HARDWOOD RECORD 



The Potash Industry 



Crude potash is still produced hy the ril.l mitliods ot leaching from 

 wood ashes in the hardwood lumher .IKtri.t^. i liimly in Wisconsin and 

 Michigan. Complete statistics of thi^ miuihii .in- difflcult to obtain. Many 

 of the producers keep no exact rccoid- ,,i ih.ir operations and do not 

 always know the quality of their product, so that exact interpretation 

 of the figures they furnish is impossible. Reports from thirty-six producers 

 in 1917 shows a gross output marketed of 700 short tons, having a value 

 of $406,856. 



Searching for Walnut Trees 



The search for walntit trees has become a matter of importance, as is 

 implied by the following letter from President Wilson addressed to the 

 Boy Scouts of America, under date of April 25. 



In order to carry out the program of the War Department it is of the 

 utmost importance that large quantities of black walnut lumber should 

 be secured for its uses. Black walnut is tised by the ordnance department 

 for the manufacture of gunstocks and by the Signal corps for the manu- 

 facture of propellers for battle and bombing airplanes. 



The location of black walnut trees, the names of the owners, the sizes 

 of the trees and the price at which they can be purchased is greatly desired. 

 It is believed that the organization of the Boy Scouts of America Is par- 

 ticularly well constituted for obtaining this information. There are no 

 longer any large Individual lots of walnut timber, but there is a very 

 large supply when collected into groups or centers ; at the present time 

 there are to be found- only a few trees here and there scattered over the 

 whole of the United States east of the Rocky Mountains. I, therefore, 

 appeal to the well known loyalty of your organization to secure for the 

 government this desired information. In securing data the owners of the 

 black walnut timber should lie mhisi-il of our pressing needs and they 

 should be requested t.> shmv their p;urintism by doing all in their power 

 to assist their government in this gre:it war. 



The Value of Wood Ashes 



Once in a while the subject of wood ashes comes up for discussion in 

 the trade papers, and then it drops out of notice for a time. It is now at 

 the front again for further consideration, and war cmnliti.nis ar.- n-spon- 

 sible for the recurrence of the discussion. An obst^n 1. in ili- \\:iy of 

 developing the wood ashes business has been the dilli.nii. in lii. \\:iy of 

 quoting prices. Ashes are not worth the same everywln i.-, nm- nre all 

 kinds of ashes of equal value. It depends upon the kind of wood, the 

 completeness of the burning, the quantity of water in the ashes, and the 

 distance from market. For that reason, when a man who has ashes for 

 sale tries to obtain a quotation, he can seldom get a precise offer. There 

 is always a string to it. The result is discouraging, and many persons who 

 might have saved ashes have decided not to bother with the article. 



A trade report was published on May 15, written by J. E. Haven, United 

 States consul at Turin, Italy, describing a revival of the wood ashes busi- 

 ness In Italy, on account of war conditions. The Italians are burning more 

 wood because of scarcity of coal, and they find it profitable to sell the 

 ashes for fertilizers. However, there is no fortune in ashes for the person 

 who saves and sells them. According to the best authority on the subject, 

 the amounts of ashes and ot potash that results from burning certain 

 woods are as follows, the figures representing a ton of wood : 



Ash, Potash, Ash, Potash, 



Pounds Pounds Pounds Pounds 



Spruce 7.50 1.00 Willow 61.73 6.2S 



Beech 12.78 2.80 Grapevine 74.95 12.12 



Ash 26.90 1.63 Fern (or bracken) 80.25 9.37 



Oak 29.76 3.31 Wormwood plant. 214.73 160.93 



Elm 55.11 8.60 Fumaria plant. . . 482.81 174.16 



In Italy the present price paid for potash is 31 cents per 100 pounds. 

 That would produce about one dollar from ashes secured in burning twelve 

 tons, or about six cords, of elm wood. 



Ship Pins of Wood and Iron 



The matter of relative cost, in comparing wooden and iron pins for ship 

 building, is of minor importance In selecting the material. Neither wood 

 nor iron is very expensive ; at least the cost of the pins Is a small item com- 

 pared with the total cost of the ship. The strongest argument in favor of 

 the wooden pins, in vessels of certain kinds, is that the wood is better. It 

 is not stronger and w-ill not last longer, but the wooden pin secures a 

 waterproof fastening while there may be leakage round an Iron bolt which 

 passes entirely through the vessel's wooden walls, from the sea water out- 

 side to the hold of the ship within. 



The straining of the vessel in sailing rough water causes slight yielding 

 of the timbers. They have a tendency to move to and fro slightly. Per- 

 sons who have sailed in a wooden ship have heard the creaking and strain- 

 ing ot the timbers when the sea was rough. Long-continued movements 

 of that kind may cause the iron bolt to wear and cut the wood that touches 

 It, finally causing leakage round the bolt. The wooden pin does not wear 

 or cut the surrounding wood, and no leakage results. The iron bolt never 

 swells after It is driven in the auger hole made to receive it, a'nd If the 

 joint is not waterproof at first it never becomes so afterwards ; but a sea- 

 soned wooden pin may not be absolutely tight and snug at first, but will 

 become so after it is soaked with water and swells. 



That point has been overlooked by some persons who cannot understand 

 why shipbuilders go to so much trouble to procure wooden pins when those 

 of Iron are so convenient. Only the strongest woods are suitable, and even 



the strongest is not half as strong as iron, size for size ; but strength is not 

 the only essential quality In a ship pin. 



