Evening Republican, Volume 23, Number 153, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 25 June 1920 — HAMMOND LUMBER PRICES ARE DECLINING [ARTICLE]

HAMMOND LUMBER PRICES ARE DECLINING

. The Lake County Times of Hammond says that the prices of building materials, particularity lumber, have suffered a decline to lower levels. Dealers there are out after business now while six months ago the business came to them without solicitation. - The Times gave the following interview with W. G. Paxton one of the leading Hammond lumber dealers and also well known in this city. “For the purpose of encouraging building the Paxton Lumber Company is prepared to make substantion reductions on all bills it figures from now on.” . “I understand that the school city is ready and willing to go ahead with its large building program providing it is a sthe members of the building trades are. willing to talk business. for ourselves, I am prepared to state that we will furnish lumber at a figure that should encourage such a program as the school contemplates. And this applies to the small purchaser as well as the big ones.” Contractors, who have been going into the labor situation state that while no wage reductions are contemplated there is an evident purpose on the part of the various craftsmen to boost production and give a fair days work for the big days pay their are receiving. This is important as the wage increases were never so serious in the eyes of the investor, the builder and the contractor, the builder and the contractor as the slogan, “ make the job last” which was partly re-, sponsible for the demoralized condition of the building business not only in Hammond but in all parts of the country as well.