130 Forestry Quarterly. 



7. Pilmg and Fixing the Stack. 



The higher the stack the less closelj' can it be piled and the less 

 wood will it contain per given space. Stacks higher than 4 to 

 4.5 feet high can not be piled conveniently. The heavier the 

 stick and the weaker the piler, the less clo.se is the piling and the 

 less solid wood in the cord. In order to hold the pile together, 

 one or two stakes are used at each end. It has l^een observed 

 that when one stake is used at each end of the stack, the volume 

 of solid wood per cord is higher than when two stakes are at each 

 end. In the latter case, the ends of the sticks, and in crooked 

 .sticks their concave sides, cannot reach much outside the stakes. 

 This tends, therefore, to decrease the solid wood in the cord. 

 There always remains some space between the stakes holding the 

 stack together and the wood. Therefore, the fewer the stakes 

 used for the total amount of wood to be corded {i.e., the longer 

 the stacks), the higher is the solid volume per cord. 



The quality of labor has much to do with the solid volume of 

 the cord. If the branches are not trimmed close to the body of 

 the stick, if the sticks are chopped instead of sawed, if the laborer 

 is careless in piling, there is less solid wood per given space. 



8. Measuring the Stack. 



The length of a stack is seldom the same at both top and 

 bottom. The top of the stack is, as a rule, longer than the 

 bottom. This is due to the spreading of the end stakes from the 

 weight of the piled sticks or from their not being set vertically at 

 first. Therefore, it makes considerable difference where the 

 length of a stack is measured. 



The length should be measured half way up the stack, because 

 if the top length is used it would give less solid wood than the 

 stack actually contains. The use of the bottom length would 

 give more than the actual solid volume. 



The height of the stack is seldom the same on both sides. 

 The height of the stack should be measured at several places on 

 both sides, and the average of these measurements taken for the 

 height. 



p. Conclusions. 



This brief review of the factors influencing the amount of .solid 

 wood per given space teaches that no correct comparison can be 

 made etbweeu two stacks containing the same number of cords. 



