lo June. 1910.] 



Tlie Cork Iiidnsirv in Portugal. 



583 



to avoid damagin,i;- the tree. Althouf^h. to outward appearances, strippinp^ 

 seems to be executed in much the same way as a sheet of Ijark is remo\"ed 

 from a gum tree (see Journal for January, 1910), the operation is a far 

 more delicate one. The whole of the tree is not usuallv stripped at one 

 time ; this might give too great a shock, and besides, the cork takes a 

 different time to form on the trunk and on the branches. Xevertheless, it 

 is removed from right around the trunk at one operation. 



Circular incisions are made above and below, care being taken that 

 they do not penetrate quite as far as the cambrium layer. These are joined 

 by a longitudinal cut of same depth (two are made if the trunk be a very 

 large one). By smartly tapping the edges of the incisions with the axe, the 

 bark is detached sufficiently from the liber to permit the introduction of the 

 chisel-shaped end of the axe handle. The sheet of bark is thus removed 

 without damaging the Mac, as the liber is known in Portuguese. The 

 removal of its bark does not appear to injure the tree in any w^ay — it 

 immediately proceeds to grow itself a new laver of bark, the outer surface 

 passing through the colour variations already described. 



STACK OF STRIPPED CORK.. 



As soon as it is stripped, the cork is roughly graded and provisionally 

 stacked in the forest. From these stacks, one of which is shown in the 

 photograph, it is very often sold, the unit on which transactions are based 

 being the Arroba, of 15 kg. (33 lbs.). From the stack, it is taken to the 

 factory, where it is converted into the flat state in which we know it as cork 

 wood. In the factories, it is further graded, and the rubbish and portions 

 damaged by insects (the cork oak has many enemies), are removed. After 

 boiling in special boilers, to render it elastic, the outer woody laver is 

 scraped off. It is finally graded according to its thickness : — 



