one the other day that made me think of some of you fellows who are so short-sighted that you can only see the first cost when you are buying a new machine, or when you don't buy one, just because of that first cost. In the story, use your imagination; consider the woman as a manufacturer, and the boy-well, suppose we call him an efficiency engineer. Here's the yarn:

"A plump little woman stood beside a counter in a big store where 'bargains in ladies' hose' were on sale. She selected a pair and held it toward the small boy who was assisting the salesladies, saying:

"I'll take six pairs like this.'

"The boy glanced from the hose to the lady and coolly drawled:

"I wouldn't if I were you; cheap hosiery is never elastic at the top.'"

We all know that business at the shows last January was not good, and we know that it has not improved to any perceptible extent since then. Indeed, if anything, it has got worse. Yet it has been a pleasure to visit many factories in Indiana and Ohio during the last few weeks and find that in spite of these conditions most of the manufacturers are getting ready for the July shows and the big business that is bound to come with a rush when it once sets in.

I wish that some of those who are always kicking at what they call hard luck could meet the prince of optimists that I fell in with on the train between Zanesville and Newark, Ohio, one night. He had on a misfit coat, a pair of overalls and other things in keeping. Though his conversation gave me no true insight into his nationality, I think he was a Scandinavian, and if that is a wrong guess we are even, for he took me a way down East "Yankee"-for a Syrian. At the time I met him he was farming, though for some years he had worked for the Pennsylvania railroad and saved up enough money to buy his little place just outside of Zanesville.

Everything down there dates from the flood (of 1913, of course), and in the course of conversation I asked him if he got hit by the uprising. No, he was in Columbus at that time, and was lucky enough to be on high ground, but he was just now having a "little set back."

Herein, briefly, is what was his "little set back:" Last fall he had taken his family savings (he had a wife and three small children) and invested in a small farm. This spring he had put in three incubators, having a capacity of 460 eggs. They were filled and if the "set back" had not happened, would have started to hatch in a few days. A little over $50-all the money he had-was in a box in the house. Of course, there were other possessions there, too. In some way, he thinks his four-year-old boy got hold of a match and built a bonfire in one of the rooms, the place got on fire, and before anything could be done the house and other buildings were in ruins. He was in the field, his wife got somewhat burned, though not seriously, in getting out a baby girl, and the boy that did the damage. Everything was lost and he had on a borrowed coat, as he was on his way to Columbus to see if his father could let him have a few dollars for a while. Yet it was only a "little set back" and he was pleased it was not worse. He remarked that it was only necessary to keep working and things would come out all right.

This incident may have nothing to do with the furniture industry, but I could not help but think of some

of the pessimists that I sometimes meet and wish they could get the lesson I got.

A story is told of the passerby who asked a boy what the fuss in the school yard was about, and received the answer, "Why, the doctor has just been around examining us, and one of the deficient boys is knocking the everlastin' stuffin' out of a perfect kid."

Such incidents are possible in school boy life, but if you put your factory on an efficient basis, no deficient factory is going to knock your props from under you unless it commits suicide in doing it.

Are your steam pipes covered? If not, better make a memo and get after this before another winter. Losses of heat by uncovered steam pipes are not only high, but wasteful. To offset the heat from a bare 4-inch pipe line, 300 feet long, carrying steam at 125 pounds pressure, with the temperature of the air 90 degrees F., it has been calculated that the consumption of 105 tons of coal per year would be necessary.

Safeguards may not be things of beauty. They never were intended to be, for they have another purpose to serve. Still graceful lines are worth something and designers will do well to consider such things.

The Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers

T

HE manufacturers of kitchen cabinets held a meeting in Chicago, last month, along with all the other manufacturers who held group meetings just preceding and immediately following the meeting which resulted in the organization of the Federation of Furniture and Fixture Manufacturers Association, although inadvertently the meeting was not reported along with the rest. The makers of kitchen cabinets have given such unmistakable evidence that they are live ones that it is not surprising that their meeting should have been a good one. The kitchen cabinet men have added more new business to the volume of the retailers than the manufacturers of any other class of goods, and they have problems and propositions all their own worthy of consideration in an association.

The kitchen cabinet manufacturers met at the Auditorium Hotel, Chicago, on May 13th, and the regular routine business was disposed of and the different committees appointed at the last meeting in Indianapolis made their reports.

