THE WAR AXI) THK LUMT.ER INDUSTRY 131 



The reaction on the lumber industry of these extreme measures was 

 interesting. The lumber trade submitted willingly to the restrictions 

 so long as the war was actually in progress ; but immediately on the 

 signing of the armistice, a hostile attitude was apparent toward any 

 form of Government interference and the demand for the instant 

 abolition of all forms of Government control demanded. This was in 

 marked contrast to the steel industry, which asked for the continuance 

 of price and other control during the period of readjustment. In con- 

 formity with the wishes of the lumber industry, all restrictions have 

 been raised ; but it seems certain that the best interests both of the 

 industry and the public would have been served by the continuance of 

 some stabilizing factor for at least a few more months. 



To those who believe in the theory that the public has an interest in 

 the natural resources of a country, and that ownership of the same by 

 an individual does not grant him the right and privilege of exploiting 

 those resources to his advantage without regard to the welfare of the 

 nation, the attitude of some lumbermen during the war is rather dis- 

 heartening. Throughout the entire period of the war the industry was 

 held in line by Government restrictions and orders and did aid greatly 

 in the fulfillment of our war needs for lumber. There was exhibited 

 at no time, however, any special interest in the general public welfare, 

 and there was also evident under the surface a feeling of discontent on 

 the part of some, at least, with any form of Government control, unless 

 that control promised to inure to the benefit of the lumbermen them- 

 selves. It is true that lumbermen would now be glad to "co-operate" 

 with the Government agencies, provided the "Sherman anti-trust law" 

 was modified to permit them to curtail and thus hold up prices ; but 

 with that idea there does not seem to go the conception that the indus- 

 try should in return so conduct its forest operations that the future of 

 our forest resources should be assured. Lumbermen as a class have 

 failed to grasp the new conception of the relation between the owner- 

 ship and exploitation of an essential natural resource and public wel- 

 fare, and the adoption at some future time of a sane and practicable 

 forest policy for handling the private forest resources of the United 

 States must be done over the heads of lumbermen and not in co-opera- 

 tion with them, unless their attitude changes markedly in the near 

 future. 



In connection with the work which I have done in Washington dur- 

 ing the last few months. I have been greatly impressed with certain 

 weak points which lumbermen either refuse to recognize or the exist- 

 ence of which they do not appreciate. The lumber industrv proved to 



