26 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



November 23. 1921 



Testing Circulation; Laboratory Method 



Laboratory Expert Demonstrating the Smoke Test 



One of the most difficult things in connection with the operation 

 of dry kilns is to determine if the circulation of the air in the kilns 

 is ample and thorough. Yet the circulation of the air in the kiln 

 often decides whether the drying process is a profitable success 

 or a costly failure. It is fairly simple for the operator to dry 

 lumber well when there is a uniform and sufficient circulation, but 

 when the circulation is bad no amount of fussing will accomplish 

 satisfactory drying of his lumber. 



The simplest way to find out whether the circulation is ample 

 is to test all parts of the pile and see that the air currents are 

 sufficient to supply the necessary heat and to carry away the excess 

 moisture as fast as it leaves the lumber. There are numerous ways 

 of testing circulation, but the easiest and most efficient method is 

 that used by members of the November dry-kilning course at the 

 Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, Wis. A dense -white chem- 

 ical smoke is produced by blowing air through a bottle of hydro- 

 chloric acid and then through one containing ammonia water. This 

 smoke is no hotter than the air and is carried along by the circulat- 

 ing air through the pile and into all parts of the kiln. The speed, 

 direction and uniformity of circulation can then be seen at a glance. 



Eepresentatives from the eight following firms arc attending the 

 November course in kiln drying and are making these tests: 



Carrier Engineering Corporation, Newark, N. J. 



Forest Lumber Company, Oakdale, La. 



Jamestown Table Company, Jamestown, N. Y. 



Jerome Hardwood Lumber Company, Jerome, Ark. 



Western Cooperage Company, Portland, Ore. 



Delaware Chair Company, Delaware, Ohio. 



Geo. W. Smith, West Philadelphia, Pa. 



'Welch Kiln Engineering Company, Kansas City, Mo. 



The next course is scheduled for January 16-27, 1922. Firms or 

 individuals interested in the work of these courses should com- 

 municate with the Director, Forest Products Laboratory, Madison, 

 Wis., for detailed information. 



estimated at 15,000 to 20,000 carloads of 10 tons each. All these 

 ties have been transported to Danzig by rail. 



A decree of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce in Septem- 

 ber, 1921, prohibited the export of railway ties made of pine, oak 

 and beech. It is possible, however, to secure permission for export 

 from the Import and Export Bureau, Warsaw, under certain con- 

 ditions. — U. S. Commerce Reports. 



Polish Oak for Railway Ties 



Poland has great supplies of oak timber suitable for railway ties, 

 according to a report from Fayette W. Allport, secretary to the 

 trade commissioner at Warsaw. Estimates place the available 

 oak in the Vilna and Brzesc districts at 2 per cent of the timber 

 ready for exploitation; in the Volhynia district at 12.5 per cent, 

 and in Congress (former Russian) Poland at 3 per cent. Exports of 

 ties (mostly oak) from Danzig for the first half of this year are 



Big Freight Rate Action Started 



West Coast Lumbernu-n 's Association has started its long- 

 deferred litigation for lower rail freight rates. The action prom- 

 ises to be one of the most important brought before the Interstate 

 Commerce Commission since the general freight rate increase of 

 1920. It was authorized at a meeting of the governing board of 

 the association in Portland on Friday, November 11. 



In this suit the West Coast lumber industry will not only seek 

 reasonable rates, but will also ask the Interstate Commerce Com- 

 mission to authorize simplified tariffs in the place of the present 

 complicated tariff structure involving 13,000 rates to all markets 

 reached by rail. 



The complaint cites that the continued existence of the lumber 

 industry of the North Pacific Coast largely depends on the ability 

 of the industry to market its products freely, and alleges that a 

 substantial reduction in present rates is necessary to permit a sub- 

 stantial movement of lumber bj- rail. 



The complaint further alleges that many of the rates on lumber 

 and other forest products from the North Pacific Coast, in effect 

 ])rior to August 25, 1920, were unjust and unreasonable, and that 

 such rate discrimination was aggravated by the percentage 

 increases- of August 26, 1920. 



Referring to the five voluminous tariffs involving more tlian 

 15,000 rates on which West Coast lumber and other forest products 

 are now sold, the complaint alleges that this arrangement is unrea- 

 sonably proli.K and unnecessarily complex, imposing burdens alike 

 upon the shippers and the consignees, in ascertaining the rates 

 legally applicable to their shipments, and it further says that it 

 ■s in public interest that such rates be consolidated and published 

 in direct, plain, simple form. 



Grades and Inspection of Lumber 



(Continued from page 22) 

 assist me in procuring the best material at the lowest market price, 

 and I suggest that we take up through our lumber committee, after 

 proper discussion and being satisfied that we are right, the fol- 

 lowing items and work as an association for the elimination or 

 addition of certain rules: 



In the first place, try to get the associations to liaA'e one joint 

 inspection bureau and one corps of inspectors, who will intcrjirct 

 the rules exactly alike. 



The elimination of the grade of selects. 



A request that all members of the association shall confine their 

 purchases entirely to rules and interpretation of rules in accord- 

 ance with the National Hardwood Lumber Association. 



Change rules regarding 3-inch widths being allowed in No. 1 

 common. 



Take up the matter of season checks being more clearly defined 

 as a defect. 



Take up the elimination of sap as a defect in such woods as the 

 association shall determine. 



Heavy Export Booking Made in Memphis 



The American Overseas Forwarding Company has booked between 

 12,000,000 and 15,000,000 feet of hardwood lumber and forest products 

 from southern sources for shipment to Europe during tbe past three weeks, 

 and it says that demand is still quite active. 