One of the most interesting and satisfactory reports was the one made by the classification and rate committee. This committee reported that E. L. Ewing appeared before the Official Classification Committee, in New York, on September 23rd, in behalf of the kitchen cabinet association and presented reasons to that committee why the classification on kitchen cabinets should not be raised. The information was well received and the members of the classification committee, with the chairman, were convinced that the present description might well be expected to give rise to frequent overcharges and some controversy. Changes will undoubtedly be made. It was reported that by crating tops and bases separately, the bulk of the shipping packages was reduced from 13 to 35 cubic feet. With this showing, the Official Classification Committee recognized the justice of the claim made by the cabinet manufacturers and took under advisement the proposition to rescind the motion to increase the classification on kitchen cabinets K. D.

There was a very interesting discussion upon plans to still further increase the demand for cabinets.

L. D. Waters was re-elected president and G. A. Wilkinson, secretary and treasurer.

S

OME day, in order to create more jobs for political workers, the government may attempt to gather statistics on the several classes of foolishness, and the number of persons found in each class. The task would last forever, but it is a safe bet that as the figures began to be tabulated, "bargain hunting" would be a close runner for first place.

Man will laugh, or sneer, according to the nature of the beast, at woman for shopping at the "bargain" counter, and then immediately turn around and do the same thing, only do it worse or better; for the woman shopper examines, to some extent, what she buys, while the man buys something he does not see "at a price" and takes a chance that the "pig in the bag" will prove to be in good condition.

If you want a specific material, take lumber. Do you buyers of this material really know how all the bargains that you got averaged up? Is the lumber you buy, at the price you pay, the best investment for your particular operations? I am not qualified to be the judge of your shrewdness in buying, so I'll tell you a few things that I have observed and let you pass judgment on yourself.

Just to encourage you in keeping up your bargain hunting, because I know you will not give it up, I will cite a recent instance that worked to the benefit of the buyer. It happened that a mahogany salesman, of a bonehead type, had booked a substantial order for his product with a Grand Rapids manufacturer and, as he was on the point of leaving, casually asked if there was anything more that was required. He was informed that there was, but that it was out of his line. Inquiry, however, brought out the fact that some black walnut was needed, and it so happened that this salesman knew of a small concern that had about two carloads of this material that it had been holding for some time, because the owner knew of no market for it, and did not have the initiative to find

Now, this salesman volunteered to handle the transaction and get the walnut to the consumer for what it would cost him. The deal was put through and, as # matter of record, the furniture man got a good quality of black walnut at about ten dollars below the standard market price. That was a "good buy" which might just as easily have been a bad one. Incidentally, you are welcome to your own opinion in regard to the foolishness of the salesmart.

Now let us jump to Cincinnati, where there is lots of good furniture made. Some years ago a man owned a small mill just outside the city, and cut more or less Jumber from timber obtained from the surrounding farms. While his supply lasted, he sold it to some of the local furniture manufacturers, who thought they were shrewd in buying from him at a price lower than the regular Jumbermen were charging for the "same" grade of lumber.

This man had all the appearances of a country "jay" and let it not be recorded against these "wise ones" that they were taken in by him, because other "wise ones" in other places have found that the apparent fool was fooling them all the time. Well, in the course of time this that found that the demand was exceeding his supply and be began making demands on the regular lumber

yards for some material. His habit was to mix grades and sell them for a high grade. He was such a good "mixer" that he sold the "wise" buyers lumber at from $5 to $8 a thousand more than they would have had to pay for the same grade of lumber had they purchased it from the regular manufacturers.

He had such a trade that for several years after his own supply was exhausted, he was selling to his customers "at a price." He was in the habit of getting a dray, that had no name on it, in the city and paying the driver to haul the lumber from the yard where he purchased it to within a few blocks of the location of his customer. Then he would give the driver a quarter to pass away the time in a nearby saloon while he delivered the lumber, and the wonderfully shrewd buyers of bargains were several years finding out that they were being fooled by the country man in overalls and cowhide boots.

Similar things are happening in every furniture manufacturing center in the country, and if every "bargain" purchase of lumber could be traced to its consumption in the factory it is a safe bet that there would be more buying for quality and less for price.

There is, for example, a factory in New England which was buying what it considered good material for its operations at $22 to $30 per thousand feet. After an investigation by an efficiency or industrial engineer and following some of his suggestions for a time, it was found that it was more profitable to pay $35 to $45, and in some instances as high as $65 per thousand feet than it was to use the kind of material that it had been the habit to use.

