34 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



age wood, producing 2,000,000 staves and a little over 200,000 sets 

 of heading. In 1910 nearly 31,000,000 staves and 3,000,000 sets of 

 heading were made of this wood. North Carolina contributed over 

 72 per cent of these staves. 



Tupelo is also making rapid gains as a veneer wood, the amount 

 consumed in manufacture of veneers in 1910 being nearly 27,000,000 

 feet, log scale. It is also used for interior finish, ceiling, flooring for 

 warehouses, factories, railway depots, offices and dwellings, boxes and 

 crates, wagon box boards, furniture, laundry appliances and wooden- 

 ware. It does not splinter and holds nails firmly without splitting. 



Tupelo or cotton gum {Nyssa aqualica) occurs in deep swamps 

 inundated during a part of every year along the southern Atlantic 

 coast region and in the lower Mississippi and Wabash valleys. It 

 is of greatest size in the cypress swamps of western Louisiana and 

 eastern Texas. It forms large, straight trunks, though with ab- 

 normally large base, not unlike that of cypress. 



The wood is almost uniformly white, with now and then a slight 

 tinge of yellow. The weight of thoroughly dry wood is 34 pounds 

 per cubic foot; specific gravity ..54. The pores are scarcely, if at 

 all, visible to the unaided eye, are numerous and evenly distributed 

 throughout the growth ring. The wood fibers have rather thin walls 

 and large cavities, which accounts for the softness of the wood. 

 There is little contrast between the wood formed at different times 

 of the year, consequently the annual rings of growth are not con- 

 spicuous and the texture is uniform. The wood of the lower part of 

 the buttresses is very light and soft, due to the very thin walls and 

 comparatively wide cavities of the cells. It is called corkwood and is 

 used largely in the preparation of tupelo-sounds. 



Water gum (Nyssa biflora) is distributed from Maryland to 

 Florida and central Alabama. It is a rather small tree with a much 

 enlarged base. The wood is moderately soft and heavy, not strong, 

 though very tough and very difficult to split. The -weight of the dry 

 wood is 31 pounds per cubic foot ; specific gravity ..50. It appears in 

 the market as tupelo and is not readily distinguished from it. As a 

 rule it is more cross-grained and difficult to split than tupelo (Nyssa 



aquatica), ami the annual rings of growth are wider. In tupelo the 

 pores are often arranged radially, but in water gum the distribution 

 is more or less even throughout. 



Black gum (Nyssa sylratica) is also known as sour gum, tupelo and 

 pepperidge. It is widely distributed throughout the eastern half 

 of the United States. It often reaches large dimensions, particularly 

 in the southern Appalachians. 



The wood is rather hard, heavy, strong, very tough, extremely dif- 

 ficult to split, close-grained and uniform textured. The heartwood 

 is cream-colored or sometimes very light brown ; the sapwood is • 

 white and usually quite thick. The w-eight of dry wood is 40 

 pounds per cubic foot; specific gravity .64. The pores are small 

 and less numerous than in the preceding species. The wood fibers 

 have thick walls and small cavities, which accounts for the greater 

 weight, hardness and strength of the wood. 



The wood of black gum is very hard to season. It is so tough that 

 it can be successfully used for the hubs of wheels, rollers in factories 

 and mines, ox yokes and sometimes for the soles of shoes. It is 

 possible that it might prove suitable for shuttles which require a wood 

 that will resist wear and take a very high polish with use. The wood, 

 like that of the other gums, is not naturally durable in contact with 

 the soil. If creosoted, however, its lasting qualities are excellent. 

 Its use for fuel is limited on account of the difficulty in splitting. 



In the report of the wood-using industries of Massachusetts the 

 following uses of black gum are enumerated : ' ' Agricultural imple- 

 ments, furniture, gun stocks, interior trim, panel work, piano trusses, 

 pipe organs, porch posts. ' ' 



Sour tupelo (Nyssa ogeche) is a medium-sized tree of local occur- 

 rence in deep swamps in the extreme southeastern coast region of the 

 United States. The wood is light, soft, not strong, tough, and splits 

 with less difficulty than that of any other of the gums. The weight 

 of the dry wood is 33 pounds per cubic foot; specific gravity .53. 

