Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-06-29


manufacturers III an industry Where
oyerproduction is a widespread rule.
! Few Exceptions Made.
Certain exceptions were made. For
example, where a community IS oepeliu-
ent upon the operation Oh saWl ,a.s
served by National forest timber, logs
NAV still be furnished to such mills.
likewise. sales of limb not exec dlnS
S5tO for local use are eenelaily PEI
mitted. and the cutting OF puip"Coa' vi
which enormous quantities are iihpoilSu
annually. may continue.
/! Immediately upon receipt OF these M
structions. Secretary Hyde conferred
with officials of the Forest Service ana
within a few days the new policy cover
inp timber sales on the national torests
was reduced to writing, formally ap-
nroyed and communicated to field OF
, ficers all over the country, ana Is no"
| in operation.
President Hoover about a year ago
annointed the United States Timber
! Conservation Board, headed by Robert
! P, Lamont. Secretary of Commerce
Secretary HYDE was made member OF
thn hoard because Of the important
! timber holdings of the Federal Govern
ment in the national forests and the
very large aggregate timber acreage
owned by farmers Throughout the
| country.
| raw LYMAN Wilbur, Secretary OF the
Interior was designated to serve on the
/ board because his department likewise
is charged with the administration OF
enormous areas OF land containing valu-
able commercial timber stands, much
-of it belonging to the Federal Govern
ment and other large areas to various
/ Indian tribes.
Other members of the Timber Con-
servation Board include three outstand-
! ing lumbermen and Carl R. Gray, presl-
dent Of the Union Pacific Railroad:
! John C. Merriam, president OF the car
negie Corporation of Washington'
! George D. Pratt. president of the Amerl-
| can Forestry Association: Paul G. Red
ington. president of the Society OF
American Foresters; Charles Lathrop
! Pack. president of the American Tree
Association. and others.
This board held its first public hear
! ings here on June 10 and IL, during
which the situation in the pulp and
paper, news print and lumber industries
was graphically presented. Among the
suggestions advanced as emergency re-
| lief measures were the Stoppage OF
| timber sales by the Government itself
| as a step in the direction of stemming
the tide of overproduction.
DR.. Wilson Compton, secretary and
manager of the National Manufacture
! erS' Association, commented upon the
| fact that the President had issued an
executive order virtually declaring a
moratorium on the sale of timber
| from the national forests in commercial
! quantities DR.. Compton went a step
! further, urging the wisdom of apply
ing the same policy to timber on I'M
reserved public lands. particularly the
Oregon and California railroad grant
! lands that had reverted to the Govern
] ~ frnSfPPCh1n
would permit, that the Government
take the same action with regard to the
| timber on Indian reservations.
Still another suggestion urged by
| DR.. Compton. who spoke for the lum-
Der manufacturers as a whole, was an
emergency moratorium on annual tim
ber-cutting requirements on Govern
ment land, on application of any man
ufacturer who is under contract to cut
Government or Indian owned timber.
On June 10, two days later, Secretary
Wilbur issued orders through THE COM
missioner of the General Land Office
and the commissioner Of the Indian
Service to restrict sharply the sale OF
timber on the reverted railroad lands |
and the sale and cutting of timber on
Indan-owned lands. wherever this |
could be done without working hard |
ship upon the Indian owners.
Secretary Wilbur was out of the city |
when the board held its hearings, but |
was represented by a subordinate Off |
cial The board called to his attention |
the emergency suggestions advanced at |
the hearings, and the Secretary took |
immediate action, starting the machin |
cry in motion on June II and seeing |
that appropriate orders went out on |
the following day.
Government Competition Removed.
These practical and constructive |
measures by the Hoover administration |
virtually will eliminate all important |
Government competition in timber |
sales and they are deemed highly i'm
portant by outstanding men in the |
lumber industry and by economists and |
others conversant with the present.
day problems of the forest industries
in general. They do not involve put
ting the Government into business in
any sense of the term, but are designed
to get it cut of active competition with
the lumber industry at a time when
that industry is known to be ailing.
The illness is very real, according to
DR.. Compton, who told the board that
the condition of the timber and
lumber industries is perlous, in fact
omincus," and added that no useful
purpose is served by withholding frank
declaration of that fact"
Consideration now is being given to
the suggestion that the Government
cancel cutting requirements on ap-
plication of lumber manufacturers who
are under contract to- cut Govern
mcnt-owned or Indian timber at
specified rate annually. This involves
some complications that do not apply
to the making Of new sales of consid-'
cradle dimensions, but the expectation
is that it will be found feasible to
suspend cutting requirements in many
instances.
Various other suggested emergency
measures we're advanced and ere being
studied carefully by the Timber Con-
servation Board. One of these is the
advisability of fixing production quotas
for each region or species as an aid to
the lumber industry in keeping supply
and demand in reasonable balance.
Another is Government SANCTION to
reasonable trade agreement" 1or putt
ting lumber production uncer control.
subject to supervision of suitable
present agency of the Government or
CT some special Federal commission"
Adoption of such measures might re-
ouire some modification of the anti
trust laws as applied, to natural re-
source industries. such as lumber.
No Famine in Prospect.
Still another suggestion laid before
the beard was the wisdom of a frank
public declaration that there is no rea-
son to believe there will be timber
famine" or timber shortage" in the
scrsc of a lack Of an ample national
lumber supply. such as has been pre-
dicted from time to time for half a
century and especially during the