New Hardwood Importers Locate at Los Angeles

Scenes at MindanaoHarduood Operations

The Pacific Southwest Import Company, is the name of a new corporation, formed recently in California, to carry on a wbolesale hardwood business, with general headquarters "1 Taos Angeles, and with the intention of carry- ing on a national distribution.

The new company is headed by Mr. T. I. Gil,bert as president. and Mr. G. E. Carpenter is the generail manager, directly in charge of their shipping operations and of sales.

Mr. Gilbert is a lumberman of lohg standing; he has been located in California for a number of years, interested in-various enterprises, and was formerly of Chicago.

I\fr. Carpenter is also thoroughly experienced in the lumber business, and from reports, is one of the best informed men in the game in Philippine woods. Mr. ''Carpenter has spent the last fifteen years in the islands, all of this time being engaged in the installation of saw mills. and other duties connected with the hardwood g.ame, in the Philippines.He has been associated with the Olutahga I-rrmber Company, and the Walter A. Smith Company. -

The Pacific Southrvest Import Company will handle the cut of the two above named concerns, shipping a greater portion of their output to the Pacific Coast, and the balance to other American ports. They rvill use the vessels of the Shipping Board for carriers, and rvill have a steady run of steamers, direct fromtheir loading points to the states. At first this company will handle only stocks from the Olutanga and the Srnith Company, wh.ose operations are all on the island of Mindanao, the second largest island in the group and the most southerly. Mindanao comprises about thirty-six thousand square miles of territory,- with practically three-fifths of it in hardwood forests. The principal cutting is red and white "I-auan," or mahogany, and nine other varieties of .commercial woods. Guijb, Yacal, Narra, Bunuyo, Ipil, Lumbayao, Apitong, Molave and Camagon. These two companies, at five difierent mills, are manufacturing all grades of stock from these trees, and shipping i'n the rough, at the present to San Pedro, where they have.arrang'ements for the kiln drying of such stock as they want to deliver in K. D.

The first mentioned wood, the I-auan, grows to a tremendous size at Mindanao, the tregs sometimes reaching a diameter of five to six feet, and in some cases being dne hundred and thirty feet high, to the first limb. These trees are felled by native workers, of a tribe called Moros, and are jacked and hauled out by various methods to the coast, rvhere they are picked up and towed by launch to the mills, in some cases as far as twenty milis from,the cutting operations.

The capacity at present is about one and one-half million feet per month, and it istheir intention to increase this considerably at a later date.

The Pacific Southwest Import Cornpany has one cargo on the water at the present time, and they also have.-a considerable quantity-of rough stock at San Pedro, n6w ready for distribution.