 The rays are wider than in the other species, and the pores are much 

 larger and unevenly distributeil. The wood fibers have thin walls 

 ivnd large cavities. S. .1. R. 



^eroya4maiTO!):TOM^6mi>it>;iTOi^^ 



Michigan Manufacturers Meet 



Tlie mid-winter meeting of the Mit-higan Hardwood Mauufae- 

 turers' Association was lield on Friday, January 24, at the 

 Ponteliartrain hotel, Detroit. 



The roll call showed that thirty members were in attendance. 

 Three new members were admitted to membership. This business 

 was followed by the report of the secretary, which was in part as 

 follows: 



Secretary's Report 



The year 1912, from the standpoint of the lumber manufacturer, lias 

 been a remarkable one, and to find anywhere near a fair comparison 

 we have to go back to 1906. 



The outlook for 1913 from a manufacturer's staudpoiiit is very opti- 

 mistic and I have yet to find n pessimistic manufacturer. We believe 

 that the reports shown here today will carry out that impression and 

 prove to be the forerunner of another sueeessful year. 



Our stock reports give the figures of sixty-four members, one less than 

 reported a year ago. We consider this a very good showing, taking 

 into consideration the fact that quite a number of our members have 

 cut out this year. 



The sixty-four reports for January, 1913, form a very fair comparison 

 with the sixty-five reports of one year ago. 



At this writing the secretary has collected in 'all but one assessment 

 in the Forest Fire Protective Department and five assessments in the 

 general fund, and we have the promise that these amounts wilt be in 

 oiu* hands very soon. Our assessment on shipments of hardwoods from 

 Oct. 1. 1011. to Oct. 1. 1912. has yielded us 342.510,328 feet, amounting 

 to $6,850.20. as against 313,855,219 feet a year ago, amounting to 

 $6,277.05. We have a sufficient amount in our P'orest Fire Protective 

 Department fund to carry on the work well into the coming season. 



There isn't a manufacturer present that is not vitally interested in the 

 working of the new employers' liability act. which became effective 

 Sept. 1. 1912. I learn that a large majority of our member^ have 

 signified their iulcntiou of cnnifnii under the act and have filed their 



acceptance of samo with the secretary of a State Industrial Hoard. 

 Some of the members are letting the state carry their insurance, while 

 others arc taking care of their own losses on basis of the state liability 

 law. 



The secretary's office at the request of some of our cargo sliippcrs 

 has been di.^seminating information regarding values of lumber shipped 

 by cargo and this informaticm has been mailed to the cargo shippers 

 only, with the exception that the information has been placed in the 

 hands of all members of the market conditions committee. One reason 

 for not giving this information to the car shippers, was the probable 

 influence which some of the lower values of cargo shipments might have 

 on the car trade. Let me state here that it was not and is not the 

 intention of the secretary to discriminate between any interested in the 

 association and that the information at hand is open to each and every 

 member. If it is thought best by the members present to send all of 

 this information to each and every member, we will gladly do so. 



You will note that for some time a large majority of the manufac- 

 turers have felt that there should be some changes in the rules for the 

 grading and inspection of hardwood lumber. Your grading rules com- 

 mittee in conjunction with the bureau of grades of the Northern Hem-, 

 lock and Hardwood Manufacturers" Association, met the inspection rules 

 committee of the National Hardwood Lumber Association in Chicago. 

 Jan. 13. 1913, when it was agreed to present again at the convention to 

 be held next June in Chicago practically the same rules as were refused 

 lis a year ago, and we are hopeful that this time they will be carried. 

 Chairman Day will make a report on this subject today. 



Your secretary has been handling the Pacific coast rate case for a long 

 time and is pleased to advise that the final hearing on the subject was 

 held before Interstate Commerce Commissioner Prouty in Chicago. Jan. 

 20. and we are looking for an order from the commission allowing 

 reparation on shipments of lumber, etc., to basis of an eighty-cent rate, 

 carrying the rate back several years before the railroads published that 

 rate. 



The secretary desired to call attention to the members of the proposed 

 changes In the Michigan class rates. Perhaps you arc not aware, hut 

 it is a fact that the railroads in Michignn havi' heen re-checking class 



