6S TIMBlilJ riNES OF THE SOUTHERN UNITED STATES. 



burns with a s()r>ty flaiiic. It is a iinod solvent for many resins, wax, fats, caontcliouc, suli>linr, 

 and pliosplioius, and is used in the arts anil industries tor tlie preparation of varnislies, in paints, 

 tbe rul>ber industry, ete. Before the introduction of kerosene oil it was used extensively for an 

 iliuininator; it is also used in medicine internally and externally and often as an adulterant of 

 various essential oils. 



HOSIN, OR COLOl'lIOXV. 



The solid eonstitnent of the crude tnrpentiiu', which forms the residue remaining after its dis- 

 tillation. It is of ditlcrent degrees of heaviness, according to the (juantities of volatile oil retained 

 after distillation, is brittle, easily ])owdered, of a glassy luster, and of the specific gravity of 1.07, 

 almost without taste, of a faint terel)inthinous odor. It l)ecomes soil at about 17(r^ F., melts 

 between 194- and 212^ F,, and is soluble in the same .solvents as crude resin. According to the 

 nature of the crude turpentine, depending upon the number of seasons the trees have been worked, 

 it shows ditlerent jiroiiertics in regard to the ti-ansmission of light, and in color. It is either 

 perfectly transparent, translucent, or almost opa(jue and almost colorless, or a pale straw color to 

 golden yellow, reddish yellow, through all shades to dark brown and almost black. The market 

 value of this article is entirely rcgidated by these pioperties. In the American market the follow- 

 ing grades an; distinguished: WW (Water White) and W(l (Window (llass), the lightest and 

 highest-priced grades, obtained from the "virgin dip;'' N (Extra Pale), M (Pale), K (Low Pale), 

 I (dood 'So. 1), IT (No. 1), F (fiood No. 2), E (No. 2), I) (Good Strain), C (Strain), B (Common 

 Strain), and A (IJlack). 



PINE TAK. 



This is not exa(;tly a by-])rodnct of the turpentine orchard, but is produced by the destructive 

 distillation of the wood itself. It is chiefly produced in North Carolina, where this industry has 

 been carried on since the earliest colonial times. Small quantities are produced in other sections 

 of the Southern ])inebelt, mostly for hoiiu; consum])tion. Perfectly dry wood of the Longleaf l*ine, 

 dead limbs and trunks seasoned on the stump, from which the sapwood has rotted, are cut in 

 suitable billets, piled into a conical stack, in a circular pit, lined with clay, the center communi- 

 cating by a dejjressed channel with a receptacle — a hole in the ground — at a distance of 3 to 4 

 feet from the pile. The pile is covered with sod and earth, and otherwise treated and managed 

 like a charcoal pit, being fired from apertures at the base, giving only enough draft to maintain 

 slow smoldering <;ombustion. Aftei- the ninth day the tar l)egiiis to How and continues for several 

 weeks. It is dipped from the; i)it into barrels of 32(t pounds, the standard weight. One cord of 

 dry '• fat" or " liglitwood " furnishes from 40 to 50 gallons of tar. The price of pine tar is quoted 

 as low as ^\.().> a bai lel. Since <H)nsiderable quantities of tar are produced incidentally in the 

 destructive; distillation of wood in iron retorts for charcoal and other products, the price has 

 been greatly depressed. 



COMMON PITOn. 



The best quality is obtained by boiling down tar until it has lost about one-third or more of 

 its weight. The naval jtitcli of commerce has more or less rosin of the lowest grade addc(l to it. 

 Pitch is also obtained as the residue remaining from the dry distillation of rosin for rosin oil. 



niSTOUICAI. ItKMAKKS. 



The tapping of the trees for the crude turpentine and the manufacture of tar and jiitch was 

 first resorted to by the earliest settlers of North Carolina, and in later colonial times these jiroducts 

 furnished the largest i)art of the exports of the colony. In the three years from 17(>8 to 1770 

 the exports of crude turix-ntine, tar, and pitch ie])resented on the average for ca(^h year a value of 

 $215,000 of our ])resent (jurrency. Most of the crude turpentine was shipped to England. Later 

 the distillation of spirits of turi)entine was carried on in clumsy iron retorts in North Carolina 

 and in Xorfhern cities. The introduction of the copper still in 1S;U resulted in a largely 

 increased yield of spirits of tur])entine, and the industry re(;eived a great impetus. With the new 

 demand for spirits of turi)entin(! in the manufacture of rubber goods, and its increased use as an 

 illuminator, the number of stills increased greatly, and turi)entinc oicharding was rajjidly 

 extended south and west beyond its original limit. The large consumption of spirits of turpentine 



