Editors Box. 427 



I will be candid enough to state, also, that for many years hundreds of 

 beech stobs were used here for fencing purposes, entailing an almost 

 endless round of repairs ; that, however, has now happily come to an end, 

 and the proposal that I made was to take this very inferior beech stob, and 

 make it last as long as an oak one (we can't aflPord larch here), — in other 

 words, virtually to give to "M.E.'s" figurative Scots fir axe handle the 

 quality of an ash one. We must bear in mind also that the iron supports by 

 being occasionally taken up and tarred would last for a hundred years. 



Let us look now at the question of expense. Our stobs are all squared 

 at the saw-mill, and have to be carted a long distance to and from that 

 place, so they cannot be laid down for less than sevcupeuce apiece. Two 

 men engaged repairing fences in the old style on an average go over fifty 

 yards a day ; the stobs are three feet apart, and the old holes are firmly 

 beat in, the rails also are joined at the ends by splicing done with the adze. 

 So that for every hundred yards we have an expenditure of £2 18s. Id. 

 for material, and for men's wages at 3s. a day 12s. in all £3 10s. 4d. ; 

 for the new method, 100 prongs at 6|d., cost £2 16s. 3d. ; men's wages 

 for half a day 3s., in all £2 19s. 3d., nails used for both purpo'ses 

 being about equal, thus leaving eleven shillings and a penny for 

 every hundred yards in favour of the new stylo, with this other great 

 advantage, that there are no rails l)roken in the latter process, which can- 

 not be said of the former. I can only say in closing, that the experiment, 

 after a three years' trial, has given myself and those whom I serve com- 

 plete satisfaction. 



I hope Mr. Slater will let us know the result of his experience with the 

 zinc and white-lead, as it gives people additional confidence to know that 

 the plan has l)een well tested and found successful. 



I would be very willing to send you a sketch of these iron prongs, but 

 feel it would be advertising other people's goods in our Journal for nothing ; 

 but I trust the firm that supplies them will see it to be advantageous to 

 their own interests to advertise them fully in your columns. 



Dalhrifh Park. • E. Baxter. 



Sir, — In your last issue of the Journal, page 355, I notice two articles 

 commenting on Mr. Baxter's system of supporting, by iron prongs, stobs of 

 posts which have rotted over at the surface of tlie ground. 



Although not at all in favour of his plan, still I am of opinion that he 

 and others deserve the thanks of all foresters, cVc , for noticing and dis- 

 cussing a question of so much importance. It seems to me that your 

 correspondent " M. R.," while exposing in his own way the fallacy of a plan 

 which doubtless was apparenttothe host of your readers (looking at it from an 

 economic point of view), might at the same time have suggested or submitted 

 a better. His remark about the beech stob does not amount to much. 1 1 

 is a well-known fact that beech posts soon rot over at the surface of the 



