O'Neill Lumb e] Co., Ltd.

16 California Sreet, San Francisco 11

GArfield 9110

Red

Opposer Patman Housing Bill

Much needed lumber for the Reconversion Housing Program can and will be produced by the nation's lumber mills if a reasonable and realistic price policy is put into effect, Henry Bahr, secretary of the National Lumber Manufacturers Association, told the l{ouse Banking and Currency Committee February. 1. Mr. Bahr appeared in opposition to the Patman Housing Bill, which would establish price ceilings on new and existing housing facilities, provide subsidies for the construction of low-cost homes and create a "czar" for housing.

In commenting on the bill, Mr. Bahr pointed out thht: (l) the powers recently granted Wilson Wyatt by executive order of the President made it unnecessary to provide for a national housing stabilizer; (Z) on the matter of price controls for new and existing housing the Executive Committee of NLMA believes such an extension is unnecessary and would retard the housing program; and (3) the Association is opposed to subsidies for lor,v cost homes, materials or t'orkers, as subsidies are not solutions to production bottlenecks. They only create new problems which further delay a practical solution of the critical housing shortage.

Recounting the history of the industry during the war and since, N{r. Bahr pointed out that OPA was the outstanding example in the Government of "too little and too late."

Proposes Nationwide Meeting ol AU Lumber Brqnches

A plan to stage an industry-wide meeting of national scope, to embrace all branches of the lumber world for the purpose of creating a united front in meeting conditions, is being placed before the various state and regional lumber associations.

The suggestion comes from the Carolina-Virginia Lumbermen's Club, rvhich, at a meeting in Raleigh, N. C., adopted this program as their chief project for the year. Manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers are specifically embraced in the program in order to secure cooperation of all branches.

The purpose of the mass meeting i5 to formulate plans of action to present to Congress the situation in rvhich the lumber industry finds itself in being unable to supply returned servicemen with homes, and industr)' with lumber to provide them lr.ith employment. President Joe \Ar. McLaney has a definite program for such a meeting in u'hich causes and remedies u'ould be discussed.

Western Pine Supply Gompany

Distributors of PONDEROSA PINE ond SUGAR PINE

O LUMBER o PTYWOOD

MOULDINGS

Yord ond Office ot l2OI Horrison Street

SAN FRANCISCO 3

Telephone UNderhill 8686

TACOIIA TUIIBTR $ffiN$ tOS ANGEI.ES 15, CAIJF.

714 W. Olympic Blvd.

Telephone

PRospect ll08

CABGO and BAIL NEPRESENTING

St. Paul d Tacomcr Lumber Co. Tccomc, Wcsh.

Delicrnce Lurnber Compcrny Tqcomc, Wcrsh.

Dicloncrn Lumber Compcny Tccomc, Wcstr.

Kcrlen-Dcrvis Compcrny Tccomc, Wash.

Vcrncouver Plywood & Veneer Co. Vqncouver, Wcrsh.

Tccomc Harbor Lumber d Timber Co. Tccomc, Wcrsh.

Clecr Fir Scrles Co. Eugene, Ore.

CdDLumberCo.

Roseburg; Ore.

S. S.

WHITNEY OLSON s. s. wEsT coAsT

The use of the name of the Lord in this organization is, I am convinced, in the nature of a prayer, rather than an oath. God knows well how thoroughly confused all the lumber people are. And, since the Washington announcement of the new rules covering industry and profits, the confusion has grown, rather than decreased.

On the very same day I talked with a big mill man and a big retail line yard man. The mill man said he was going to close his very large sawmill plant-one of the largest in the South-for good, and dismantle the mill, all because he could not operate under present restrictions and rules and regulations.

The retail line yard man with several millions invested in a string of big yards, said they were seriously considering closing their yards entirely, locking the gates, and waiting for a healthier atmosphere in which to do business. I{e said OPA and other government regulatory bodies had put him entirely out of business, and it was silly to waste a lot of money keeping open businesses that had nothing to sell.

You can multiply those cases by thousands and tens of thousands. All mills that would like to do so and would profit by doing so, cannot close down as this one mill has. And all yards are not in position to consider complete closing. But there are thousands that would want nothing better' * * *

The recent shift in the business regulatory agencies and also the shift in personalities, will not help the lumber industry in the least. It will NOT produce a foot more lumber than was being produced before the change. The lumber folks are now fully convinced that the gang in Washington is working steadfastly on regulations and planning that will carry regimentation right on through the years; and continue their jobs.

Mr. Truman finally got around to speaking high praise for production as a means of saving the postwar nation. Even Mr. Bowles said in the papers that he was willing to go along with changes that would increase necessary production. But how can we rejoice at what they SAY, when what they DO keeps staring us in the face? And up to this moment every move of Mr. Bowles, and every suggestion of Mr. Truman. are in directions that would restrict, reduce, and retard production.

