The Sky's The Limit

BY JACK DIONNE

A lriend of miue_writes me- g good scles story. He scrys cr tourist stopped ct cr little country store, cnd logked in open--,louthed cstonishment qt the enormous stock oI sclt piled on the premises. There wcrs stcck dter stack of sacks oI salt, there were boxes ol sqlt, bqrrels of salt, kegs of scrlt, c[ over the plcce, inside and out. So he said to the rurcrl storekeeper:

"You must sell cr lot ol scrlt here."

And the merchcrnt scrid: lvery_dcry yog hecr the question asked: "Whcrt crre the retc!,I lumberrnen going to do under present conditioas?" And the crnswer is thcrt that depends entirely.on the lellow hinsell, ori"cc-h individucrl retiit lumbermcm. Some oI them crre going to stick iust crs l9n-S- crg they ccn SeJ by in something like the -oo;1"ith.y hotr" been doing lor y_ecrrs pcst cnd_ crre going to quit iI they ccrn't mcrlce things go thcl wcy,. crnd some cre'going to mqke two or three or even lour blcrdesof grcss growin their buildinj business whlre only one grew bel lore, cut4 iust ncrturcltv SSFE4 enough business out ol every possibtJ nook crnd corner to'keep -f*io.o going, the fcmily led" cnd the bills pcid.

-No, I donjt sell much salt, but you shouldc seen a guy thqt cqme through here three weeks cgot Now THERE wtrs c sclt sclesmcrn!"

4ld _th. tlough! comes to me lrequently oI lcrte thcrt il I were in the retcril lumber business right now cnd wcs Iilled with corrbition to stcy in it until alter the durcrtion" I'd get up crnd get out crnd hit th1 bcl here, there cnd everl'where in ecch cnd every wcry thcrt I could thintc of TO SFi-r. fiIE THINGS TIIAT I CAN STIIJ. GET AND SELL T'IIDEB PRESENT DIFTICI'LT CONDMONS.

I scry thqt beccruse I cm hecring lrom crll directions crnd in 111any rliflerent wcrys crbout whcrt the retcil lumber industry is doing right now to try cnd stcry in business while this wcr effort is on, cnd there seem lo be two kinds ol retcil lumbermen: those who crre hitting the bcll like they never did belore in their lives and by doing so cre qetting !v "!l r_iSht with every indiccrtion ol lcsting through the wcr,. crnd those who thinlc it's too much trouble to do all thcrt.

It's true that we hqve lreezes and priorities cnd restrictions gclore on building. But there qre two thin9-s 4g! there cne no restrictions crgcrinst cnd never will be, cnrd those two thirigs cre ntfff.f.ICntCt cmd ENERGY. The fcct is, both ol those two commodities qre still crt c premium, cnd the tighter cooaiUo* get the more those two things cre worth. Severcl retcilers have said tb me, "It's aU right t6 tcr* itrci sUf, bui you cg!'t keep g lumber_yctrd_g_oing on repcirs, pcrints, cnrd wqll p<rper." But when l-repecteJthcl*crte- ment to still other dealers whom I know they scid, "The Hell you ccrn'i! I m doing itl"

_ It's l<rrgely c personcrl equcrtion. We crll lorow thct one mccr ulill olten get lat in the aqme opportunity where cr dozen others would stcrve to death. The thing is to be fiIAT mcm.-The |ellow thcrt sold ai thcrt sqlt to that country slorekeeper would hcrve no trouble mcking q lumber ycrd pcy expenses in cmy "oii J ti-"".

It's true thct you ccn't spend more thqn five hundred dollcrs rebuilding or remodeling any one building. Bu! you ccn pcrint every house, cnd bcnr, crnd ltarqge, qnd lence, cnd stoie, crnd cny 6goi "tr.ty -thei sort of U"i!{pg in th_ese here United Stcrtes from stem to stern crnd from rool to loundction, without'restri"tior, o,. prohi-bition You ccn repaper every inside wtrll on top oI the earth. And there is no doubt fui ttrct ttre punchful building sclesnrcrn ccnr lind mcrrkets lor every foot ol building mctericrl trr ccn gei t [-ir""a" o' nowcrdcys, without violcrting_ cny priority ruling, luitding restrictionlor fueeze order. nria le ccn mat" c sctislcct_ory profit on cll oI them. He ccn sell builhin things lor the home, cnd there """"i-*"" o -brtt", time-to do so thqn right now. He ccn sell plenty oI stull to thJ lcrrmer, even with his piesenii""tti"Ga p"r- chcsing power.

For mcny yecrrs pcst the b_uilding mctericrl sclesmcn hcd one huge hurdle in his wcry thct is clnost entirely eliminnted now-the lack oI money_ cnd ggod credit. Todcry-the hcurds A *t" p"fU" i;;rU locded with ccrsh. The things lor which they ccrn exchcrngelhct ccrsh hcrve be-en ttemendousfy "iit a"*". itr.t" "t. o thouscrnd commodities the pullic used to rush out to buy when it got cr lew dollcrrs,'thct are nof to be hcd now. So the building material sclesmcrn, the pcint mcn" tire wcll pcri'er mcn, the;; I1g,91t11j11r"",-ifr"'l"ift- in fecture mcrn" lhe new shell mcn the repcriimcnr" the lann scle-splciclist, cll oi rtt"- il;; ;;€;rJct cd- vqqlcge lhey hcve not had lor more thcrn -ten yecrsr peoplg wlio wish to buy, cre generclly ible cmd willing to pcy. We.1e hcd cr long string_ o! vecrs when we h-cd everythir,g oo ecrrth to-Jff"i *r.-p"uu" hcd lothing wherewith to buy. I'm not so dcd-[lamed certcrin thct this vrtf """aition does noi oiott-" t .- mendously lor the present "cqn't do's."

- Anywcry, remember thqt lellow who reclly could sell sclt. He didn't wcrit for things to pick up. He picked them up. And why should not the retcril lumbernr- do likewise, cnrd in m.t"h morJprcciccl lishion?

\Testern Pine Meeting August 20 Book Commemorates 50th Anniversary

The semi-annual meeting of the board of directors of the 'Western Pine Association will be held at the Palace }fotel, San Francisco, Augusr 20, 1942. Wednesday, August 19, the various committees will meet.

A tentative program for the August 20th sessions includes : President's statement, J. M. Brown; SecretaryManager's remarks, S. V. Fullaway, Jr.; Statistical position of the industry, W. E. Griffee; reports of the standing committees-executive and economics, J. M. Brown; promotion, A. J. Glassow; research, W. P. Marsh; grading, W. E. Lamm; forest conservation, J. F. Daggett; traffic, A. J. Voye; statistical, H. F. Root; association finances and budget, J. M. Brown; The Association's work in Washington, P. M. Crapo.

Appoint Two Field Representatives

W. W. Woodbridge, secretary-manager of the Red Cedar Shingle Bureau, has announced the appointment of C. W. Millard and R. B. Cosper as traveling field representatives. Both are natives of Milwaukee, Wis., and enter the field of Red Cedar shingle promotion with backgrounds which will prove invaluable to them in their new duties.

Mr. Millard was formerly in the real estate, rnortgage and general insurance business, while Mr. Cosper has had insurance, plumbing materials and sand and gravel association experience.