May 17, 1917. 



The Florists^ Review 



21 



.'^♦yjliS^'tXS^lVSytXSiJI^I^lVS^IAS/J^ 



DOINGS OF THE FLORISTS' CLUBSJ 



\nr«^1i)rSv1i;rS\irirSTir)«Vir)rSYlhrStirrStirrSVirrSVir^i\1^ 



CHICAGO CLUB DISCUSSES COAL. 



A Good Meeting. 



The coal situation, the national gar- 

 den movement, local and trade econom- 

 ics, the food question, these were the 

 principal items which occupied the at- 

 tention of the Chicago Florists' Club at 

 the monthly meeting held at the Briggs 

 House, May 10. The interest of the 

 meeting was enhanced by the presence 

 of a number of visitors, who gave inter- 

 esting talks on the fields of their spe- 

 cial endeavor. Among these were 

 George F. Stahmer, president of the Fort 

 Dearborn Coal Co.; E. W. McCollough 

 and Mr. Sieber, coal men; B. E. Gage, 

 landscape adviser and chairman of the 

 conference committee of the Chicago 

 Association of Commerce; Harry C. 

 Mobley, chief of city garden movement, 

 and Edward E. Newmann. 



The Association of Commerce. 



B. E. Gage, who was the first speaker, 

 took under consideration the florists' 

 place in the Association of Commerce. 

 Until recently, he said, florists had been 

 included in the miscellaneous division 

 of the association, but because of the 

 large amount of business done by them 

 annually, the investments represented, 

 etc., it was decided to put them in a 

 subdivision of their own, whereby they 

 could obtain better and more efficient 

 service. B. Schiller was appointed chair- 

 man of the committee, other members 

 being Leonard Vaughan, H. Van Gelder, 

 of Percy Jones, Inc., and B. F. Gage, 

 then of Peterson's Nursery. Mr. Gage 

 pointed out that the importance of this 

 subdivision lay in the fact that when 

 thus organized any matters concerning 

 the good of the florists' trade, bills in- 

 troduced at Springfield, etc., stood a 

 much better chance of attention than 

 they otherwise would. If the Florists' 

 Club would throw weight behind this 

 division, Mr. Gage suggested, a great 

 deal more could be accomplished. K. 

 Schiller was appointed chairman of a 

 club committee to get new members into 

 the Association of Commerce, he to 

 choose four associates. 



Mr. Stahmer Talks Coal. 



George F. Stahmer was the next 

 speaker. In referring to a coal mine, 

 the purchase of which was roeently con- 

 sidered by the club, he admonished that 

 it was well to bo careful in this mat- 

 ter, as it is a matter of common knowl- 

 edge that coal mine owners all through 

 the country are trying to unload their 

 mines at the present time. In reviewing 

 the coal situation as it is today, Mr. 

 Stahmer pointed out the following 

 facts: January 1, '1916, there was on 

 hand 60,000,000 tons of soft coal. Dur- 

 ing 1916 there was produced 509,000,000 

 tons, all of which was consumed during 

 the year, so that April 1, 1917, there was 

 practically no tonnage on hand, all the 

 docks being swept clean, a condition 

 which has not existed for many years. 

 The coming year there will be needed 

 about 600,000,000 tons of soft coal, the 

 additional tonnage being required by 



the navy and foreign ships coaling here. 

 Miners in the United States work on an 

 average 230 days out of 300 possible 

 working days, and they do only a cer- 

 tain amount of work, no matter what 

 pay they receive, the tendency being to 

 work less in proportion as the wages 

 are higher. Weather conditions do not 

 enter into the coal situation, because 

 the weather averages up about the same 

 each year, as statistics show. There is 

 at present, however, an exceptionally 

 heavy demand because of the unusually 

 cool month of May. Aside from this, 

 the railroads are stocking up, the de- 

 mands of the government are heavy, 

 there are great shipments to the lakes 

 for the docks, and factories are taking 

 in coal heavily. Maximum prices con- 

 sequently are prevailing. Tliese condi- 

 tions will continue until June 1, when 



NOTICE 



The Issue of 



for 



MAY 31 



Will go to press Tuesday, May 29, 

 one day earlier than usual. 



