Canadian Foreslrii Journal, September, 1918 



1865 



The Race for Aeroplane Spruce 



By J. H. Hamilton, 

 Editor "Industrial Progress," Vancouver. 



Three to Four Thousand Men Engaged in Speed- 

 ing Up the Wood Supply in British Columbia. 



A few month > ago Ine amount of 

 aeroplane spruce l)eing i^roduccfl in 

 B. C. was praciically a nei'ligil)le 

 quantity. The campaign of pro- 

 duction inaugurated by the Aeronau- 

 tical Branch of the Im{)crial Muni- 

 tions Board, with the t^ early co- 

 operation of the Forest Department 

 of the British Cohimbia Government 

 and of the lumber trade in the prov- 

 ince, has produced results far beyond 

 the expectation, of the most ardent 

 optimist. When the whole tale can 

 be told, the result attained will be a 

 source of pride to the organizing 

 ability of the province. 

 , The Commission of Conserva- 

 tion, in a recent report of their in- 

 vestigation, estimated that approx- 

 imately fourteen billion feet of Sitka 

 Spruce is available on the coast 

 of B.C. Only a very small propor- 

 tion of this, of course, is available for 

 aeroplane stock, buL it represents 

 practically an illimitable supply never- 

 theless. The spruce on the Coast 

 is the Sitka Spruce (Picea Sitchensis) 

 also known as Giant Spruce, Silver 

 Spruce, Tideland Spruce or Alaska 

 Spruce. The spruces are very valu- 

 able forest trees found in every 

 country in the Northern Ilemiisphere. 

 They yield excellent lumber, and 

 are unsurpassed for pulp manufacture. 

 Seven of the eighteen species grow in 

 North America. Sitka Spruce, the 

 giant of the genus, both in size and 

 c[uality, grows only on the Pacific 

 Coast. IVIature trees average 150 

 feet in height and 4 feet in diameter, 

 while some trees grow to over 200 

 feet in height and 10 to 15 feet in 

 diameter. The tall, straight poles 

 with their moderate taper, furnish 

 saw timber of the best quality and in 

 largest dimensions, unusually clear 

 and free from defects. 



It has been stated by the Imperial 

 authorities that after a world-wide 

 search and the most stringent tests 

 the Sitka Spruce of the Northern 

 Pacific Coast is by far the most 

 suitable wood for the construction of 

 aeroplanes. Its value for this pur- 

 pose depends more upon its elasticity 

 and toughness of fibre than upon its 

 actual strength. Douglas Fir, for 

 instance, is stronger wood than Sitka 

 Spruce, but far more brittle. The 

 length of fibre of spruce enables it 

 to take a lateral strain without 

 breaking better than almost any 

 other wood. The distribution of 

 spruce on the coast of B. C. is very 

 wide, practically the whole of the 

 coastline for a distance of several 

 miles inland being heavily timbered 

 with this tree, some parts, of course, 

 far more densely than others. 



Speaking generally, the largest trees 

 grow on the Queen Charlotte Islands 

 and there are some very fine stands on 

 the West Coast of Vancouver Island 

 and the northern section of the Main- 

 land Coast. The forests of the Queen 

 Charlotte Islands were practically 

 virgin until the aeroplane spruce 

 loggers went in early this spring. 

 It is hard to say just where the finest 

 timber is, for the stand is so la rge 

 that the production so far has prac- 

 tically ony touched the fringe of the 

 available supply. It is stated by 

 the authorities that the production 

 of cut aeroplane stock has been 

 trebled during the past three months 

 and that the speeding-up process is 

 continuing in the same ratio. Figures 

 regarding the actual output cannot 

 be published for obvious reasons, but 

 it may be stated that from three to 

 four thousand men are employed 

 directly in the industry in the logging 

 camps and mills. 



