HARDWOOD RECORD 



39 



but, being soluble, it is washed out by rains and thus permits the 

 wood to disintegrate. 



The process, generally speaking, consists of placing the ties on cars; 

 putting them in hermetically sealed retorts; filling the retorts with 

 oil, and subjecting the ties to heat and pressure, the latter frequently 

 being as much as 170 pounds per square inch. Some methods in- 

 volved heating the ties beforehand for the purpose of opening the 

 pores as much as possible, but this was found to be hard on the wood 

 and was consequently abandoned. 



The industry of wood-preserving, and especially of creosoting ties, 



appears to be in its infancy. With the impressive gains which have 

 been made during the past five years, it seems logical to believe that 

 ultimately the treated tie will be universally used. If this happens, 

 the passing of the years and reaching the end of the period formerly 

 allotted to the untreated tie will find a reduction in tie requirements, 

 which will possibly cut the consumption from 125,000,000 to 60,000,000 

 a year. From the standpoint of conservation this will be an advan- 

 tage, and especially so since it will postpone still further the necessity 

 for using substitute materials on account of the increasing cost of 

 '^°°^- G. D. C, Jr. 



^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 



aicWim»!!3S ^ 





Fancy Woods for Floors 



The Timber News of London, recently gave some valuable hints 

 on fancy woods for floors, from which the following extracts are 

 taken: 



The growing popularity of fine hardwood floors has stimulated 

 the utilization of some of the fancy woods for that purpose, espe- 

 cially in the United States. What are known as the "grey woods" 

 have come into fashion recently for flooring. The right tone of 

 soft hue, with shaded streaks of green in it, is difficult to obtain 

 except in Majagua, one of the favorite decorative woods of Cuba. 

 Another fashionable wood for flooring that now enters largely 

 into the trade is Italian walnut. This wood has a beautiful color- 

 ing, toned to a fashionable grey tint that forms an admirable back- 

 ground for handsome rugs. Teak is a valuable wood that has 

 long been in general use both for floors and furniture. It is hand- 

 some as to grain, and lends itself admirably to the revival of Early 

 English broad-planked floors. These floors have a dark, thin strip 

 of wo'od inserted between the planks to imitate the ancient joints 

 in old floors. It is being used also to considerable extent for wains- 

 coting and beaming of expensive houses where every effort is us- 

 ually made to get satisfactory color schemes in woodwork, hence 

 the floors have to harmonize with the beams and wainscot, for 

 which the Philippine teakwood, which strongly resembles Italian 

 walnut in appearance, is used extensively, being an indestructible 

 wood. 



More varieties of fancy woods are used today in parquetry floor- 

 ing than ever before. While the French cling to their oak for 



floors, no matter what the surrounding furnishings may be. Amer- 

 icans love to get effects out of every variety of fancy woods to 

 suit their tastes. Almost jewel-Uke lustre is obtained with some 

 of these fancy woods. For instance, the floors of one mansion in 

 New York are of vermilion color, bordered with a strange pea- 

 cock-tinted Cuban wood. Another has one floor laid in dark teak- 

 wood, a second in oak, and a third in mahogany. Black mahogany 

 is especially in demand in America for flooring in connection with 

 rooms fitted up in Flemish styles. Immense quantities of white 

 and red mahogany are used" for floors, and oak and curled maple 

 are popular. Fancy woods are used in a variety of styles of par- 

 quetry, including the block, cube, square, basket. Prima Vera, her- 

 ringbone, and Fontainebleau effects, worked out sometimes at great 

 cost. African tigerwood, African redwood, the greenish-gold Jalapa 

 wood, red gold Courbaril, Sandwich Island walnut, golden ebony, 

 rose red Majagua, and similar rare woods are also used for floor- 

 ing, as well as for beaming and panelling. 