In the use of the cheaper material the waste was from 40 to 65 per cent., while in the higher priced material the waste ran from 12 to 28 per cent., to say nothing of the difference in the time taken in handling operations to work up the material.

We might cite more instances, but why waste time? The probabilities are that we will always have with us the "bargain hunters," those people who are careful not to give anything away themselves, yet are foolish enough to think that they can get something for nothing so far as the other fellow is concerned.

N

American Forester for China

GAN HAN, chief of the division of forestry in the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry in the Chinese government, is a graduate of the University of Michigan, and he is of the number who is in the Philippine Islands studying forestry methods as practiced in the islands. Already several Chinese students have graduated from the forestry department of the College of Agriculture in the University of the Philippines, which is under the direction of the Bureau of Forestry at Manila, and more students are being received. Some of these students are supported by the famine relief fund formed in connection wih the disastrous floods in various river districts in central and north China, the ultimate object of their work being largely the prevention of floods by reforesting large districts in central China formerly well covered with forests.

PRODUCTION

Τ'

HE average consumer of lumber has little knowledge of how his material is produced, and in times past has given little consideration to the subject. In recent years, however, there has been a gradual awakening of a tremendous interest in the scientific production of lumber and the consumer is learning that the proper treatment of the material, both in his own yard and in the yard of the producer has much bearing on the quality of the goods he is able to make and in the ultimate cost of his production. More, he is learning that the proper treatment begins in the forest, and must of necessity be followed through all operations until he turns the finished goods over to his own customer. Because of this general interest in the fact that all lumber is no longer produced in the same way, this description of a new and model lumber operation is presented to the readers of THE FURNITURE MANUFACTURER AND ARTISAN.

A visit recently made to the headquarters of the Kraetzer-Cured Lumber Company, at Moorhead, Mississippi, emphasizes very clearly the progress of some of the manufacturers of hardwood lumber and their tendency to produce lumber that is not just barely good enough to be accepted by the consumer, but who are giving much thought to the problems which confront the users of lumber, and by the installation of proper equipment, and by giving close attention to the details of producing, handling, treating and drying are placing lumber on the market that will more satisfactorily answer the requirements of the manufacturer.

The Kraetzer-Cured Lumber Company takes its name from its adoption of the Kraetzer process for curing lumber with steam under pressure. Great as is the value of this method of treatment, it is only one of the many methods that this concern employs to produce the desired results. Much that they do is original, and shows an intelligent study of what is required and the exercise of exceptional care and close attention to detail, that is an

interesting departure from the average lumber operation.

The first essential of good lumber is good timber, and in this respect the Kraetzer-Cured Lumber Company is bountifully provided. Its lumber is being cut from an old tract of virgin growth timber that has long been held in reserve. One is appalled at the sight of some of the monster trees standing on their holdings, and finds it difficult to refrain from protesting against the destruction of these magnificent giants of the forest. Sentiment, however, must give way to commerce, where the two conflict, and it is well known that from trees such as these comes the highest grade lumber, the soft, even-grained, nicely-textured stock, widths and lengths that are SO much desired. The greatest care is exercised, and necessary, to prevent these large trees from splitting or otherwise damaging in felling. After they have been cut into logs, a liquid solution is applied to the ends to prevent checking, stain and depreciation of all kinds; the object being to place in the hands of the consumer the very highest quality of hardwood, free from as many of the little objectionable features as possible.

The company operates its own railroad into its timber holdings; the logging being done by means of steam skidders and the logs loaded on cars with steam log loaders. It is desirable to put the logs into lumber as quickly after the tree has been felled as possible, and for this reason the logs, immediately upon arrival, are run directly into the mill, being pulled up an incline constructed for the purpose, usually not more than two or three days elapsing from the time of felling the tree until the lumber is put on sticks. Only a sufficient amount of logs are carried on the mill yard to keep the mill in operation in the event of trouble or break-down on the railroad.

