HARDWOOD RECORD 



29 



Tbe report of the Special Congressional Com- 

 mittee will be interesting to shippers who use 

 largely flat and gondola cars. The hearing before 

 the Committee of Interstate and Foreign Com- 

 merce of the House of Representatives empha- 

 sized the fact that, to the unprofessional mind 

 at least, our contention has the merits of fair- 

 ness and reasonableni'ss. The testimony intro- 

 duced by the railroads would also seem to indi- 

 cate that our efforts have educated them to a 

 degree, and while we must not expect too much 

 in the way of Immediate compliance, I believe 

 that a quiet and persistent campaign, which, 

 with the cooperation of other associations, can 

 be conducted at slight expense, will ultimately 

 and within a reasonable time obtain for us the 

 concessions desired. 



We again welcome the delegates from allied 

 associations and tender them the freedom of our 

 meetings. We have no secrets and no antago- 

 nisms. During the past year our trade relations 

 have been highly satisfactory and particularly 

 free from complaints. In one instance only has 

 there been vigorous protest from a retail asso- 

 ciation, and in that case, without action on our 

 part, our too hasty accuser withdrew from the 

 contest and left us in possession of the field. 



The several meetings of the Executive Com- 

 mittee and of the Board of Trustees have been 

 well attended, and I desire to thanli the members 

 of these bodies, as well as the chairmen and 

 members of all committees, the officers of the 

 association and their assistants, for their loyal 

 support and helpful assistance throughout the 

 passing: administration. 



We iiave luet in Cincinnati through the cour- 

 tesy and hospitality of its lumbermen and citi- 

 zens and from a desire, after many years, to 

 again touch elbows with the vigorous and kindly 

 inhabitants of this gi'eat and prosperous section. 

 Our thanks are due to our members and friends 

 who have helped to make this meeting possible. 

 May we leave many new friends behind us and 



K. V. riORRY. XKW YORK. 8KCRETARV 



welcome all of them as members at our next an- 

 nual meeting. 



Several o)' our members have been taken from 

 us by death and among them it grieves me to 

 record tlie loss of one of our former trustees, 

 Rudolph S. Cohn of Norfolk, Va. Knowing Mr. 

 Cohn through our intercourse on the board, I can 

 saj (or bira what is no doubt true of all of the 

 others, that o;ir association has lost a loyal 

 friend and the lumber trade an upright and hon- 

 orable representative. 



I regret that as our president for the past year 

 I have but little of personal accomplishment to 

 record, but, whatever has been lacking in bril- 

 liancy as executive I trust that I have not failed 

 in loyalty to our association, nor in my promise 

 to give you of the best that was in me. Of 

 .vouf undeserved kindness I shall always be mind- 

 ful, and for your patience and consideration I 

 canuot be suthciently thankful. A greater man 

 has written to express what I would say : "It 

 has been a Just ground of pride to me that I' 

 have had a share in the administrative work of 

 this organization and the benefit of its members" 

 friendship. My association with its otficers. past 

 and present, h^is been an inspiration, and if, in 

 any way, I have helped such men in their en- 

 dea%-ors, surely I have not altogether failed." 



May success attend the association and each 

 one of yoti. 



Tlie president's address was enthusiastically 



received, after which Secretary Eugene F. 

 Perry gave his report as follows : 



Secretary's Report 



It has fallen to your secretary each year to 

 report to you as eiearly as possible, covering such 

 details of the year's work of the association as 

 we believe should be made a matter of record, 

 and also to preseut to you in concise form the 

 results of the operation of the plans formulated 

 at previous meetings, and at the direction of the 

 Board of Trustees and Executive Committee at 

 their called meetings. 



The association work is so diversified and 

 constant that its history can only be read from 

 the compilation of reports made at the annual 

 meetings. Outside of the reports assembled for 

 use in our Credit Department very few statistics 

 are gathered, such figures and details being left 

 to be used and elaborated upon by other special- 

 izing associations organized largely with such 

 definite propositions as their basic plan and 

 scope of work. 



We have, however, made an effort to again 

 give you (as shown on your printed program) a 

 broad suggestion of the volume of business, value, 

 necessities of transportation, etc., of the nearly 

 four hundred members of this association. We 

 have been somewhat surprised to find the claim 

 being made, that in 19uy as much or more lumber 

 lias been cut and manufactured in the United 

 States than in any year iu the history of the 

 lumber trade. Some figures claimed are as much 

 as fifty billion feet. Of course, we all know 

 I hat the value expressed in dollars would not 

 compare as favorably, but the amount claimed 

 seems to be reliably substantiated. These sug- 

 gested figures are valuable largely because they 

 indicate an increasing business, and offset some 

 of the pessimistic statements made at times, 

 regarding the lumber business, as to permanency. 



During time.5 which are not considered to be 

 boom periods we all feel the constraint which 

 leads us to first consider self-preservation, and 

 therefore are not willing contributors to the 

 good welfare of our fellows. This past year 

 rather comes under this caption and we have, 

 therefore, found it harder than in some previous 

 years to accomplish satisfactorily the work laid 

 out or presented to us for consideration. Then, 

 too, our associatiou is being constantly called 

 upon to render help in matters whicli are na- 

 tional or very general in character, and not to 

 be considered strictly lumber problems ; thus wi' 

 are constantly broadening the scope of worli and 

 calling into action the experience, diplomacy and 

 power of the best men our association can enlist. 