'k**

There is no hope for us to get out of this mess except through UNRESTRICTED production. Regulated production will always, necessarily, be light production. The boys who crack the whip in Washington do not seem to know that. The time-honored law of supply and demand is as popular with our administration offEcials as the proverbial skunk at the children's lawn party. They never even mention the time-worn old rule that has served the world since civilization began. We must have reconversion over the artificial, man-made route. No other need apply. :B**

Mr. Bowles seems to be the sort of man who, if he saw a tea kettle boiling over, would try to hold down the lid, instead of opening a vent to let the surplus power out. >I*<*

About the only time-tested fundamentals they have failed to throw out in Washington, are two: the killing qualities of carbolic acid, and the purgative properties of castor oil. They haven't tried to regulate those yet.

**d<

The housing shortage grows worse and worse. It is a terrific national headache. All building materials are short, including lumber. Has anything been done that even the most optimistic would consider likely to increase the production of lumber? Could any of the n€w rules and regulations possibly have that effect? The answer is no. And only by tremendously increasing the production of lumber and other building materials, can the housing shortage be handled. ***

And so on down the line. The shelves and bins of the nation are bare, and they are bare because of federal rules and restrictions, principally those of OPA. Only in the Black Market is there a generous supply of goods, OPA makes the Black Market. It sustains the Black Market. And there isn't a chance on earth to kill the Black Market except by producing such an abundance of everything we need and want that the prices will get down to where there is no chance for profit for the Black Market operators. There is no other *"t olr. * *

OPA says that it has prevented inflation by holding the price line, but holding the price line in the way it has been done has thoroughly stifled production, and there is no cure for threatened infation except great production. So

(Continued on Page 10)

& SHINGLE CO.

Home Office-Aberdeen, Wcrshingrton

Mcrrufqcturers of Douglcrs Fir cnd West Coost Hemlock

CALIFORNIA SAI^ES REPRESENTATIVE FOR Robert Gray Shinqle Co.

Gardiner Lumber Co.

Aberdeen Plywood Corp.

BUYING OFFICES

Eugene, Oregon

Reedsport, Oregon

CAUFORNIA SALES OFFICES

LOS ANGELES SAN FRANCISCO lll West gth St.-lRinity 4271 I Drumm St.-SUtter l77l

THE

(P.R. 33-Dir. '1, Amended)

NO\7 REOUIRES JOBBERS

To hold, for 60 days

ALL MILL\flORK RECEIVED ON CERTIFIED ORDERS for

ORDERS RATED H H HELP

LOS

"Buv

(Continued from Page 8) the OPA, in trying to prevent inflation, has only prevented production, which is the sure and only destroyer of infation' ,< * ,< rt is my honest opirriorl.*1. I".rr,ning the administra' tion at Washington has done of late and is doing now, tends to decrease the full possible production of lumber. When the know-it-all boys quit trying to run this nation and all of its business, we may start getting out of this mess we are in. But up to now they are still trying the same artificial respiration they have been fooling with since the summer of 1933, except during the war years. And it isn't working, because there is no sense to it.

There came in this morning's mail an open letter from H. V. Simpson of the West Coast Lumbermen's Association, at Seattle. The first paragraph is interesting. It reads: "On my desk is a long dispatch from Washington that recites a series of measures the OPA is considering to increase the production of home-building lumber. Beside it is the Chief Forester's annual report PRESENTING RECOMMENDATIONS FOR DECREASING LUMBER PRODUCTION."

OPA rules have been the indirect cause of many of the paralyzing strikes. Whatever their justice or injustice, strikes destroy production, force people to use up their savings in order to live, and deprive the public generally of the goods that would have been manufactured had there been no strikes. These losses can never be made up. They are gone forever'

Take price ceilings and production. Full production is absolutely impossible under price ceilings. Any student of business psychology knows that regardless of the height of the ceiling, it would certainly have a retardent effect on production. Price ceilings prevent vital goods from being made-invariably.

Continued government spending and waste, discourages production; and our government is still spending and wasting at a tremendous rate. This means high taxes, and high taxes mean less business, less production, fewer jobs, and less money to spend.

What we desperately need right now, and should get through the acts of Congress, are: A labor policy that will treat and consider labor and industry exactly alike, and with the public interest in mind at all times; removal of price control over manuJactured goods; cutting down gov- ernment spending and balancing the budget; stopping of all artificial controls over business, industry, and commerce' rn light of what -. ;J ,loo,, ,. can safely be said that it will be at least that long before a man can ivalk into a lumber yard, buy the materials, and build a home. And that's hell, neighbor, that's hell. rf the gang in *"rnr:*;" lo."r,', awake soon to a realization of what must be done to get this country straightened out, they are going to be in the position of the flyer whose ship was lost in a heavy fog, and whose fuel was getting low. He couldn't find a beam for a long time, and was getting desperate, when he finally picked one up and found himself over a landing field, but with the air still filled with soupy fog so that he could see nothing. He signaled the field, said he was short of fuel, and asked for instructions. The operator below told him to circle the field for five minutes and report back. He did. By this time his fuel was almost gone and he said so, and asked for orders. The operator below told him to circle the field one more time, and call back. He did. He said one engine had quit, the other was sputtering, his fuel gauge said empty, and he couldn't see a thing, so what should he do. The operator below called up to him: 'lRepeat after ms-'Qlu Father who art i11 fis3ys11-.",

Young Henry Ford has recently been touring the country. He makes a splendid personal impression. He says the only thing that can save this country is for everyone to go back to work. He says the nation has forgotten how to work. He says that the efficiency of labor in the Ford plants has fallen off 34 per cent since before the war. Asked how long it would be until a man can walk into a Ford sales room and'buy a car like he used to do, he replied it would be at least one and one-half years, and probably two.

