THE PAST, PKESENT, AND FUTURE OF THE 

 NAVAL STORES INDUSTRY.* 



By Chas. H. Herty. 



The limited use of the oleoresinous exudate of pine trees 

 dates back many centuries, but the real beginning of an indus- 

 try on a large scale is closely associated with the discovery of 

 the vast pine forests which extend along the southeastern and 

 southern coasts of the United States from North Carolina to 

 Texas. 



These forests lie chiefly in the coastal plain and in the slightly 

 hilly country between the Piedmont plateau and the coastal 

 plain, a strip varying in width from one hundred to two hun- 

 dred miles and characterized by a sandy soil, covered for the 

 most part with " wire-grass," this furnishing a beautiful carpet 

 of green in spring and summer, but making a serious fire risk in 

 winter. The longleaf pine readily sheds its lower limbs, espe- 

 cially in close stands, so that the forests are remarkably open 

 and free from that undergrowth, which, in the northwest, leads 

 to such destructive forest fires. 



The early settlers in eastern North Carolina began the exploi- 

 tation of their forests of longleaf pine for the purpose of pro- 

 viding tar and pitch for use in the construction of wooden ships, 

 and gradually extended their operations to the collection of crude 

 turpentine which was shipped to northern cities or England for 

 distillation. The forests covered the entire territory and, as 

 clearings for farms were needed, destructive methods of opera- 

 tion were welcomed and encouraged. 



At the same time limited operations were being conducted 

 upon the maritime pine in southwestern France between Bor- 

 deaux and Bayonne. To receive the crude turpentine the 

 French made use of a hole dug in the sand at the base of the 

 tree. The oleoresin flowing from the wound on the trunk above 

 was collected in these holes. Necessarily by this method much 

 of the material was wasted and rendered impure. 



* Reprinted from Original Communications, Eighth International Congress of 

 Applied Chemistry. Vol. XII, p. 101. 