Balsa Wood 



Consul Stewart E. McMilleu writes from Port Limon, Costa Rica, con- 

 cerning the supply of balsa wood in that district. Balsa, the lightest wood 

 so far known, is now much in demand where lightness of construction is 

 of importance ; and as it is very porous, it acts as a good Insulator and Is 

 also used In insulation against heat and cold. Another valued character- 

 istic of this wood is that it offers the minimum amount of air resistance, 

 and its usefulness in aeroplane construction is therefore apparent. Though 

 the balsa tree grows best in rich ground, it will thrive on almost any 

 ground in the tropics except swamp, but it is a second growth tree, being 

 found only where the ground has once been cleared. The trunks of the 

 trees are smooth and mottled white and gray. No parasites seem to grow 

 on them, as the boles are perfectly free of vegetation. 



The logs run from twenty to thirty inches in diameter. It Is very diffi- 

 cult and sometimes impossible to get some of the timber to the tracks 

 where it can be loaded. So long as there is a supply to be had along the 

 railway the question of transportation Is a simple one and the business 

 lucrative, but where the logs have to be dragged for long distances by 

 oxen the margin of profit decreases and close figuring becomes necessary. 

 At present the average cost of Balsa delivered to the United Fruit Company 

 steamers is .$37.50 to $40 per thousand board feet. The average content 

 per log is fifty to sixty feet. If not too far back from the railroads, twelve 

 yoke of oxen can get out about 200 logs per week at an average distance 

 of two miles. Shorter logs at a cheaper rate per thousand feet than the 

 regular size logs can not be shipped for the reason that the work of 

 handling is Increased ; that is, three sixteen-foot logs can be dragged out 

 to the tracks at about the same cost as three four-foot logs; the same 

 estimate applies to handling logs from wharf to ship. 



In all there are probably not more than 8,000 balsa logs available to 

 the railroad in Costa Rica at this time ; but if the United Fruit Com- 

 pany's practice of shipping only about 400 logs per week is followed, ship- 

 ments could be continued indefinitely. In certain sections inaccessible 

 to the railroads of Costa Rica there is much of this wood, but being 

 so situated, and the rivers being mostly mountain streams, rocky, rapid 

 and shallow, the question of getting out the logs is a diSicult one. There 

 is one available big lot of timber along the San Carlos and Sarapiqul 

 rivers, on old abandoned farms in that section, that could be contracted 

 for delivery alongside the steamers in shipload lots of 500,000 feet or 

 more. The timber from these rivers could be floated down the San Juan to 

 Colorado Bar, above Llmon, where It is possible in favorable weather to 

 cross without much risk, providing suitable equipment were at hand in 

 the form of barges for loading the logs, and sufficient towing power. 



It is estimated that balsa plantations can be established at a labor cost 

 of $4 an acre the first year. 



No Logheaps to Be Burned 



In several states where the clearing of new land is actively going on, 

 movements are under way looking to the abolishing of the burning log 

 heaps in clearings. It has always been the custom when land has been 

 cleared for farms, to roll logs together and burn them. It is now pro- 

 posed to cut these logs into cordwood and use it to supplement the coun- 

 try's fuel supply. The two states in the lead in this movement are 

 Arkansas and North Carolina. So far as markets for such cordwood are 

 available, the movement will result In economy ; but many land clearers 

 are so far from market that they cannot sell their cordwood. 



Timber Operations in France 



In the report by General Haig of the timber cutting operations on the 

 continent, in connection with the war, it is stated that In the spring of 

 191T the activities of the army were extended by the formation of a 

 forestry directorate, to work certain forest areas in France for the use of 

 British and French armies. By September the army had become prac- 

 tically self-supporting as far as regards timber. Included in this timber 

 was material sufficient to construct over 350 miles of plank roads and to 

 provide sleepers for 1,500 miles of railway, besides great quantities of 

 sawn timber for hutting and defences, and many thousand tons of round 

 timber for fascines and fuel. The bulk of the fuel wood is being obtained 

 from woods already devastated by artillery fire. 



War Schedule of Paint Shades 



To conserve tin plate and linseed oil, 6S shades of paints and varnishes 

 have been dropped by manufacturers, working in harmony with the Com- 

 mercial Economy Board of the Council of National Defense, and by July 

 1 the range of colors will be restricted to 32 for the period of the war. 

 The following maximum number of shades and colors is adopted for paints 

 and varnishes for various purposes : House paint, 32 ; flat paint, 16 ; 

 enamels. 8 ; fioor paint, 8 ; porch paint, 6 ; roof and barn paint, 2 ; shingle 

 stains, 12 ; carriage paint, 8 ; oil stains, 8 ; varnish stains, 8 ; penetrating 

 or spirit stains, 10 ; oil colors, 30. The number of containers has also 

 been reduced by dropping the following sizes : Half-gallon cans through- 

 out the entire line of paints and varnishes ; all cans smaller than half -pint 

 throughout the entire line of paints and varnishes ; pint cans in house 

 paints, flat paints, floor paints, porch paints and enamels ; all cans smaller 

 than gallons in barn and roof paint and shingle stain ; all cans smaller 

 than pints in all clear varnishes and varnish removers ; all 2 and 3 pound 

 cans in the entire line. 



