The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-07-15
YELLOW PINE
 LOOKING UP Market Shows Signs of
 Improvement. LUMBERMEN HELD MEETING Discussed the Question of Cost at
 Great Length. sharp Demand is Quoted in General Discussions of Members of Ala bama-west Florida Msnu-
 facturers' Association.
 

Not in several months has there been such note of optimism in the yelfow pine lumber market as that which marked the regular monthly meeting of the Alabama Florida Lumber Manufacturers Association held in Montgomery yesterday. The attend- snce was large and hope was on every face, Many new members made their appearance at the meeting which was held in the Exchange Hotel.
 Excepting the market discussions nothing absorbed the attention of the Association like the consideration of the important question of Cost" The Association members have been deter. mined for several months to get the, factors of cost down to a concrete basis. That they have made commendabls progress was demonstrated today About half those present presented to the secretary their individual cost sheets.
 These sheets carried summaries of the results of operation during the past three, five and six months. Differences were noted, as a matter of courseg but such were to be expected Yet the va riations were not so considerable as to discourage finally arriving at uni form sheet for the adoption of the Association.
 The discussion on cost. which con- sumed more than an. hour of, the meet ing today, ended in a motion by J. T. Burlingafne. of Yellow Pine, that the individual cost sheets be filed with the secretary. Mir. E. Fl. Eddy of Birm- tngham and that hereafter there shail be filed by the members individual monthly reports of cost. At the end of each quarter there will be individual Cumulative" reports on cost of man. : ufacture and sales. with the view of EfFiEtnR a nn ga txn end of the twelve months all individ. ual results will be thrown together and it is then the idea of the Associa- tion to compute the uniform cost sheet The motion was carried.
 In practically every report of the manufacturers today, the final cost fig- ured slightly higher than the net aver. age selling price on the thousa nd foot basis. There was every indication that the members had at last determined to make their books show scientifically and correctly every factor that should be charged to cost. The reasoning was carried to as great detail as the oper- ators of railroad lines.
 There was the stumpage, averaging about sfi there was the cost of man ufacture strictly: the office and sales expense; the fixed charges and the de- preciation
 The delegation who had been sent to Minneapoifs to attend the meeting to determine upon trade ethics for the manufacturers, wholesalers and retail CTS, reported favorably on the resoIu- tion of the large committee that work ed for two days on the code. The re- port of the committee of the trade ethics convention was handed to the members by Secretary Eddy for their perusaL and on motion of President Hughes, the Association practically unanimously approved the code of eth- ics and recommended that 1t be adopt ed by the members so far as practtca- ble.
 communication was read from the Florala Saw Mill Company. suggesting the cooperation of the Alabama West Florida Lumber Manufacturers Asso4 citation in the matter of enforcing the new car equipment law of Florida. It was noted that several claims in Flor i'd and Georgia are being resisted by the railroads and that in one lower court case the claimants had won out, The appeal was taken to the Supreme Court of the State.
 Mir Burilngame arose and expressOd the belief that 1t was not worth while to take part in the fight for car equip ment as it was figured that the most the car stakes cost was about $2.3S a car and in view of the fact that the railroads are one of the best custom. CTS of the lumbermen it would not be policy to press the Florida law. The discussion was confined. of course to the Florida members of the Associa- ton. Mir. James c. Williams of EIean- or, Fla. was of the same mind as was Nr. Burlingame and stated 1t as his opinion that the shipment of flat cars was so small comparatively that 1t was not worth while to take any action in