STAVES FOR CASKS. 



597 



on the size of the pores, for it finds its way into the anatomical 

 wood-vessels and oozes out at the ends of the staves. 



In the preparation of staves, an oak stem is cut first into 

 suitable lengths, which are then split in halves by means 

 of a wedge. Each half -log is split further (Fig. 338) into 

 three or four sectors ; after the core and sapwood have been 

 removed, these are split tangentially into pieces as wide 

 as the staves by means of the divider driven by a wooden 

 mallet. These pieces are fitted into a stave-maker's 

 bench, composed of the fork of a tree (Fig. 339) resting on 

 three stakes driven into the ground ; then they are split 

 radially into staves, and trimmed smooth by means of the 

 shave (Fig. 340). 



In Germany, the staves also are partly dressed into a 

 curved shape with the adze, but in France they are bent into 

 shape. The dimensions of the staves vary considerably, 

 according to the demands of the trade. The broadest pieces 

 are required for heading vats, and can be taken only from 

 large trees, which soon will be extinct in Germany. The 

 Polish staves, which are exported from North Germany to 

 England, France, Spain, etc., are classified as follows : 



There is a very large demand for staves for the wine and 

 beer trades ; they are exported from the Baltic, Fiume and 

 Trieste, and from North America. The best staves come from 

 Croatia, Slavonia, Hungary, and Bosnia, which countries pro- 

 duced about 26,000,000 staves in the two years 1891 and 

 1892. The Bosnian staves are worked more easily, and there- 

 fore are preferred to those from Slavonia. Oakwood from 

 those countries is sound and heavy, and the markets for it 

 are Fiume and Trieste for France and England, and Vienna 



