The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-03-14
TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL
INFORMATION BUREAU
FREDERIC J. HASKIN, Director,
Washington, D. c.
GOVERNMENT IN LUMBER
BUSINESS.


comforting the necessary authority
| upon the president has been intro
duced into congress by Senator
Chamberlain of Oregon, and has re-
ceived a favorable report from the
committee on military affairs.
The evidence on which the commit
tee bases its report shows that the
government is being seriously hamp-
cred in it's Shipbuilding and aircraft
programs by individual property own
ers, who either refuse to sell their
timber or insist upon holding it for
exorbitant prices.
Timber has suddenly become one of
the most important commodities of
war. Without Douglas fir-and large
quantities of 1.-THE government can
not build it's wooden ships. Already
southern shipyards have had to cancel
their contracts with the Emergency
Fleet corporation because they could
not buy the necessary timber in the
south. The southern yellow pine
makes an excellent substitute for fir,
but the people refuse to sell it. So,
the shipyards are compelled to wait
until millions of feet of timber are
shipped from the northwest, and, with
! transportation facilities in their pres
ent overburdened condition, this
means a long wait!
Without tremendous quantities of
spruce, the government cannot build
| aeroplanes. According to the esti-
cry bit of available spruce will be
needed if the war continues for three
years. Yet individuals, Indifferent
to the needs of the nation, are now
successfully blocking aircraft con-
struction.
Operation is hindered by the fact
that owners are refusing to sell or
are asking unfair prices for their
| holdings" says the committee of mil
itary affairs Furthermore many
Ie%o d. Of unit of
present operations are owned by
estates non-residents, or are mort
gagged or tied up in court proceedings,
and are availa BILE only thru processes
| upon which the government cannot
| watt
This bill has got to pass sooner or
later said Ex-Governor Oswald West
of Oregon, the other day. The we'll
known reform governor is in Wash
ington supplying the government with
information concerning timber con-
ditions IN the northwest. 1T is the
| only way out of what is fast becom-
ing ar extremely serious situation"
Not only are people refusing to sell
their spruce, but they are refusing to
seD or rent land for logging opera
tions.'' The governor pointed to
map on the wall of Senator Chamber
Jams office. Suppose the govern
ment buys a stretch of spruce here,
he said, indicating a point in the west.
TT has got to build a logging road
for the transportation of logs to the
sawmill; a road that must be built
over privately land. But the
land owner refuses to consent to such
an arrangement and the government
must either relinquish any idea of cut
ting that particular spruce, or posi-
bly,, at much delay and expense, build
logging road at some less conven-
lent location"
So far, no substitute has been
structior. It is the most flexible
wood, and the strongest for its
weight. Hence, nothing could be
more disastrous than a spruce short
age, and yet that may be exactly
| what the government will be called
upon to face in the future.
Estimates of the United States for
est service place American spruce at
about LOG billion feet. OF this only
three species-the sitka. red and
lion feet-may be utilized in aero
plane construction. Other varieties,
such as Eiglemann and black spruce,
are net adapted to such work.
Out of this fifty-five billion feet
of spruce of the species needed for
lively small percentage can actually
be used. Governor West asserts that
the young spruce trees are much
more valuable for aeroplane construc-
i ton than the old trees. AS the
spruce tree ages, he says, the top
exclude the sun, and the lower
| branches. deprived of sunlight, with
| er and drop off. This accounts for
the rings that form around the trunk
| of the spruce tree. and for it's many
knots.
The heart of the tree is knotty,
and so it cannot be used in the
manufacture of aeroplanes. Only
that part of the tree between the
bark and the heart can be used. Now,
northwest, says Governor West, per-
haps only Is per cent of the trees
are spruce trees And of these
probably only 10 per cent could be
used for aeroplane material. Further
NOR, of these chosen trees only one
| tentI- of the wood could be utilized
for this purpose.
| 1t is estimated that out of every
1000 feet of spruce shipped to aircraft
factories only 200 feet actually go into
| aeroplanes. Each individual aero
/ plane requires from 100 to $50 feet of
/ spruce, according to it's size and con-
| struction. Some of the small train
ing school machines require only 100
feet, and occasionally even other tim
bers are substituted.
| From this it may be seen that
American spruce resources will not
| last indefinitely. AS the signal corps
| of the army says. three-year. war
| may find them entirely depleted In
| the meantime, the allies are depending
upon US for their supply, Represen-
] tatives of the allied governments have
4 been given an office in the headquar-
| ters of the signal corps in Washing
ton, where every morning they put in
| their daily order for spruce This
order is referred to General Ledbetter,
I head of the signal corps, who passes
| or rejects it, according to the supplies
! available.
Great Britain has recently started
| timber gangs into the northern forests
of Canada. at enormous expense, but
| it will be some time before the first
results from these expeditions reach
Vancouver.
On the other hand, the figures OBJ