Highlishts of 1942 in the Douslas Fir Resion

Bv R.T. Titus Director of Trode Extension \flest Coast Lumbermen's Association

Just as Paul Bunyan dated everything from the Winter of the Blue Snow, the lumber industry of the Pacific Northwest will probably remember 1942 as the Year of the Great Fir Freeze. 'Ihis, of course, refers to the War Production Board's Limitation Order L-218 effective October 29, L942, which limits the sale of all Douglas fir lumber produced in western Oregon and Washington (except No. 3 boards, dimension and timbers or any grade of factory or shop lumber) to the

B. T. Titug Procuring Agency of the Construction Division, Corps of Engineers, IJ. S. Army.

Of all the species of lumber Douglas fir was singled out for this distinction because from it alone can bi produced many of the special items needed for war such as aircraft carrier decking, ponton bridge material for the Engineers, long lengths of ship planking and solid keels over 100 feet in length for mine-sweepers, subchasers and related. types of fighting craft.

Items of Douglas fir included under LAI9 were released from the provisions of Conservation Order M-208, which still covers other softwoods, and which was intended to divert from less essential uses to the war agencies, vast quantities of lumber needed for shipyard, factory and ordnance-plant construction, barracks, defense housing, ammunition cases, truck bodies, Army and Navy bunks and hundreds of other war purposes. These Conservation and Limitation orders naturally had a great effect upon the manufacture and distribution of West Coast lumber. As war demands increased, less and less lumber was available for distribution through usual channels to civilian consumers, until at the present time it is estimated that not . Iess than 85 per cent of the West Coast lumber production is going to war.

The principal contribution of Sitka spruce to the war effort has been in the form of aircraft lumber for our own training planes and for the trainers, fighters and bombers of our allies. Spruce is preferred above all other woods for this purpose because it is probably the strongest material for its weight to be found. Demands foi aircraft lumber in this war so greatly exceed those of World War f, however, that spruce alone could not fill the need. West Coast hemlock, noble fir and Douglas fir are now going into construction of both airplanes and gliders in incriasing quantities. During 1942 the West Coast sawmills were called upon to increase the production of "aero" many fold.' To this end WPB issued an order (M-186), on July 20 "freezing" all Sitka spruce logs in the hands of the Director General for Operations. This was followed on September 11 by orders M-28 and, M-2D similarly freezing logs of noble fir and aircraft logs of West Coast hemlock. To swell the volume of aircraft material the National Park Service authorized selective logging of high-quality spruce on lands being acquired as corridors to the Olympic National Park and the State of Washington opened its forest in the Olympic Mountains to regulated logging. The Forest Service has organized emergency logging in Alaska and it is planned to raft the spruce logs cut there to mills on Puget Sound for sawing. The best of the straightgrained, even-textured logs with deep clear wood will yield only about 10 per cent of "aero" and only a small percentage of the trees will yield such logs.

In addition to furnishing much of the topnotch aircraft lumber West Coast hemlock has been called upon to supply many of the general building items formerly produced in Douglas fir. Both Sitka spruce and hemlock are going into ammunition boxes and crating for war supplies, also. Even the production of Western red cedar has been greatly influenced by the war. Normally the cedar mills of the Pacific Northwest specialize in the manufacture of bevel siding and other clear items, the logs of lower quality usually going into the manufacture of shingles rather than common lumber. Construction Limitation Order L-41 put a stop to the building of high quality'homes which are sided with cedar and although demand for the narrourer widths of siding for defense housing held up well the mills were faced with a falling off in orders for the wider sizes. Much of this high grade cedar is now going into tank stock to replace steel and other woods such ag Douglas fir, needed for different types of service.

Nearly each month of the year saw the promulgation of some new order or regulation of the Federal Government to complicate the job of making and distributing lumber. These included limitation orders on contruction, conservation orders on the sale of lumber, regulations involving priorities required in the purchase of equipment and supplies, ceiling price schedules and the like. In addition to the General Maximum Price Schedule of O. p. A. the year brought to the lumber industry of the pacific Northwest schedules of ceiling prices on logs, on Douglas fir and West Coast hemlock lumber, on spruce, hemlock and noble fir aircraft lumber and "aero" recovery grades. O. p., A. officials also conferred with spruce and cedar manufacturers on proposed ceilings for those species generally, but at the time of writing neither of these schedules had been made effective.

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Joy And Right Thinking

(Margaret Morrison in "The Vagabond")

Joy can no more be separated from right thinking than shining can be separated from a ray of light. It takes courage, unwavering courage, to to identify one's self with poverty when one's is empty. It takes courage, holy courage, to through the mists of tyranny, hatred, cruelty the world of material greed seemingly dominant in and see the Omnipotence of tove filling all space$t takes courage, sublime courage, to look through the lie of w-ar, the claim of physical force to power, and to see and know that the truth of the universe is Spirit invincible in its omnipotence.

* {< ,1.

The Joy Of Age

There is a poet in Ruth Feiner's novel, "Three Cups of Coffee," who is forty-five years old, and says he would rather be seventy-five. Asked why, he replies: "Because at seventy-five the past joys of life appear like dear friends rnrhom one remembers with a smile. At forty-five they are like dying acquaintances."*** Nq usE GrvrNG

Hrs NAME

What The Cost Of War Would Buy

Charles Sumner said (and this was before even the first World War): "Give me the money that has been spent for war, and I will clothe every man, woman, and child in an attire of which kings and queens would be proud. I wtll build a school house in every valley over the whole earth. I will crown every hillside with a place of worship, consecrated to the gospel of peace."

The Tie That Bin

O some will say that a gent's Should only be seen, not But I want a tie that will And render their vision

I yearn, I long for a tie so It will take two men to tft it, If such there be just Whatever the **'t it to me, buy it !

BEN FRANKLIN'S RELIGION

- "Ilalt!" called the sentry in sha tones. "Who goes able service we can render Him is doin there?" children. That the soul of man is ttYou wouldn't know me," s the voice.from the dark- treated with justice in another respecting its conduct ness. "They just checked in this afternoon." in this. These I take to be points of all

DIDN'T MEAN IT

I'm all done with dames.

They cheat. And they lie.

They prey on us males

To the day that we die.

They tease and torment us.

They drive us to sin.

Hey! Look at that grand blonde

That's just coming in!

No Chance To Win

Henry was leaning on his hoe when the preacher man approached him.

"Henry,t' he said, "we is havin' a raffl'e fo' a pore widow 'oman. I wish you'd buy a ticket. Hit's only two bits."

But Henry said: true religion. Respecting having experienced the goodness of that Being)h conducting me prosperously through a long lif.e, | ftve no doubt of its continuance in the next, the smallest conceit of having

"Nossuh, Parson, h'it ain't no use my wastin' 'at money, 'cause my wife, Mandy, she wouldn't let me keep her even if'n f won her."

"Here is my creed: I believe in one God, the Creator of the universe. That He governs it by His providence. That He ought to be worshipped. That the most acceptto His ottrer and will be merited such *rFt

swEET (AND NUTTY) MEATS

I never sausage eyes as thine, But if you'll butcher hands in mine, And liver round me every day, We'll meet life's frown with love caress. And cleaver road to happiness. ***

Suspicious

stared hard and then sniffed at little yellow cubes which the waiter^ had placed oy{a side dish before him. Then he picked djl his knif.e yt( one hand and his bread in

: "I take thee for butter

The man at the restaurant table was suspicious. He the other, and or worse."

We express our sincere crpprecicrtion lor pcst lcvors and wish you the heartiest