THE USES OF WOOD 



THE EMPLOYMENT OF WOOD AS HOUSE FINISH 



BY HU MAXWELL 



Editor's Note. This is the sixth story in a series ol important and very valuable articles, by Mr. Maxwell, on wood and its 

 uses. The series will thoroughly cover the various phases of the subject, from the beginnings in the forest through the processes 

 of logging, lumbering, transportation and milling, considering in detail the whole field of the utilization and manufacture of wood. 



TIMBER and lumber used in their rough form for 

 the frames and roofs of buildings were considered 

 in preceding articles of this series ; but these are 

 not the only forms in which wood is employed in the 

 construction of houses. Finishing material, or trim, is 

 wanted for both the outside and the inside. This con- 

 sists of stuff that has been through the planing mill or 

 some other wood-working factory where it has been sur- 

 faced, cut, carved, or otherwise prepared by machinery 

 for final use. It is included in the general term of mill- 



a similar kind. They are not part of the building itself 

 and frequently may be removed without much injury to 

 the building or to the fixtures themselves. Furniture 

 differs from both finish and fixtures in that it may be 

 moved in and out at will without injury to itself or to 

 the 'house. The three products, finish, fixtures, and 

 furniture, are nearly always intimately associated in use 

 and in statistics, but in the present article finish alone is 

 considered. The wood from which finish is made is near- 

 ly always machine-worked so far as molding, beading, and 



WHITE PINE EXTERIOR FINISH 



Fine northern residences with massive columns and broad cornices have been constructed of white pine since colonial 

 days, and many of the oldest of them remain in an excellent state of preservation till the present day. But all the details 

 are not massive. Small balustrades, delicate moldings, and small latticework have their places also. 



work ; but that term is broad, and much millwork is not 

 intended for house building. 



There is a relationship between house finish, and store 

 and office fixtures, and a relationship, also, between such 

 fixtures and furniture, and it is not always easy to 

 determine the dividing line separating them. However, 

 some of the distinctions can be borne in mind and they 

 will assist in segregating these related classes of wood- 

 work. Finish is built in as a part of the house. It is 

 not intended to be removed, and usually cannot be sepa- 

 rated from the building without being destroyed or much 

 damaged, and- at the same time defacing the building 

 from which it is taken. Fixtures include counters, show- 

 cases, cabinets, shelving, low partitions which do not 

 extend to the ceiling, and numerous other appliances of 



polishing go, then carpenters cut, fit, and join the dif- 

 ferent parts. Formerly, before machinery was in much 

 use, carpenters, cabinet makers, and joiners worked with 

 planes, saws, augers, chisels, and other tools, to convert 

 rough lumber into finish for houses. The processes were 

 then very slow and the results were generally much below 

 what passes for good finish only. Solomon is said to 

 have had a considerable army of workmen getting out 

 and fitting the finish of his Temple during several years, 

 and it has been claimed that one modern planing mill 

 and a dozen or so of good carpenters could duplicate the 

 woodwork in the Temple in a few weeks. It is estimated 

 that he did not use sixty thousand feet altogether. It 

 is not necessary to go so far back to find how slow finish 

 work used to be, and how mediocre the workmanship 



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