no 



\K I '.OKI CULTURE 



KXTKACTS lUD.M -M K. ISAKNKV's TA M 1' IILET, 

 TLliLlSHKD 1876. 



Comnuuiication to the Kaikcay Age 

 l)v James M. lUioklin. U. K.. an eiij^nncer 

 on "the Miami e'anal in 1826: '"The im- 

 ])ortancc of the Latalpa has for a long 

 lime impressed itself so strongly on my 

 mind that 1 have repeatedly, for the last 

 fortv years, urged upon railroad com- 

 ]ianics the great advantage to he de- 

 rived by them from the i)ropagation of 

 these trees in large bodies. * * * 

 The Board of Unbiic Works of Illinois 

 in 1835 ordered me to select lands for 

 that purpose on the routes of the various 

 railroads in process of construction, but 

 the system was not carried out. 



"The employment of so durable a ma- 

 terial would prove as beneficial as the use 

 of steel in jwint of econoni\ in the main- 

 taiance of railroads, and would dispense 

 with the enormous cost of la1x)r in con- 

 stant replacement of wood. 



"In 1828 while Captain Smith, U. S. 

 A., and myself were exploring the ob- 

 struction of the Wabash river, we unex- 

 pectedly discovered a lofty forest of Ca- 

 talpa of larg-e size at the mouth of White 

 river, below Vinccnnes, Ind. In 1866 I 

 found it in large l>odies and of enormous 

 height and size, three and four feet in 

 diameter, and fifty feet without a limb, 

 near Poplar Bluflf. Mo., on the route of 

 the Iron Mountain Railroad. Tlirough- 

 out that region the peculiar value of the 

 tree is well known for its durability and 

 other qualities. Canoes are made ex- 

 clusively of Catalpa, they never crack 

 in seasoning, or rot. Ilcnly, the ferry- 

 man at Poplar BlufT, had a canoe, per- 

 fectly sound, three feet across the gun- 

 wales, in use twelve years. The tree has 

 been extirpated from the great demand 

 for posts all over the country." 



COMMUNICATIOX l-KOM A IKo.M J .NKNT OF- 

 FICIAL OF THE IRON MOUNTAIN 

 RAILROAD — TO THE 7?(7)7- 



7i.'ay Age — 1876. 

 "The Catalpa tree is well known and 

 appreciated by our officials. It is beyond 

 question the most durable of all species 

 growing in this country, excei>t, per- 

 haps, the cedar. There are miles of fenc- 

 ing built years ago by the company with 



L'atalpa posts, none other now being used. 

 i\ limited supply of ties and telegraph 

 poles were secured. 



"In 1871 William R. .\riliur. Superin- 

 tendent of the Illinois Central l^ilroad, 

 stated that the Catalpa would make a 

 tie that would last forever: that it was 

 easily cultivated, was of rapid growth, 

 they Would hold a spike as well as oak 

 and would not split. 



"The Farmers' and i'lanlers" l-lncyclo- 

 pa'dia says the rapid growth of the Ca- 

 lal])a in almost every situation and the 

 adaption of its wood to fence posts and 

 other useful purposes, make it deserving 

 the attention of farmers. The wood, 

 though light, is very compact, of fine tex- 

 ture, and susceptible of the most bril- 

 liant polish, is fine straw color, produc- 

 ing a fine effect in cabinet work and 

 inside finish of houses. 



"A railroad once tied with Catalpa will 

 find its annual expenses for repairs di- 

 minished $200 per mile, a saving that 

 would add ten per cent to the value of 

 the propertv. 



"E. E. Barney," 



i^ J- 



ROOT SYSTEM OF A FOUR-YEAR-OLD CA- 

 TALPA TREE, OCCUPYING ONE HUN- 

 DRED SQUARE FEET SURFACE 

 COMPLETELY. 



