266 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



ceeds 40,000,000 feet a year in the United States, or 

 about 15 per cent of the total sawmill output of this 

 wood. 



Baskets when made of elm are classed as boxes, since 

 thev are generallv of the kind used as shipping contain- 



AilERICAN ELM 



Tangential 

 rows of 

 annual 

 lines. 



or bastard cut. Tlie 

 pores which mark off the 

 growth rings form wavy 



Radial or quarter sawed section. 

 Rows of pores in a vertical line. 

 Pith rays or "silver grain" in- 

 conspicuous. 



ers. Frequently a part but not all of a basket is of elm. 

 The hoop or band round the top of the vegetable or 

 fruit shipping basket may be of this wood, while the 

 veneer or thin splints composing the sides is of another, 

 and the bottom may consist of a third. 



Smaller boxes of finer finish are made of elm. The 

 best example is the cigar box, which has a core of this 

 wood with a veneer of Spanish cedar. The purpose of 

 the cedar is to supply the odor which is usually insisted 

 upon by the purchasers of cigar boxes. Recently, how- 

 ever, a finish for elm has been perfected which is accept- 

 able in the box trade without any veneer. The odor is 

 lacking or is artificially imparted, while the elm is bought 

 and sold as "^Michigan cedar." 



Manufacturers of small boxes, such as are used for 

 knives, forks, spoons and similar ware in dining rooms 

 and kitchens, list white elm among the woods used. 

 Some of these boxes are so nicely finished that they pass 

 for cherry or birch. 



VEHICI.ES 



Elm wagon hubs have been in demand since the first 

 wagons were made in this country. The wood is valuable 

 chiefly because it is difficult to split, and hubs stand hard 



usage. It is not quite as hard as oak and much softer 

 than hickory, and large spokes of heavy wagons are 

 liable to wear the hub mortises and work loose. Other- 

 wise, this elm would be as good hub material as the 

 forests produce. The latest demand for white elm by 

 vehicle makers amounts to about 20,000,000 feet a year; 

 but this goes into various kinds of wheeled vehicles, con- 

 stitutes different parts, and is important in the manu- 

 facture of sleds and wheelbarrows, and also automobiles. 

 In Missouri white elm is much employed for cart axles, 

 in Michigan for auto bodies, in Kentucky as wagon 

 tongues, while numerous patterns of sleds are made of 

 it from the strong and clumsy steamboat to the hand 

 sled which children use. It is likewise manufactured into 

 accessories of vehicles, particularly singletrees, double- 

 trees, eveners and neck yokes. 



MISCELE.^NEOUS 



White elm enters into a large number of miscellaneous 

 articles. There are few industries which use wood that 

 do not find place for more or less elm. It is said to have 

 been split for rails on the western frontiers in early 

 limes, particularly in Iowa. But that use could not have 

 been extensive because elm is difficult to split and no 

 rail maker would tackle it unless nothing better was 

 available. In the paragraphs which follow, mention 

 is made of some of the uses which white elm has been 

 reported. 



It supplies timbers on which heavy cannons are 

 mounted, either in place or on carriages ; fixtures for 

 banks, offices, stores and saloons ; interior finish for 



A FAVORITE FOR HUBS 



In the vehicle industry elm is highly prized as raw material for hubs. 

 It is especially important for use in the manufacture of wagon 

 wheel hubs. The accompanying picture shows the interior of a hub 

 factory with a number of finished elm hubs in the foreground. 



houses. As fixtures and finish it generally occupies a 

 place out of sight, and serve as frames, braces and stays, 

 in some instances it is given artistic finish and there 

 compares favorably with birch and cherry. A lower 

 class of service is given when elm is employed as stall and 



