Federal Trade Commission Hold Philippine Mahogany Hearing At Los Angeles

Hearings for the Respondent in the Philippine Mahogany case instituted by the Federal Trade Commission against the Gillespie Furniture Company of Los Angeles were held at Los Angeles from November l0 to l4 inclusive. A series of hearings were held on the Pacific Coast last June when the Commission presented their side of the case.

This is a reopening of the old Philippine Mahogany case which was decided several years ago when seven Respondents were ordered to discontinue the use of the name Philippine Mahogany, as applied to certain rvoods imported fromthePhilippines. So much dissatisfaction was expressed over this decision that many concerns and users of the wood, of which the Gillespie Furniture Company is one, requested the Federal Trade Commission to institute new proceedings. As a result of these requests, the Federal Trade Commission filed a number of complaints against dealers in and users of Philippine Mahogany, and by agreement, the Gillespie Furniture Company was selected as the respondent in the case first to be tried.

The respondent had many witnessed testify as to the right of these woods to be called Philippine Mahogany as the lumber has all the characteristics of a mahogany, it is a highly figured wood, takes a beautiful finish, only an expert lumberman can tell the difference between these woods and other mahoganies, and even experts caniot distinguish the difference between the various mahoganies after Philippine has been finished and polished.

The respondent had many exhibits of finished samples of Philippine Mahogany including turned lamp standards,

MURRAY A. MARLEY VISITS CALIFORNIA

Murray A. Marley, Big Bay Lumber Co., Ltd., Vancouver, B. C., was a recent Los Angeles visitor rvhere he spent afew days making a survey of the Southern California market and calling on the trade.

carved furniture and polished table-tops rvhich were offered as testimony. One striking exhibit included two high-back handsomely carved chairs, exact duplicates, taken from stock at Barker Bros., Inc.,Los Angeles, one made of Phihppine Mahogany and the other of Guatemala Mahogany and many witnesses well qualified were unable to distinguish that they were different woods.

Among the witnesses called by the respondent were Mr. George Krick, Superintendent of Barker Bros., Inc., Los Angeles, who operate one of the largest furniture stores'in the world, and Mr. P. J. Walker, prominent Los Angeles architect. Mr. Krick testified as to the merits of Philippine Mahogany and its right to use the word Mahogany in conjunction with the word Philippine. Barker Bros., Inc., use large amounts of Philippine Mahogany in all the grades of furniture that they manufacture at their factory and sell considerable quantities fromtheir store, he stated. Mr. Krick testified that Philippine Mahogany makes excellent furniture, finishes beautifully, and is a wood that is adaptable to many kinds of finishes. Mr. Walker testified that they have specified Philippine Mahogany for many jobs requiring a nice figure and a high grade finish and that many of the office buildings, clubs and apartment houses in Los Angeles bear witness to this fact.

At the conclusion of the Los Angeles hearing, the Commission left for Chicago, Grand Rapids and Detroit, where further hearings will be held. Wallace H. Martin, of New York City, and Daniel Forbes, of Washington, D. C., represented the respondent at the Los Angeles hearings.

GEO. WEIR RETURNS HOUE

George Weir, well known San Francisco Bay district lumberman, returned recently to his home in Piedmont from Marshfield, Ore., where he underwent an operation in the local hospital.