Every effort has been made to imitate these fancy woods by the 

 art of the stainer and painter. Even Circassian walnut, of which 

 there is never much in the market, has a near-Circassian imita- 

 tion that is frequently found. But imitation never quite suc- 

 ceeds in woods, for the lovely soft effects nature gives cannot be 

 quite obtained by paints or stains. For instance, various kinds of 

 wood have been stained through and through a deep rich mahogany 

 shade, but the grain is always sure to give the imitatiou away. 

 That is something that cannot be exactly imitated. 



to^KMMiroiOiTO^TOirotiiiiraiKgit^^ 



The Mail Bag 



communication with anyone desiring to market 

 oni'-inch Xo. 3 common cliestnut anti one-inch 

 Xo. 2 box spruce in large quantitios. for cash. 



Any reader of HARDWOOD RECORD 

 desiring to communicate witii any of the 

 inquirers listed in ttiis section can iiave 

 tile addresses on written request to tiie 

 iVIail Bag Department, HARDWOOD 

 RECORD, 537 South Dearborn Street, 

 Chicago, and referring to the number at 

 the head of each letter and enclosing a 

 self-addressed stamped envelope. 



B 321— Seeks Hardwood Molding 

 London, Eng., Oct. 12. — Editor Hardwood 

 Record : We should be glad to be put in touch 

 with some mills within low freight rate dis- 

 tance of Philadelphia, Xorfolk or Newport News, 

 who could undertake to produce plain moldings 

 to our patterns cheaply, and smoothly finished 

 in basswood, oak, walnut and possibly mahog- 

 any. Our experience has been that the bigh 

 freight rate to the coast from the Chicago dis- 

 trict militates against our purchases ther.-. If 

 the stock is dry and prices and finish satisfac- 

 tory, we can place a large volume of business. 



B 322— Seeks Hickory Flag Poles and Ash 

 Oars 



Boston, Mass., Oct. 17. — Editor Hardwood 

 Record : I have an inquiry for hickory flag 

 poles and also ash oars for export trade. Have 



.\*ou on file anything that would help me out in 



this matter? . 



The writer of the above letter has been 

 supplied with a brief list of manufacturers of 

 ash oars, but we have no list of concerns mak- 

 ing a specialty of hickory flag poles. — Editor. 



B 323 — Wants Lumber Measure Table 



Evanston. 111., Oct. IS. — Editor Hardwood 

 Record : We are in want of a lumber measure 

 table like the Houghton Measure Table or some 

 other kind on the same principle. If you have 

 such in stock kindly let us know by return 

 mail, or tell us where to get one. . 



The writer of the above letter has been 

 advised that we are unfamiliar with the 

 Houghton Measure Table, but has been given 

 the name and address of the publishers of 

 Baughman 's Buyer and Seller, and of the 

 Expeditious Measurer. — Editor. 

 B 324 — Seeks No. 3 Chestnut and No. 2 

 Spruce 



Philadelphia, Pa., Oct. IS. — Editor Hardwood 

 Record : We would be pleased to be put in 



The writer of the above letter is a leading 

 wholesaler of the Quaker City, and has been 

 given a brief list of chestnut and spruce pro- 

 ducers. — Editor. 



B 325— Wants Wagon Stock 



Portland. Ore., Oct. 15. — Editor Hardwood 

 Record : Will you kindly let me know where I 

 can get a list of factories manufacturing all 

 kinds of wagon, carriage and auto Woodstock, 

 such as singletrees, poles, shafts, spokes, etc.? 

 I contemplate starting in business handling such 

 products on the Pacific coast, including hard- 

 wood lumber. . 



The writer of the above letter has been 

 advised where he can secure the information 

 he seeks. — Editor. 



B 326 — Wants Hickory Billets 



New York, N. Y., Oct. IS. — Editor Hardwood 

 Record : Can you put us in touch with manu- 

 facturers prepared to figure on prime second- 

 growth hickory billets, perfectly white clear 

 through, straight grained and free from all de- 

 tects. 7 to 8 feet long x 4 to I'i inches wide x 

 1 to 114 inches thick? . 



