3t6 



THE GUIDE TO NATURE 



The production of charcoal does not 

 involve any specific act of combina- 

 tion as does the combustion of wood. 

 On the other hand it involves a series 

 of decompositions of the complex or- 

 ganic compounds which compose the 

 wood brought about by heat in the 

 absence of air. The end product of 

 these decompositions is charcoal. The 

 heat energy supplied to the wood is 

 used up in bringing about the decom- 

 position of the wood and in the for- 

 mation of the various volatile products. 



The primitive method of making 

 charcoal was to pile small logs or bil- 

 lets of wood into beehive-shaped heaps, 

 leaving a shaft in the middle of the pile 

 to serve as a flue and providing several 

 small holes at the base to admit air. 

 The pile was then covered with turf 

 to prevent free access of air, and a .-mall 

 fire of brushwood was lighted in the 

 center of the heap, the air supply being 

 regulated so that combustion progres- 

 sed very slowly. During the burning, 

 the volatile products escaped and in 

 about a fortnight the fire died out leav- 

 ing a mass of charcoal. This process 

 is very wasteful, between eighty and 

 ninety per cent, of the wood being lost 

 by combustion to say nothing of the 

 loss of many valuable volatile by-pro- 

 ducts. 



This crude method of charcoal burn- 

 ing, while still followed in many parts 

 of the world, has been supplanted by 

 more improved methods in which more 

 efficient carbonization is secured and 

 the by-products are conserved. By 

 heating the wood in iron retorts with- 

 out access of air, a true destructive dis- 

 tillation results. The gaseous products 

 are conducted through appropriate 

 condensing appliances to remove the 

 liquid by-products, while the non-con- 

 densible gases are led back to the fire- 

 box t > be burned as fuel in the distil- 

 lation of more wood. When carboni- 

 zation is complete, the reports must be 

 allowed to cool before opening; othei- 

 wise the charcoal would ignite on ex- 

 posure to the air. When wood ; ,^ heated 

 in a closed retort the first product to 

 be given off is steam. On further heat- 

 ing, various organic compounds are 

 formed such as acetic acid (the acid 

 contained in vinegar), methyl alcohol 

 (wood alcohol), acetone, furfural and 

 wood tar. 



From the distillation of one hundred 



pounds of hard wood, such as maple or 

 oak, there are obtained approximately 

 thirty pounds of charcoal, fifty pounds 

 of liquid products and twenty pounds 

 of gaseous products. 



When resinous woods are destruc- 

 tively distilled, volatile oils, such as 

 turpentine, are carried over with the 

 steam and collect on the surface of the 

 distillate or else form a homogeneous 

 solution with the woodtar. 



Wood distillation has developed rap- 

 idly in this country, there being at the 

 present time over one hundred such 

 plants producing annually charcoal and 

 by products valued at approximately 

 $10,000,000. 



Cloudland. 



How wonderful the cloudland, 

 Its drifting, changing forms ! 



Now ominous and threatening, 

 The kind that presage storms: 



Now delicate and fleecy, 



As feathery fine as lace, 

 A veil of cobweb texture, 



Drawn o'er the sky's fair face. 



Those heaped-up, billowy masses, 



The "cumuli" in form, 

 Make continents and islands, 



When days are bright and warm: 



Strange shapes therein are sculptured, 



Of turrets, faces, gnomes; 

 And often things fantastic, 



Not found in any tomes. 



The "cirri," high above them, 



Those silvery films of ice, 

 Gleam cold as distant snow-peaks, 



For cooling draught suffice. 



"Mare's tails and mackerel scales" 



Bear menace in their look; 

 Their message and their meaning 



We read, an open book. 



■ — Emma Peirce. 



Two people of Bellingham Center 

 have formed the habit of borrowing 

 The Guide to Nature and hunting in 

 the woods for the things it describes'. 

 One lady says, "I have never taken so 

 much comfort in my life before with a 

 magazine. Everything in it is told so 

 sweetly and so simply." You people 

 at ArcAdiA must have discourage- 

 ments enough to meet and like to know 

 when people enjoy the magazine. — Ed- 

 na S. Knapp, Caryville, Massachusetts. 



