In this number of the Swedish Tribune starts a series of biographical sketches of our countrymen. We shall as the saying goes, make a grab right in the middle. When Sandberg is mentioned, one at once thinks of the Furniture Dealer on Division Street. But it is not he. The Sandberg presented today is a different Sandberg. He is probably the one and only Swede to conduct a business that has no competitor. The fact is that Sandberg & Company is the only enterprise with a monopoly that extends from the Alleghany to the Pacific Ocean. It supplies a material whereby artists are able to give form and substance to their ideas before they reach the public. They manufacture the so-called engravers' wood or Buxbom used in the illustration of books, magazines, newspapers, etc.

This wood grows in the Balkan States, Turkey and Asia Minor, and is shipped to Liverpool, England, from where it is distributed throughout the world. This wood is very expensive and is sold according to weight. Nearly one half is lost in building up. A block of wood 24 x 24 inches is worth from $15 to $20.

Mr. Sandberg was born in 1842 and came to the United States in 1867, coming direct to Chicago. Besides being a good employer and a fine family man, Sandberg is a good citizen of his adopted land. In national politics,he is a Republican.