Characteristic of the care which is exercised throughout the entire operation, is the attention given to the logs when they arrive at the mill. Each log is numbered and carefully examined by the superintendent, with a

view of determining for what class of material it is best suited, and the sawyer is daily given instructions for the cutting of each individual log that will go into the mill that day. The mill is equipped with the best and most modern machinery that can be secured, and this is watched closely to see that it is in proper running condition, and where any trouble develops, no matter how slight, that has any bearing on the quality of the lumber that is being produced, same is immediately corrected. Only the highest class skilled operators are employed under the supervision of a very exacting foreman, and the whole organization is thoroughly imbued with the one object, to put out the best lumber that can be made. As the lumber comes from the mill, it passes out, by means of conveyor chains, through the sorting shed. Here it is graded and separated according to kinds, thicknesses, grades and lengths, each thickness, kind and grade being put in a pile to itself. Exceptional care is given to the inspection of the lumber at this point, and with

lumber handled from various mills where it is loaded to wagons or lumber buggies and carried off to the lumber yard, thrown down on the ground and permitted to lie there until the sticking crew could handle it. On account of general familiarity with this usual method, a detailed description is hardly necessary for the purpose of comparison.

The lumber at the mill of the Kraetzer-Cured Lumber Company is piled directly from the sorting shed to lumber trucks running on steel rail; i. e., it is placed on sticks on these trucks and it is not removed from them until the lumber is loaded on cars for shipment. This is a most important feature and will be described more fully further along. Through the method employed there is absolutely no delay in getting the lumber on sticks. This is of inestimable value in putting out lumber that is bright, straight and in good condition in other ways. After the lumber has been placed on sticks, the truck is moved to the Kraetzer preparator, into which it is run

a view of eliminating errors as much as possible, two inspectors are employed for this purpose, the one checking the other. A board, as it passes along the chains, is marked by the first inspector according to his judgment. As it passes along and comes to the second inspector, it is examined carefully by him and if he approves of the first inspectors' judgment he tallies the board and permits it to pass to the pile where it belongs. If he does not agree with the first inspector the board is thrown out and gone over by both of the inspectors jointly at the end of the day's run and its proper classification then decided upon. This adds some expense, but it brings great accuracy and uniformity in grades.

Up to this point, this operation is not materially different from several other large modern hardwood operations, but from this point on the lumber is handled in a manner that is quite different and a very great improvement over the usual methods employed.

Many readers, it is presumed, have seen hardwood

and subjected to such steam pressure as has been found most advantageous for the different kinds of lumber. This method of treatment has previously been described and discussed in these columns, but it is surprising what limited knowledge some of the users of hardwoods have of the matter. Many imagine that it is a newly discovered method of treating lumber. This is not by any means true; in fact, the principles involved are as old as the use of lumber itself. The value of steaming lumber has always been known and recognized by those who have studied the subject. There have always been small shops producing high grade goods in limited quantities who have steamed or boiled their lumber. Especially is this true of some of the producers of fine hand-carvings and similar work on which the work employed was of great value and would permit the careful preparation of the material used in order that the labors of the artist would not go for naught because of the checking, warping or other depreciation of the wood used. The methods in vogue

for the steaming of lumber heretofore have been such as to make this method of treatment impossible for general use, because of the limited quantities that could be so handled and because of the great cost. It is only for this reason that the value of this method of treatment is not more generally understood and appreciated.

fully so far as the beneficial results to the lumber was concerned; so much so, in fact, that for years several institutions paid a royalty for the use of this equipment. On account of the limited capacity of the tank, and

WAITING TO BE SAWED

the work involved in closing and locking the door, the expense was such that only the very highest priced material could be handled in this manner, and the lumber

treated by this equipment consisted almost exclusively of the higher grades in mahogany, principally counter tops, and even for this purpose it was found, on account of its

APPROACHING THE MILL

limited capacity, to be impracticable. Subsequently another and larger tank was built, several of which are now in use, in which the lumber was put in the tank through a man-hole in the top. This necessitated the

sticking of the lumber in the tank, which was rather difficult on account of the small space, and after treatment the tank had to cool off sufficiently to permit the men to enter it and pass the lumber out through the man-hole. Naturally this method, too, was impracticable for general use.

The new thing about the Kraetzer preparator is the door, which makes a steamtight joint without the use of any locks or bolts, and which can be instantly opened or closed by a man of ordinary strength, and at the same time permits an entire truckload of lumber, already placed on sticks, to be put into the tank or "preparator." In other words, there is nothing new in Kraetzer-curing, this merely being the name of a practical application of old, accepted and thoroughly tested principles. It is rather difficult to enumerate all of the advantages accruing from this treatment of lumber. It