THE NAVAL STORES INDUSTRY. 17 



lies directly above the center of the box. The hack is given a quick, 

 swinging motion, and the momentum furnished by the iron ball 

 enables one side of a streak to be made with only two or three blows. 

 Chippers are paid from 75 cents to $1 per thousand streaks, according 

 to the condition of the crop and the scarcity of labor. 



After the first two seasons the increased height of the face makes 

 the use of a hack impracticable, and a " puller" is used in its place. 

 This tool resembles the hack, except that the blade is closed and pro- 

 vided with a long handle. The streak is made by a steady pull 

 (PL II) rather than with a quick hacking motion. After the fourth 

 season the face is usually abandoned, since at that time a height 

 of 8 feet is attained, beyond which it is not profitable to work a tree. 

 Old faces 12 feet in height have been noted in Georgia, and others 

 even higher in North Carolina and South Carolina. 



Dipping. The boxes fill with gum in three or four weeks and are 

 " dipped" or emptied about seven times a season. The workman 

 uses a tool called a " dipper", which has a flat trowel-shaped blade 

 about 7J inches long and 5J inches wide. This dipper is thrust into 

 the box under the gum, which is removed by a quick upward and 

 outward motion and flipped into a portable bucket. Considerable 

 skill is required to prevent loss of gum during the transfer. The 

 bucket is emptied into barrels placed at convenient points throughout 

 the woods. These barrels, provided with removable heads, are 

 closed after filling, rolled upon wagons by means of skids, and taken 

 to the still. Dippers receive from 50 cents to $1 per barrel, according 

 to the nature of the territory covered. 



Scraping. A certain amount of the gum does not reach the box, 

 partial evaporation of volatile oil leaving it too viscous to flow. Gum 

 which is perfectly homogeneous and transparent immediately after 

 exudation soon becomes opaque from the separation of white crystals 

 of the resin acids, and doubtless the greater portion of the "scrape" 

 results from the adherence of these separated crystals to the face. 

 The amount of this hardened gum naturally increases with the height 

 of the face. "Scrape" is essentially a product of longleaf pine (Pinus 

 palustris), since slash pine (Pinus Jieterophylla) forms but small 

 amounts, which it does not pay to collect. The scrape contains about 

 half as much turpentine as the "dip" and gives a darker resin under 

 similar conditions. 



The scrape is collected but once a year at the end of the season. 

 The tools used, called "scrapers," are of two types. One type, the 

 "pusher," has a flat, rectangular blade 4 inches long by 4J to 5 inches 

 wide. This is used during the first two years, the scrape being 

 removed by downward thrusts of the tool. In most cases the neces- 

 sary violence of the thrust results in removing large chips of wood 

 along with the scrape. Another type of scraper has a blade shaped 

 88767 Bull. 22915 3 



