INDIANA HOKTICULTUEAL SOCIETY. 543 



Mr. Weigle: No, sir; it is very persistent and will grow anywhere. 

 I was in Otiio where a man had quite a number of locust trees and he 

 did not linow that there was a borer in a single one of them, but there 

 was. He planted seven thousand this spring and intends to plant ten 

 thousand next spring for fence posts. The old trees are completely full 

 of the borer, but they grew all right anyway. If you do not have the 

 borer it is all the better. 



A Delegate: What kind of soil did he plant them on? 



Mr. Weigle: A clay soil. That clay soil may be different from the clay 

 soil here, however. And it depends upon the kind of clay soil. I am not 

 sufficiently up on soils to tell what kind of a clay soil it was, and whether 

 it was the kind we have here. There was very little sand in it— all clay 

 soil. 



Mr. Swaim: Would the reforestation of land have anything to do 

 with the rainfall? Would it increase or decrease it? 



Mr. Weigle: Well possibly it might have a slight effect upon the rain- 

 fall, but according to our investigations I do not think it had much to do 

 with the total amount of rainfall in the country. Forests keep the rain 

 from being carried off of the ground in a very short time. 



Mr. Swaim: Will you give in detail the method for treating timber 

 with creosote for preserving it? 



Mr. Weigle: I do not know that I can give you the method in detail. 

 But we used to put the timber into a car and run the car into a large 

 cylinder and then they would pour in the creosote, and put on a hydraulic 

 pressure which would force the creosote into the fibers and cells of the 

 timber, and that would Ivill all diseases. All decay comes from fungous 

 diseases. When you stop this you have brought about the conditions that 

 are necessary. An Italian invented this process. It was to force the 

 creosote into the cells of the timber first. Pill up the cells with air then 

 turn on the creosote and till up the fibres. Of course some will force its 

 way into the cells. When you take off the pressure the air will come 

 out of the cavity of the cells. I do not know whether this will be 

 practical or not. 



Mr. Swaim: That process is particularly adapted for use in a large 



way? 



Mr. Weigle: Yes, I hardly think it would be practical in a small 

 way. Many lumber concerns are doing this with their timber, and you 

 inight pay them to have yours done likewise. This would be cheaper. 



