THE CALI.FORNIA LUMBER MERCHANT

(Continued from Page 15)

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the final decision of the matter be left to our Board of Directors, and that the said board shall have full power to settle the terms and all conditions of such proposed merger and the 'date same, if entered into, shall become effective. That until such merger be completed the Southern California Retail Lumber Dealers' Association will continue to function as at present..

After some discussion, the president put the matter to a vbte, and it was decided by a majority vote of the members present that a favorable action would be taken. Twentyfour members of the Association were present at this time, and it is understood that this matter will be finallv decided by a directors meeting that will be.called fot the near fu. tur€. ,This meeting will be called by President Fickling, Six new directors were then elected: Mr. J. C. Ambrose, A,mbrose Lumber Company, Santa Barbara; L. W. Find,lay, Russ Mill & Lumber Company, Redlands; C. W. Pinkerton, president of the State Assmiation, also proprietor of the Whittier Lumber Company, Whittier; R. L. Sandefur, Hayward Lumber & Investment Company, San Bernarditio;

A; J. Storer, Sawtelle Lumber Company, Sawtelle, and W. A. Viney, Viney & Milliken, Covina.

I This session was then adjourned.

:l A record attendance enjoyed the evening festivities. DinRqr was served at the Virginia Hotel, to four hundred and iriinety-eight guests and rnembers. The dining room had Qeen decorated very nicely, the tables contained many kinds fif favors, in the shape of small model houses, etc. An orSllestra fumished some good music'duning the meal, and ,$!the conclusion Mr. Fickling asked evcryono to go into the i$4ll rbom,, where the entertainm€nt was held. Me Fickling igrStructed the gathering to take their chairs with them-; 4$ the unexpected turnout at the dinner had just about depleted the supply at the hqtel.

:i A tremendous amount of time and effort had evidentlv rbe-en spent on the eiaborate program that lasted until after idlpven.

" r The first address was given by Mr. C. A. Buffum, mayor df Long Beach. He welcomed the gathering to the city, 'and expressed his desire that they would all enjoy every rninule of their stay in this beautiful citv.

Mr. Pinkerton reiponded with a few wlll chosen words gf thanks to the city and to the officers of the Association.

,i fne Saw-Dust, Club of Pasadena then held the stage for .some tirne, Senator Johnson, of Pasadena leading theii part o{ the program with a well delivered paper on the respective sizes and merits of Pasadena and Long Beach. He was given a wonderful hand at the conclusion of his talk. The Club furnished a novelty in the way of a string of large silver boxes which were carried on the stage by the members, and on the boxes the letters "LONG BEACH" were printed. After Senator Johnson's talk, these boxes all sprung open, releasing balloons with letters attached. The word "PASADENA" was suspended in the air, and the glee club from that city then gave the assemblage a treat with several songs.

The l-os Angeles Hoo-Hoo Club had chosen another form of enterta'inment for their part of the program which was well received. A one act skirt, ,called n'Mr. Pip and 'Mr. Pep" was given in ,m,asterful style by four members of the Club.

This play was based on the two characters that have been made famous by the "Gulf Coast Lumberman." Mr. C. S. Estes, of the J. O. Means Company, Los Angeles, took the part of old Mr. Pip, and Mr. Pep was portrayed by Mr. H. L. Rosenberg, of the Hipolito Screen Company, and Vicegerant Snark of the I-os Angeles District Hoo-Hoo. Mr. C..J. Laughlin of the Long Bell Lumber Company took the part of a wholesale lumber salesman, and Mr. Phil B. Hart, rnanaging editor of "The California Lumber Merch, ant," acted a part of a prospective home owner. The stunt gave these boys a rvonderful opportunity to display any talent that they might have, and also carried a merchandising moral.

Five little lass,ies from a dancing academy at Long Beach gave a military drill, and a tiny little tot whose name 'was not learned, gave a very wonderful Spanish dance that was the hit of the evening.

Next came the Orange County Club, with their "Rokili" Glee Club, directed by Mr. C. H. Chapman, of the Chaprnan Lumber Company, Santa Ana. This quartet is composed of : Ray Miller, Ellis Rhodes, Bob Brown and Maurice Phillips, Mr. Allan Revill presiding at the piano. They gave four very fine num,bers. The name "Rokili" is coined from the first two letters in the words, Rotary, Kiwanis and Lions, these gentlemen all being members of one or the other of these clubs in Orange County.

Mr. Geo. M. LaShell of Long Beach was then introduced to deliver the address of the day. Mr. LaShell is a Building Material Dealer in Long Beach and has the reputation of having made one of the most wonderful successes ever made in Southern California. He inspired the audience with his account of .the history of his business, and his explanation of, how he had achieved such wonderful results. Mr. LaShell has a profit sharing plan with his employees that he considers to be the answer to all labor problemc. He distributes each year, fr per cent of the net profits of the business. This is g'iven to each man at Christnas time, and he is asked as to the use he intends putting the nrcney. Each man's wife is shown the check and the amount before the document is signed. by Mr. LaShell, and he states that aince the inauguration of th'is plan his operatirtg costs have drqpp€d from 19 and ?O p€r.cent to around 7 per cent. He plsp has established a dinirig room for his men, this at first wBB operated at cost to,the emptoyees but after it was seen what the hot food and'a comfortable place to eat in dld for them, Mr. LaShell decided to throw this in as another bonus for extra effort. Each tru,ck driver is considered:a potential salesman,, and is given one week out of four to go out and sell. A competition rnethod decides which-'is the most accomplished, and the best one of the bunch is advanced to the sales-force. The above is but a few of the high lights of Mr. LaShell's inspiring talk, and it would pay any m.erchant to make an effort to hear this gentleman.

The next number was a feature, professional act provided by the Orange Belt'Lum,ber Clu-b. This consisled of a very clever song and dance team that made quite a h'it.

'Mr. Elmer Rudeen of Long Beach gave some whistling imitations of birds and other things, and M,r. Earle Transue, tenor, sang several numbers.

Mr. Fickl'ing then 'closed the meeting after again thanking all those present for their support, and inviting everyone to stay and dance until midnigh,t. At twelve, to the strains of "Home-Sweet-Home" the Convention closed. '

The State Association was well represented at th,is afiair, the following officers and directors being present:

C. W. Pinkerton, Whittier, Presiden,t.

F. E. Conner, Sacramento, Vice-President.

F. Dean Prescott, Fresno, Vice-President.

A. C. Bowers, Anaheim, Director.

C. G. Bird, Stockton, Director.

E. L. Blackman, Oakland, Director.

C. H. Chapman, Santa Ana, Director.

A. E. Fickling, Long Beach, Director.

Sam T. Hayward, Los Angeles, Director.

R. A. Hiscox, San Francisco, Director.

W. E. Landram, Merced, Director.

A. B..Wastell, San Francisco, Manager.

Mrs. Jessie Ecclestcin, San Francisco, Secretary.