Wouldn't it be wond**, ,, J.,.r, -". in this country would get a proper picture of what this nation and this government should really mean to him? What America gives a man is a place to do something for himself. But it doesn't do your work for you. It simply says here is a wonderful place where there is ample opportunity to do your best, and be rewarded according to how good that is. Neither the world nor this country owes any man a living just for being around and breathing. The door at the bottom is open to get on the ladder of success, and at the top it is open so you can get on the roof if you can climb that high. But you've got to do your own climbing.

My Home That Used To Be

If I had found the old house waiting there, Beneath the trees rvhere I in childhood played, fts oaken door ajar, its windows bright With glowing tints the fires of sunset made, I would have crossed the dusty, time worn sill And wandered through the empty. rooms alone, Pausing tB touch the dear, familiar walls Or stand in silence by the cold hearth stone.

I would have conjnred to that well loved place The {orms of those who made and called it home, My mother sewing by the evening lamp, My father reading from some treasrrred tomeWith all the gracious arts of living wl-rich they wrought Into the pattern of their love for me, And fashioned memories which hang today, Like rainbows over life's mysterious sea.

If I had found the garden as of old, The pink moss roses and the jasmine vine, The tall syringas and the lilacs too, Dear fragrant flowers that once were theirs and mine; If I had wandered down the orchard path, Under the blossom laden trees, I would have heard sweet voices of the past fn every r,vhispering breeze.

But no, the house was gone, the garden dead. The orchard trees were blossomless and bere; There seemed no semblance in that r.r'asted place Of aught that we had deemed supremely fair. But as with tear dimmed eyes I turned away, A rose my mother's hands had planted smiled at me ! I kissed the perfumed buds in memory Of one dear home-my home that used to be.

-Adeline Merriam Conner

Price Differenticl Ccncelled

The proposed OPA order whi,ch would have permitted sawmills located on the Pacific Coast to charge $2.50 per thousand feet more for Douglas fir lumber, to buyers on the East Coast who receive their lumber by water shipment, than those mills were permitted to charge to buyers on the West Coast, has been cancelled for the present time.

New S. F. Wholesale and Retail Yard Specializes in Western Pine

Western Pine Supply Company, l20I Harrison Street, San Francisco 3, started operation February 1 as a wholesale and retail business specializing in Ponderosa and Sugar pine lumber and mouldings. They will stock pine plywood later, as soon as it is available. They have leased the property of the Sugar Pine Lumber Company, rvhich recently retired from business.

Philip J. McCoy is president of the company, and James M. Corbet is secretary-treasurer.

Mr. McCoy has a good background of experience in the manufacturing and wl.rolesale branches of the lumber industry, and as a Lieutenant (j.g.) in the Navy became better known in Pacifi,c Coast lumber circles when he was in charge of pine purchases in the CPA San Francisco office.

The telephone number of \\/estern Pine Supply Company is UNderhill 8686.

Appoints Hoo-Hoo Nine

D'ave Davis, Vicegerent Snark for the San Francisco District has appointed the following to serve on this district's "Nine" for the Hoo-Hoo year expiring September 9, 1946:. Senior lloo-lloo, Earl Carlson, Santa Fe Lumber Co.; Junior Hoo-Hoo, Carl Warden, Warden Bros.; Jabberwock, Seth Butler, Dant & Russell, Inc.; Gurdon, Charles Lindsay, Smith Lumber Co.; Custocatian, Larue Woodson, Nicolai Door Sales Co.; Scrivenoter, Paul E. Overend, California Redwood Association; Bojum, Frank Egnell, Service Lumber & Supply Co.; Arcanoper, Floyd Elliott, Schafer Bros. Lumber & Shingle Co.; Pianist, "Sti" Stibich, Tarter, Webster & Johnson, Inc.

Arrangements are being made to have a golf tournament, dinner and Concatenation in May, at a time and place to be announced later.

Sells Plcning MiIl

J. M. Reinarz has started operation bf a custom planing mill at Smith River, Calif., handling lumber from various sawmills in that vicinity. He purchased the plant from the Crag Lumber Co., Inc. The planing mill has a capacity of 25,0n feet of finished lumber per day. Mr. Reinarz tvas formerly superintendent of the Shasta Planing Mill at Klamath Falls, Ore.