity of 

 waste that is not large enough to make our 

 smallest size shuttle block, but out of which we 

 could cut pieces suitable for small tool and knife 

 handles, etc. Persimmon wood is very desirable 

 for the above purposes as it wears smooth and 

 acquires in use a natural polish, and we tliink it 

 could be employed to advantage for these han- 



dles, or for any trade requiring similar qualities 

 in wood, such as toy making, small turnery, etc. 

 Company. 



The above will doubtless prove a valuable 

 suggestion to someone, and the name of the 

 correspondent will be furnished on applica- 

 tion to this oflSce. — Editor. 



Unfair Claims, 



Grand Rapids, Mich.. May 29. — Editor Hard- 

 wood Record : I consider the Hardwood Record 

 a good paper, but without calling any names I 

 wish all lumbermen would reject the business of 

 men and firms who kick on grades and shortage, 

 so as to get a deduction, and then make a profit 

 without being found out, and could buy only 

 from firms shipping them their inspection. One 

 firm bought on Manufacturers" inspection, called 

 for a reinspection, sent a good man from Chi- 

 cago. Then he said he was going to turn them 

 down. This on two cars of poplar. I wasn't in 

 the deal but know who was. Such men ought to 

 be shown up and in my opinion an article on 

 such work, well gotten up, would open their 

 eyes. 



The H.^RDWOOD Record, in common wij;h 

 otlier reputable newspapers, is always willing 

 to show up irregular jaractices wherever found 

 in the lumber business, but you must recall 

 that there is sucli a thing as very uncom- 

 fortable libel suits which are expensive in 

 the defense whether judgment is given 

 against you or not, and this part of the 

 newspaper game we have to fight shj' of at 

 all times. The Hardwood Record stands 

 ready at an)- and all times to show up ir- 

 regular practices when lumbermen like the 

 writer present evidence of such transactions 

 that constitutes proof. We cannot under- 

 take to print mere hearsay evidence. Give 

 us facts substantiated, and we are not only 

 willing but anxious to ju'int them. — Editor. 



Drying Hickory Dimension. 



Nkw iiRLEANS. La.. June 3. — Editor Hard- 

 wood ItKcoRD : I'erhaps some of your read- 

 ers who are experienced in the liandling of 

 hickory can inform us in what way we can 

 avoid the excessive warping of this wood 

 when sawing up into small dimension. "We 

 are working on some orders for 1x1x44 inches 

 to be used for golf shafts. "We have the tim- 

 ber and the means for manufacturing same 

 properly but have very great ditnculty with 

 the seasoning. "We find that a very large pro- 

 portion of the pieces warp and therefore be- 

 come useless for turning into the shafts. Our 

 present method is to cut the suitable part of 

 the log into 1 inch boards of slightly over the 

 required length and then rip same on a sin- 

 gle rip saw bench into 1 inch wide pieces. "We 

 do this when the boards are green. Then the 

 1 inch squares are piled up crosswise to sea- 

 son. They usually begin to warp in a day or 

 two and get worse as time goes on, making 

 the percentage of wasted pieces so large as 

 to make the Ijusiness unprofitable. We find 

 that the best timljer warps most; that is, 

 the young, heavy, small trees, white practi- 

 cally all through. The makers of shafts want 

 just this sort of timber to make a good 

 "steely" shaft, and if we could keep them 

 straight, they would be just the thing. Trust- 

 ing that some of your readers may be able to 

 give us the benefit of their experience. Very 

 truly yours & Co. 



Will not some of our readers who have 

 mauufactured these hickory squares send us 

 the benefit of their experience, and give some 

 advice on the subject of seasoning, that we 

 may communicate it to the above corre- 

 spondent ? — Editor. 



