THE CORK TREE. 559 
. In the province of Gerona it is very generally the practice to take the 
cork from the trunk only, as itis thought by this means that a better 
quality of cork is obtained the next time. 
When the cork is all removed from the trees it is taken from the tempo- 
rary places of deposit and piled up to dry slowly, and in two months loses 
one-fifth of its weight. Here it is inspected by the manufacturers, who 
buy it on the ground. 
if cork trees are not stripped, the cork splits and becomes full of holes, 
and is worthless for making stoppers. In about fifty or sixty years the 
surface, exposed to atmospheric influences, begins to decompose slowly, 
and the cork falls off in small pieces, in the same way as the bark of 
other trees. It never falls off in large slabs, nor does it naturally come 
off while the tree is alive, as some persons have supposed, presenting 
the cork tree as an exceptional instance of physiological action, brought 
on by natural agencies on the bark of this species only. 
When it is intended to improve a cork plantation which has never 
been stripped, the stripping should be done at once in order to obtain, 
eight or ten years later, an article that can be used in making stoppers. 
The first stripping is useless for this purpose. 
A year after the first stripping the land should be cleared. In some 
places this is done by means of fire. General fire-lines are opened and 
the undergrowth within a radius of 4 to 20 feet, according to the size of 
the tree, is cut down. This being done, fire is applied on the windward 
side of the undergrowth. The operation should be performed in Feb- 
ruary or March after light rains, but never in hot, dry weather. The 
burning should be repeated for two or three years after each stripping. 
Cutting down the undergrowth has the disadvantage of leaving the 
roots in the ground, which put out shoots afterwards with greater vigor 
than ever. ‘The best plan, therefore, if it were not so costly, would be to 
pull up the shrubs by the roots. 
It is claimed that by removing the stumps of the old cork trees great 
benefit is done to the land. It is doubtful whether this theory is correct, 
as the roots as they decompose may yield a good manure. In loose soils 
and on steep inclines stumps are never dug up, because deep washes are 
liable to be formed. 
The men employed in stripping the cork from the trees are paid from 
60 to 70 cents (12 to 14 reals) per day. 
VALUE OF THE CROP. 
In Iixtremadura cork is worth from $1.40 to $2 (7 to 10 pesetas) per 
100 pounds. In Catalonia a higher price is paid. It is sold there in 
slabs at so much per dozen. These slabs are about 8 palms* square, 
and bring from $2.40 to $4 (12 to 20 pesetas) per dozen. 
To-day cork is worth eleven times more than it was in 1790. 
VALUE AND YIELD OF CORK PLANTATIONS. 
In 1843 in the department of Var, France, cork plantations were esti- 
mated to be worth 500 francs per hectare (2.471 acres). The net return 
per hectare each ten years was 600 francs, or 12 per cent. per annum. 
At the same date oak forests only yielded 3 per cent. per annum. 
To-day the value of cork plantations varies considerably, according to 
~ * Dominguez in his dictionary gives two definitions of “palmo,” the word used by 
the anthor. They correspond with the English words ‘‘span” and “hand.” The lat- 
ter is probably meant. 
