1906 



FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION 



163 



Ernst, of the Isthmian Canal Commis- 

 sion, vice-president, and Richard L. 

 Humphrey, president of the National 

 Association of Cement Users, secre- 

 tary. 



The government officials and engi- 

 neers engaged in testing reviewed their 

 past work and its significance, and pre- 

 sented detailed plans of further inves- 

 tigations. In the discussion of these 

 plans many practical suggestions were 

 made, and new questions which had 

 arisen in the different lines of work 

 were brought out. For instance, Mr. 

 George B. Post, a New York architect 

 of long experience, spoke of the scar- 

 city of authoritative information on 

 the strength of many building mate- 

 rials. He said that had it not been for 

 his training as a civil engineer, which 

 had taught him the amount of strain 

 materials would stand, he could not 

 have slept nights while constructing 

 the sky-scrapers demanded in the busi- 

 ness life of the present age. There is 

 no published manual which gives full 

 information, and for this reason struc- 

 tures of all kinds are overweighted 

 with an unnecessary amount of mate- 

 rial as a blind precaution against pos- 

 sible failure in any part. The trans- 

 portation and handling of needlessly 

 bulky pieces of construction material 

 is of course undesirable, and the cost 

 and, in the case of timber, the growing 

 scarcity of supplies make it necessary 

 to economize and to seek cheaper sub- 

 stitutes so far as safety will permit. 



The Forest Service, then the Divis- 

 ion of Forestry, began studies of 

 American woods in 1891. These were 

 continued until 1896, 32 species in all 

 having been tested as to their strength 

 and other characteristics. These tests 

 were made on selected small pieces, so 

 that the figures could not always be 

 applied with safety to large pieces tak- 

 en from the ooen market, the strength 

 of which is influenced by such defects 

 as knots, checks, crooked grain, etc., 

 in combination. Furthermore, the 

 tests did not become generally known 

 or accepted by practical engineers and 

 architects. 



In the case of the other investiga- 

 tions of the Forest Service, although a 

 large body of valuable data had been 

 gathered and published, it had not 

 reached the men for whose direct bene- 

 fit it had been sought. What was re- 

 quired was a carefully planned scheme 

 of co-operation between the govern- 

 ment and private interests for the 

 gradual practical application of the 

 new knowledge. 



In the case of important govern- 

 ment tests now under way and others 

 soon to be started, both delay and ex- 

 pense are to be avoided by enlisting 

 the interest of prominent engineers 

 from all parts of the country and rep- 

 resenting diverse interests. These men, 

 thoroughly acquainted with the p\r- 

 pose and value and every detail of the 

 experiments, will be ready to give them 

 immediate application and to secure 

 for their results a ready acceptance 

 throughout their large organizations. 

 By examining the plans for investiga- 

 tions in advance they will also be able 

 to make such suggestions as their va- 

 ried experience may call forth, and in 

 this way will help to make the work of 

 the highest value. 



The list of members of the National 

 Advisory Board of Fuels and Structu- 

 ral Materials is as follows : 



From the American Institute of 

 Mining Engineers John Hays Ham- 

 mond, past-president, Empire Build- 

 ing, New York; Robert W. Hunt (of 

 Robert W. Hunt & Co., testing engi- 

 neers, Chicago, Pittsburg, and New 

 York), Chicago, 111. ; B. F. Bush, man- 

 ager and vice-president, Western Coal 

 and Mining Co., St. Louis, Mo. 



From the American Institute of 

 Electrical Engineers F. B. Crocker, 

 professor of Electrical Engineering, 

 Columbia University, New York ; Hen- 

 ry C. Stott, superintendent motive 

 power, Interborough Rapid Transit 

 Co., New York. 



From the American Society of Civil 

 Engineers C. C. Schneider, presi- 

 dent, chairman Committee on Concrete 

 and Reinforced Concrete, Pennsylva- 

 nia Building, Philadelphia, Pa. ; Geo. 



