N. L. M. A. to Publish Series "Safe-Hour Control" Forest of Pocket Manuals

Washington,' D. C., March 10.-As a distinctive new service for the benefit of active retail lumber dealers, and their salesmen, the National Lumber Manufacturers Association will begin publication of a series of "pocket manuals" that rvill contain in condensed form telling presenta- tions of lumber selling facts, including buildersr experiences, information on wood and its qualities, and technical data, stated in language especially adapted to sales talks. Some of this material will be information already known to experienced dealers, but it will be put in such shape that it can be quickly found and effectively used. Muih of it rvill be the result of recent laboratorr. research. confirming or disproving old pra,ctices and beliefs, and provid- ing new information and ideas for salesmen faced with ag- gressive competition-new selling weapons.

Distribution of this material will be confined to ,,live" dealers. The N. L. M. A. will put on its mailing list for this.service only dealers sufficiently interested in sales pro- motion to request that these publications be sent to them, but general distribution will not be made.

There will be folders on wood floors, on wood sash and frames, on fire losses, on timber resources, on paintability of. woods, on correct methods of wall constructibn, on duiable woods and wood preservatives, on heavy timber framing_ and other important subjects. They will be fortified with actual consumer experiences, latest data from research laboratories, installition "trd construction oractices and methods approved by authoritative technicil handbooks and such other available material as would be likely to convince customers.

Data for the folders is now being gathered with a vieq, to beginning their early publication. In expressing the desire to hear from dealer! who want to actively ti.rd"rtake local sales promotion the National Lumber lftanufacturers Association states that distribution wil be free and recommends that those who wish to receive this service send in their names in time to receive the first folders .as published.

Building Industry on Pacific Coast in Favorable Position

The building industry on the pacific Coast is in a much more favorable position than is the case for tne Uniiea states as a rvhole, according to an analysis of recent west_ ern and national building records- just completed by S. W. Straus & Co. While thi total of'new luiiai"g ioi *ti.t permits were issued in 588 principal cities of-the U"ii.d States during 79/9- was.ll.6 per_cent below tf," .o-p"i"Lt. figures for 7928, the relative'reductionln fOS pacifi; a;;;; cities amounted to blut 7.1 Der cent. --Fig-ures_compiled by the'S. W. Straus & Co. National l{glth_lf -Puilding Suivey s.how a 5S8-cities t.t"i ;i *;_ 827,821,447 in building permits issued during l9tb, ";a $:_ 379,977,31.1 in t9D, white the t92g totat Tor 105 p;.ifi; .L^qlrt ltres_was- 9404,904,563 in 1928, and g325,279,431 in 9n. The Pacific Coast total amounted to tb.S fe. ;.;i ;; the national total in 1928 and 11.17per cent in 1929.

.^lhloqg_lout the country the greatest'reductions in the 1929 building program ociurred ?uring th.-1";l q;;;i;.-;; the year. ln .this period the pacific eoast cities'were far Iess lnfluenced than was the country as a whole by the ef_ fect. on.building activity produced by the ara;ii.";;""k market break. Building permits totals-for the t".t quariei oJ L9p, the Straus survly shows, were 26.6 t-h_e_798 figure for the country at large, and showed tui 'a 12.7 per cent decline for the Facific eoast.