Many of the recommendations I have to offer 

 may be more fully covered by your committee 

 reports, but haying come to our attention oHi- 

 cially, should be at least referred to here. 



First of importance, possibly, is that of the 

 conservation of our national resources, which is 

 being very ably handled by an organization 

 formed with that as their basis of appeal. It 

 is my opinion that as an organization we also 

 should strongly endorse the movement and plau 

 to actively cooperate with such other organiza- 

 tions as may be working toward the same end. 

 The subject is broad and, as lumbermen as well 

 as citizens, we are vitally interested. 



1 also ask for a more careful consideration by 

 the individual members of the movement for 

 uniform state laws, especially as they affect com- 

 mercial acts, including uniform sales laws, uni- 

 form stock transfer laws, negotiable instrument 

 laws, warehouse receipts, bills of lading and 

 even divorce laws, etc., etc., all very forcibly 

 presented by the American Bar Association, and 

 more recently strongly endorsed by the President 

 of the United States, and also by the National 

 Civic Federation and other trade and civic or- 

 ganizations. A warehouse receipt ought to mean 

 the same in New Orleans as it does in Chicago ; 

 the process of determining the value or legality 

 of a negcjtiable instrument should be the same 

 the country over. The importance of uniform 

 laws is emphasized in our badly mixed divorce 

 laws, and our commercial laws are even worse. 

 If one is married in New York he ought to be 

 recognized as being married when in Ohio ; or a 

 man ought to be able to make his will with 

 equal safety and ease whether in Oregon or 

 Maine. To bring about uniform laws requires 

 personal effort as well as united effort. Our 

 association has been doing its best to help along, 

 and should continue to urge these uniform laws 

 wherever they affect business dealings. Recent 

 decisions as to status of incorporated companies 

 doing business without a so-called license in 

 some of the states have great bearing on the mul- 

 tiplicity of laws affecting corporations, and have 

 a very vital effect on the safety of your transac- 

 tions with those outside of your home state. I 

 emphasize these points because the field of busi- 

 ness, as done by the wholesaler, is constantly 

 broadening and becoming more difficult to culti- 

 vate. Some of us are opposed to the proposed 

 federal- incorporation laws, and their attempt to 

 correct present abuses in some of your state laws. 



Car Stakes 

 At last year's meeting you appointed a special 

 committee* to continue the car stake agitation. 



and the Board of Trustees at the suggestion of 

 the committee invited the cooperation of all lum- 

 ber organizations in pursuing this matter before 

 Congress, through the introduction of a special 

 amending bill to the interstate commerce laws. 

 Some of the associations and some of you mem- 

 bers do not warm up to this proposition as I am 

 sure they and you should. The argument, of no 

 direct interest, is not association spirit and is 

 not the position we should take on any proposi- 

 tion for the good of the trade in general. The 

 special committee has done excellent work and 

 their report will interest you, I am sure. "We 

 will win out on the car stake proposition if it 

 takes all summer,'' someone has applied to this 

 light, and I agree, because we are working in 

 a right cause and for the general welfare of the 

 people. 



CODK OF Thade Ethics 

 Your delegates attended the Lumber Trades 

 Congress at Chicago last June and helped to 

 formulate and approve, subject to your confirma- 

 tion here, a code of trade ethics to be used as a 

 basis of trading, binding only from a moral 

 standpoint now, but which, when finally worked 

 cut, will, because of usage, become trade law. 

 This code as at present constituted, may not meet 

 with your full unanimous approval, but as after 

 a two days' session in Chicago it received the 

 unanimous approval of those at the congress, 

 representing manufacturers, wholesalers, retail- 

 ors and consumers, you can feel assured that it 

 is as nearly practical as is possible at the present 

 time. Some very good minor changes have been 

 suggested, and its favorable operation proves its 

 necessity, and I recommend endorsement here 

 and reference to Board of Trustees with power. 



Tekjis of Sale 

 At this point I refer to one otlicr proposition, 

 in an effort to avoid a very considerable amount 

 of trouble and confusion over disputed deliveries, 



X. II. WALCOTT, PROVIDENCE. TRUSTEE 



damaged or delayed in transit shipments, demur- 

 rage, charges, etc., and that is. that every mem- 

 ber of this association adopt a uniform method 

 of quoting your prices, and I strongly urge that 

 all quotations be made f. o. b. shipping point, 

 freight allowed and guaranteed to delivery point, 

 and thereby definitely settle this question of 

 ownership in transit, and who is responsible for 

 delays in transit, etc. The buyer will welcome 

 a uniform method and the elimination of the un- 

 certainty of ownership, and it can be accom- 

 plished by printing your contract clause in the 

 body part of every letter you send out. Fifty 

 per" cent of the memljers are already doing it. 

 and if all will, some of our disputes will become 

 matters of history only. Sample letters are in 

 the hall, and I recommend this form for adoption 

 as the National Wholesale Lumber Dealers' As- 

 sociation form of quoting prices. 



Railroad R.^te Problems 

 The workings of the Interstate Commerce Com- 

 niissicn has undoubtedly made more certain the 

 status of railroad matters, but there still remains 

 many very obnoxious practices, not the least of 

 which is the rate quoting sy.stem. l-lrst, it is 

 difficult to secure all the up-to-date tariffs, and 

 when once secured, it takes an experienced man 

 to read them and make sure he has obtained the 

 rate his lumber will finally be billed at, and the 

 lack of responsibility imposed upon freight agents, 

 to protect a rate named to the shipper when he 



