COMMERCIAL USES OF LONGLEAF PINE 



903 



Photo by P. L. Butlrick. 



A TIMBER PRESERVING PLANT IN LOUISIANA 



Although the heartwood of longleaf pine, if free from timber-destroying fungi, is very durable, yet more and more of it is being treated with 

 preservatives to increase its durability. This plant treats railroad ties, paving blocks, structural timbers and other products. 



No very great improvement is looked for till the close 

 of the hostilities, when it is not too much to expect that 

 billions of feet of longleaf will be used to repair the 

 ravages of war in the various war zones. 



Longleaf was favorably known in Europe and the 

 West Indies before it secured much of a foothold in the 

 northern market of our own country. The white pine 

 regions of Pennsylvania and Michigan were much nearer, 

 and the people were more accustomed to that wood than 

 to its southern competitor, so that, although it was in- 

 troduced into the northern markets in the seventies, it 

 was not looked upon with favor. In 1892, when the cut 

 of white pine was over 9,000,000,000 feet, that of longleaf 

 was estimated as 7,000,000,000 feet. Its use did not be- 



come general till the supply of white pine waned, but to- 

 day it has come to its own, and it is shipped by water and 

 rail clear north into Canada and is used amid the stumps 

 of the old pineries of Michigan and Wisconsin. It travels 

 west to the foot of the Rocky Mountains, and disputes 

 the markets there successfully with its western competi- 

 tors. The annual cut is estimated at 12,500,000,000 feet, 

 its nearest rival is Douglas fir, which is estimated at 

 5,200,000,000 feet. Its old rival, white pine, has fallen 

 off to about 2,500,000,000 feet. So far as statistics go, 

 1907 seems to have been the banner year, when a cut of 

 13,215,185,000 feet was reported. 



Like the white pine industry, the longleaf industry has 

 moved ever onward, seeking new and virgin supplies. 



LOXCLEAF PINK K>K CAR l D.NSl Rl (. TION 

 This wood is extensively used for both passenger and freight cars, being especially desirable for frame work, sills, siding and flooring. 



