Last Session at Long Beach

The Millwork Institute of California closed the business part of its program with the Friday afternoon session, July 29th.

The session closed with the unanimous acceptance of the report of the Committee on Resolutions, which read as follorvs :

"RESOLVED that a vote of thanks be extended to the Pacific Coast Club directors and to Mr. Merrell and Mr. Brorvn in particular for their kindness in turning over their beautiful club building and personnel for the use of the Millwork Institute of California convention:

And a vote of thanks to Mr. George Cornwall for his interesting address and talk on Australia and other valuable thoughts delivered to the members;

And a vote of thanks to Mr. Jack Dionne for his stirring address on merchandising this morning, an address that should reach and command the thought of every thinking millman;

And a vote of thanks to Mr. David J. Witmer and to Mr. Zara Witkin for their talks regarding the relations of architect and contractor to millmen; also to Professor Emery E. Olson for his talk pertaining to the economic side of our problem;

Lastly, a vote of thanks to the committee of the Southern Branch and others who engineered and made possible the entertainment and other features that have made this convention the success that it has turned out to be."

Oakland was selected as the next meeting place, and the dates selected rvere the last Thursday and Friday before Thanksgiving Day.

The first business before the convention Friday afternoon was a discussion of the irresponsible contractor, and of the Lien Law. A communication was read from Architect A. W. Smith, of Oakland, in which he criticized lumbermen and millmen for using the Lien Law as a collection agency, and urged that care be taken as to the credit of purchasers, instead of promiscous selling, and recourse to the Lien La'rv in efforts to collect. He blamed the material men for trouble rvith irresponsible contractors.

Mr. Kiser declared that it is getting to a point where liens clo not get the money, and stated that in Oakland they have had so much trouble that they would be as well off without the Lien Larv. Mr. Soencer favored the retention of the Lien Law and cited cases where they collected bills that could not have been collected without it. Mr. Gaetjen reminded the convention that the Institute is on record as opposed to any change in the Lien Law. Mr. Kiser said he wanted the Lien Law discussed at the next meeting in November, and declared that with the banks and building and loan associations making 90 per cent loans, a lien is no good.

The-v tl-ren took up the matter of the milling-in-transit rate on cloors and millrvork. E. A. Nicholson urged that they get strongly on record as opposing the privilege, and suggested that committees be appointed in the various California centers to work in that direction. He made a motion to that effect.

Mr. Gaetjen said he was somewhat in the fog as to the right or \\'rong of the matter. George Corn"r'all told of the operation of the milling-in-transit privilege in the middle '"vest, how the big milling plants buy western lumber, manufacture it into millwork and re-ship it for slightly added freight cost, etc. He suggested that if such a privilege is sustained by the I. C. C. that the westerners get busy to secure the elimination of the differential in freight rate that exists between lumber and millwork, and let them all take the same rate.

The convention voted unanimously to oppose the proposition as moved by Mr. Nicholson.

Then came a discussion of the code of ethics of the California Retail Lumbermen's Association, which, after a short discussion, was postponed for further discussion at the November meeting.

There was a short discussion of the resolution which had been passed by the Board of Directors to the effect thit there should be regional meetings of Directors at least once a month to consider subjects vital to the sections.

A short discussion of the accounting service of the Institute followed, and the rvork being done aiming at the adoption of a universal accounting service for the members, everyone connected with the Institute being urged to adopt the system. It was announced that the Directors had appointed a committee to outline the scope of an accounting survey, and report at the November meeting.

Mr. Bernhauer made the following fine little talk on cooperation:

"It seems to me one problem of our organization is lack of cooperation between members. It is like a man who goes down to business resolved to get a lot of business that day; he slams down his desk and goes to play golf, comes in late and kicks because he don't get the contract. That seems to me what we have been doing for three years. We come to conventions, pass resolutions asking Hank to do everything from sweeping out the office to running a collection agency. He sends us communications. We throw them in'Ihe wastebasket. He asks us to do things and we refuse to do them. Then we come down here and crab because we don't see what we are getting for our money. I am not trying to defend Hank, but I do think if we are going to get anywhere this has to be the job of the executives running these various plants and they have to put just as much brains in this proposition as in other problems because in this Institute lies the only remedy for the thing staring us in the face today and I hope every man here has got as much out of this convention as I have. My associations 'ivith you men more than repay me alone for what it costs to belong to this institution and I hope we go back determined to get behind everything that this organization is trying to put over. We can have regional meetings and inter-regional meetings and rve can have conventions and hire secretaries, but unless the membership themselves will cooperate, rve will never get to first baie." (Applause.)

A discussion of matters for the good of the order then followed. A committee was suggested to work with the architects in promoting the use of millwork. A motion to that effect was lost for rvant of a second. Instead the Managing Director was instructed to write the district groups and urge them to appoint committees to lvork locally with their local architects.

Bill Hayward made a good talk on the necessity for continuing to increase the membership of the Institute. He suggested that the membership might be almost doubled.

A talk on membershio conditions in various districts followed.

The session closed with a clever little five-minute talk by President Dixon to the members on the privileges and duties of membership, in ,which he both praised and criticized them for their relationship 'ivith the organization.

The convention ended with the big Friday night entertainment, consisting of a stag dinner and entertainment for the men, and a theatre party for the ladies.