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because of their "refusal to climb in parallel with the nation." In relation to other economic trends, profits have actually declined, it noted.

"An economic climate which discourages the investor, or leaves his company with too little growth money, inevitably curtails employment and expansion opportunities Obviously, if there is to be economic growth the necessary money must be on hand, along with the inclination to invest it."

Jomes Bronson Re-Elected President Americon Foresl Producls Induslries, Inc.

James D. Bronson, official of Boise Cascade Corporation, Yakima, Wash., was re-elected president oI American Forest Products Industries" Inc.. at the organization's Annual Meeting held in

Washington, D.C.. October 30-November 2.

W. R. Adams. St. Regis Paper Co., New York, and J. L. Camp. Jr., Union Bag-Camp Paper Corp., Franklin, Va., were re-elected vice presidents. James L. Madden, Scott Paper Co., Philadelphia. was elected treasurer, succeeeding D. B. Frampton, D. B. Frampton & Co., Columbus, Ohio, who remains a trustee of the orqanization. C. A. Cillett, Washington, D.C., was renamed managing director.

New trustees are Gordon B. Bonfield, Packaging Corporation of America. Grand Rapids, Mich., and John S. Brandis, Georgia Pacific Corporation, Portland, Ore.

Re-elected trustees were Karl R. Bendetsen, Champion Papers, Inc., Hamilton, Ohio; David L. Luke, West Virginia Pulp and Paper Co., New York; William Swindells, Willamette Valley Lumber Co., Portland. Ore.; St. R. Adams, J. L. Camp, Jr.. I). B. Frampton.

}IEN, MARKETS, MERCHANDISING (Cantinued lrom Page 4)

motion-oriented company has a sizable advantage over a competitor who isn't.

Naturally, because of the nature of this audience, I've emphasized those areas in which the NWPP has focused attention primarily on hardwoods.

But I should also stress that even where ; the program is pointed chiefly towards soft. woodso there is a potential benefit to the hardwood producer. This is so because ' whenever softwood species are sold - whether for studs, joists, roof framing, sub, , flooring, sheathing, siding or scores of other rlses-the door is opened for the sale of ' hardwoods, too.

In fact, by virtue of the sale of a softwood species-ls1's say for framing-an ideal climate is created psychologically for the sale of another special-a hardwood, possibly, for panelling.

Much of the fine work of the National Lumber Manufacturers Association and the National Wood Promotion Program may be traced to lumbermen who have served both NLMA and vour own association with ,gr€at prid€ and great devotim.

Perhaps the outstanding example of this is your President, Mark Townsend. In ad. dition to fulfilling his many business and civic responsibilities, and besides serving as the president of your fine trade group, Mark has found time to give us valuable guidance and assistance as a director oI NLMA, as a member of our Lumber Standards Committee, and-last but by no means least-as a member of the Economic Council of the Lumber Industry.

Mark personifies what we mean when we talk about the new breed of lumbermen.

In efrect, Mark Townsend has flung down a challenge to us all. The writings of a man whom many regard as England's greatest Pirme Minister-at least up to the time of Winston Churchill-point to a parallel between conditions in Victorian England and those confronting the American lumber industry today.

Benjamin Disraeli, foremost satirist of the weaknesses of English nobility, believed that the future of his country depended on its youth being awakened to their political and social responsibilities. [n this connection, Disreali wrote of Young England:

'oThey stand now on the threshhold of public life. They are in the leash, but in a mornent they will be slipped. What will be their fate?

"Will they remain brave, single, and true; refuse to bow before shadows and worship phrases; sensible of the greatness of their position, recogrrize the greatness of their duties; denounce to a perplexed and disheartened world the frigid theories of a generalizing age that have destroyed the individuality of man, and restore the happiness of their country by belieuing in their own energies, and daring to be great?"

I put the question to you, gentlemendo rae believe in our own energies? Do we darc to be great?

Like Young England in the time of Disraeli, we must face up to our political, social and economic responsibilities-if the lumber industry is to realize the full potential of its future.

Actually, we must face up to these responsibilities if the lumber industry is to realize any future at all.

Earlier I made reference to the fact that the lumber industry has achieved a degree of unity higher than at any time in its history.

The most recent indication of this came at an August summit conference between manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers at NLMA headquarters in Washington.

It was here that representatives of the Ieading producer and distributor elements of our industry, including the presidents of the National Retail Lumbei Dealers Association, the National-American Wholesale Lumber Association and the National Lu-ber Manufacturen Association, agreed on a six-point program designed to bring about-in their words-"a greater unit| of thinking and effort in solving total industry problems."

Based on the premise that producers, wholesalers and dealers must accept change in product manufacture, distribution and selling-as reflected by the needs of the consurner and the times-this six-point program provides for:

( I ) Appointment of a Lumber Industry Merchandising Council, representing manufacturers, wholesalers and dealers, to meet at least twice a year;

(2) Industry-wide suppport of training programs to improve product and service knowledge at all levels of the industry;

(3) Industry.wide efrorts to "maintain and promote continued integrity of products and services;

( ) An increase in the depth and scope of end-use marketing researchl

(5) Improved merchandising and promotion by all segments of the industry; and

(6) More effective cooperation between producer-wholesaler.dealer elements of the industry to provide the kind of teamwork necessary to meet and beat the challenge of competitive materials.

The hardwood industry was ably represented at the summit conference, although much of the discussion centered around problems connected with tJre manufacture and distribution of softwood species.

By the actions taken at that conference, our industry, in effect, announced: "We recognize once and for all that we can't solve the problems of today with the meth- ods of yesterday." lf we were lawyers, gentlemen, I think we might look to the doetrine of the "last clear chance" to describe the situation that confronts our industry today.

Now, as we stand poised on the razoredge of decision, we must make good the intentions expressed at that conferencen by implementing sound policy.with firm, decisive action all down the line.

This often-cited principle of American law is invoked in accident cases where it appears that both parties have been guilty of negligence.

Damages usually are awarded if one party can prove to the satisfaction of the court that the other party, although negli gent too, had the "last clear chance" to avoid or prevent the accident involved.

From years back, I can recall a particuIar case involving the collision of an auto and a freight train at a railroad crossing.

The car was stalled on the tracks at d the freight train hammered into it, killing the driver and all occcupants.

When the case reached the courts, the attorney representing the widow of the driver of the car, while admitting that tho auto had no business on the traclcc, con. tended that-in the final analvsi*-the railroad had been the most negligent of the two parties.

This attorney based his case principally on the argument that, had the engineer of the train been looking out for what was on tle track ahead, and had the train been kept within the prescribed speed limil the engineer could have stopped in time to avoid the collision.

And that, gentlemen, is precisely how we define the problem facing lumbermen tod"y.

We have been given the "last clear chance" to avoid the disastrous derailment at the market place-but this will be possible only if we keep a constant lookout for what's up ahead and only if we maintain a steady speed-not too fas! not too slow-in advancing toward our goal.

Such caution, restraint and foresight have been the hallmark of one of out most recent programs designed to improve the sales and profit picture of the lumber in. dustry.

I re{er to our grade simplification and standardization program for softwood lum. ber-an effort which the Executive Com. mittee of NLMA and the Steering Committee of the National Wood Promotion Program have instructed the staff of our association to move ahead with as expeditiously as possible.

In seeking broad industry and consumer acceptance of this new standardization system of lumber grades and sizeg we are distributing an easy-to-understand eight-page pamphlet providing direct an(Continued, on Page 56)