This is because the regular press 

 day, Wednesday, is a legal holiday. 

 Consequently, those who want things 

 printed in the issue of that week 

 should see to it their letters reach 

 the office of The Review 



MONDAY, MAY 28. 



the situation will undoubtedly ease up 

 and prices consequently will be lower. 



The Time to Buy. 



Taking these facts into consideration, 

 Mr. Stahmer suggested that it would be 

 wise for florists to take in at present 

 only enough coal to keep them going and 

 to stock up between .June 10 and July 

 10. He further suggested that at times 

 such as these it is unwise to change coal 

 dealers if the firms dealt with last year 

 proved reliable, for, he said, it is always 

 unwise to swap horses in the middle of 

 the stream. That those who pay their 

 bills promptly always receive the best 

 service and the lowest prices is an un- 

 questioned fact, and he advised flo- 

 rists to bear this in mind. Then, also, 

 it is of great importance to be certain 

 that the right kind and size of coal is 

 being used, much money being lost an- 

 nually because of mistakes in this im- 

 ])ortant matter. To ascertain whether 

 or not the right coal is being used, Mr. 

 Stahmer suggested that it would be 

 profitable to have blanks printed and 

 distributed bearing suitable questions 

 and have the secretary of the club or 



some committee get in touch with a few 

 coal dealers on the subject, for, he con- 

 cluded, the latter could save florists 

 much money in this manner if they were 

 given the opportunity. 



K. W. McCollougli and Mr. Sieber, 

 who were next called on, endorsed what 

 Mr. Stahmer liad said, stating that he 

 had covered tlie situation, leaving noth- 

 ing to add. 



The Garden Movement. 



Edward R. Newmann sjjoke on the 

 garden movement, suggesting that flo- 

 rists plant cabbages, lettuce and other 

 vegetables in flats not now used. Gar- 

 dening as a civic proposition, he said, 

 should become a permanent thing. 



Harry C. Mobley followed with a few 

 comments on the great need for dona- 

 tions of vegetable plants. Although it 

 is true, he said, that many who receive 

 these plants might not make good use 

 of them, many on the other hand would, 

 and cooperation to relieve the national 

 burden is needed. There are in Chicago 

 62,000 acres of land, he said, which have 

 been surveyed by his division and 

 which would be capable of producing 

 $7,000,000 worth of food annually. If 

 florists would help to ameliorate this 

 condition by furnishing plants, he said 

 that lie, through the machinery of his 

 department, would be glad to undertake 

 the distribution. 



Peter Reinberg, in endorsing Mr. 

 Mobley 's suggestion, said he believes 

 there is no florist in the vicinity of 

 Chicago wlio would not be glad to help. 

 As for himself, he said, he had already 

 bought and planted seeds for this pur- 

 pose at his greenhouses. 



George Asmus and Fred Lauten- 

 schlager added a few words in approval 

 of this movement, and upon the conclu- 

 sion of the subject President Amling 

 appointed Fred Lautenschlager as chair- 

 man of a committee of five, other mem- 

 bers to be selected by him, to foster 

 this movement. 



Miscellaneous Business. 



Because of his illness, H. G. Maclellan, 

 chairman of the coal committee, sent in 

 a request asking to be relieved of his 

 duties. Charles Hunt was appointed 

 chairman to succeed him and E. Ollinger 

 a member of the committee. 



Applications for membership were re- 

 ceived from H. E. Humiston, of the 

 Chicago Feed & Fertilizer Co., and from 

 Frank Felke, Gross Point,. 111. 



Fred Lautenschlager reported a profit 

 of $;j40 on the Mothers' dav posterette 

 sales. 



The treasurer's report sliowed a bal- 

 ance on hand April 1, of $550.64; re- 

 ceipts for membership during April, 

 $63; disbursements, $5.3.89, leaving a 

 balance of $559.75 Mav 1. 



NEW YORK CLUB MEETING. 



The monthly meeting of the New- 

 York Florists' Club was held May 14. 

 One lumdred members were present. 

 President Stumpp was in the chair. 



The exhibits of cut flowers were con- 

 fined to specialties and they were a 



