HARDWOOD RECORD 



33 



is used, but the process of annealing is more difficult than where 

 chestnut is used. Attempts to substitute oil have only recently 

 proved successful, and because of the greater ease of controlling the 

 temperature it is probable that oil will largely supplant wood for 

 this purpose in the future. 



In the Naugatuck valley in Connecticut the brass industry is very 

 important and large quantities of cordwood are consumed. It is 

 a common practice for the operators to buy up large tracts of sprout 

 woods and cut them over for cordwood, all sizes being taken. In 

 buying from farmers, only chestnut is wanted though small quantities 

 of other woods are sometimes permitted. The companies sometimes 

 find it profitable to sort out oak and hickory for sale in the towns. 

 The use of chestnut for fuel fortunately permits the disposal of 

 small-sized and poorly formed material for 

 which there is no other market. 



Il; is important that owners of blight-kille-i 

 or threatened chestnut utilize it before it 

 deteriorates. Spare time in winter can profit- 

 ably be devoted to cutting tlie largest and 

 best trees into logs, the tall and slender ones 

 into poles, others into ties or such other prod- 

 ucts as the market requires. Pole cutting is 

 much the simplest and cheapest form of ex- 

 ploitation per unit of volume. It consists 

 simply of felling the tree, sawing off the top 

 to an inside diameter of seven inches, trim- 

 ming the branches close, and peeling. The 

 cost of this is usually figured at one cent per 

 foot in length for poles from' twenty-five to 

 thirty-five feet long and thirty-five cents 

 apiece for lengths between thirty-five and fifty 

 feet. Pole cutting of green timber is more 

 expensive in winter when peeling is more ditTi- 

 cult, but ]uost companies prefer winter-cut 

 poles on account of their reputed gxeater 

 durability. The number of pole^ which can 

 be hauled at a load varies from six of tho 

 twenty-five to thirty-foot size to one of the 

 fifty-foot length. The selling price increases 

 rapidly with the length. In soutliern New 

 England a twenty-five foot pole briilgs from 

 $1.75 to $2.00; forty-foot, $5.00 to $.5.75; 

 fifty-foot, $8.00 to $10.00 apiece, while a 

 sixty-five foot pole is worth $20.00. Formerly 

 buyers specified that poles should be cut from 

 green timber, but most of them are now ac 

 cepting blight-killed material if it is in good 

 condition. 



The cost of tie-making varies chiefly with 

 the distance of haul, but also with the method 

 of manufacture. To hew chestniit ties usually 

 costs from nine to ten cents apiece, depend- 

 ing on whether hewed on all four sides or 

 only two. In the latter case the bark has to 

 be peeled off. Prom twenty-five to forty ties, 

 depending on the character of the haul, make 

 an ordiuary wagon load; usually about thirty-three first-class or 

 thirty-eight second-class ties can be hauled at one trip. A first-class 

 tie is eight feet long, six inches thick and with a six-inch face; a 

 second-class tie has only a five-inch face. Usually not over ten per 

 cent of the latter are acceptable in a delivery. The usual selling 

 price of first-class chestnut ties is fifty cents apiece delivered along 

 the track, but in some places it has dropped to forty-five cents. 

 Second-class tics bring about thirty cents apiece. For extra length 

 ties as for switches special prices are paid. From these facts the 

 owner of chestnut should be able to figure out approximately the 

 returns from such timber as he may wish to convert into ties. 



Large trees should usually be cut into lumber. The farmer can 

 usually do his own logging during the winter months and smalt 

 portable mills can be engaged to do the sawing. Mills such as 



these can ordinarily be moved for from $40 to $50 and a stand 

 of 50,000 to 75,000 feet will warrant a set-up. The cost of sawing 

 will vary from $2.50 to $4.00 per thousand board feet, while cutting, 

 skidding and piling will require from $3.75 to $5.00. • With these 

 figures as a basis the owner can calculate the probable cost of the 

 lumber and by comparing it with other products determine what 

 course will afi'ord the best returns. Chestnut lumber properly piled 

 and protected may be kept for a long time if considered desirable 

 on account of market conditions. S. J. R. 



Tree Fern Columns 



Shown in the accompanying cut are two columns, each of which 

 was manufactured from the trunk of a tree 

 feru from ten to sixteen feet high and about 

 ten years old. They came from the heights 

 of Fort de France, from the place called 

 "Balata," near the Pitons du Carbet, Mar- 

 tinique, French West Indies. They show ash- 

 colored marks from volcanic cinders which 

 have penetrated under the action of the rain 

 into the fibrous tissue of the tree. The 

 columns have also been pierced with vines, 

 the exposed light-colored wood of which shows 

 in contrast with the dark brown of the fern. 

 The tree fern (Fougere arborescente) 

 grows in great quantities in the forests of 

 the island of Martinique, especially in damp 

 places and at a considerable altitude, where 

 it attains a height of from forty to fifty feet 

 and sometimes more. The trunks of these 

 trees, when old and fully seasoned, are cnt 

 square and used as posts for arbors, or as 

 piles, or as beams for houses in the country. 

 When fully matured it is a very durable 

 wood, and is considered incorruptible when 

 exposed to humidity. 



Some artisans fashion from the roots flower 

 [)Ots and various novelties which are more or 

 less artistic, and have, as a rule, an original 

 style oftheir own. 



TREE FEU.N lUMM-NS FItdM MAUTIMQIE 



The newspapers announce that muckraking 

 is going out of fashion, but, since they didn't 

 use wooden rake handles anyway, the handle 

 trade still prospers. 



If the south pole were only a good hickory 

 tree, some handle man would bring it in be- 

 fore the winter is over, for there is a great 

 s;:outing for hickory handle timber. 



Unless the car builders make a pretty stren- 

 uous demand for ear stock this winter, there 

 will not be nuich excuse left for the railroads 

 when another car shortage arrives. 



They are making a sort of houn' dog of 



our real quartered oak by calling the printed 



imitation "American" oak, and it's about time for the dog to turn. 



There never was a time when the chances were better for getting the 



right kind of price for small dimension stock. It is simply a matter 



of getting at it right. 



There may be some pumpkin ash, but there is some other ash that 

 is some pumpkins right now, too. 



Maybe the worm holes were made in chestnut so that it would be 

 saved for body work in veneering. 



When the discriminating builder wants real quality in iutcrioF 

 trim for anj-thiug from floors to picture molding, he calls for 

 hardwood. 



A few more planers at the hardwood sawmills would save some 

 freight and help sell some lumber at a higher price. 



Oak casing and base should make good items to go with oak flooring. 



