f6 



KNOWLEDGE • 



[July 7, 18S2. 



WEATHER CHARTS FOR WEEK ENDING SUNDAY, JULY 2, 



MONHAY, "20X11. 



W] 



DXESDAT, USTn. 



TnoRSDAY, 29tu. 



Fkiday, 30tii. 



Saturday, Ist. 



Sunday, 2kd. 



In tho aliove charts the dotted lines aro " JBobnrs," or lines of eqnal barometrical pressure', the values ■nhicli they indicate being 

 gircn in fi).'ure8 at the end, thus — 30'4. Tlio shade temperature is given in tigures for several places on the coast, and the weather is 



recorded in words. Tho arrows fly with the wind, the force of which is shown by tho number of barbs and feathers, thus:— *~ 



light ; > , fresh or strong ; y j , a gale ; » > , a violent gale ; O signiSes calm. The state of the sea is noted in capital 



letters. The * denotes the variona stations. The hour for which each chart is drawn is 6 p.m. 



FORESTS AND RAILROADS. 



FROM an otTicial report made on American railroads, wo have 

 ("imc corimis fa/ts relating to the direct connection between 

 tlic railroadi and tl.e deforestation of tho United States. From it 

 we learn that it takes 201,000 acres of forests to supply cross ties 

 for tho rxilrmds of the United States every year. It takes 

 l.S,CiOfi,0<'0 ties to supply tho demand on these railroads, for which 

 ',n an averniro the contractors get .tS cents apiece, making in tho 

 ai'gregatc 5,250.<OI doN. In building a new road the contractors 

 li;.-ar<.- r,n 2,700 ties to the mile, while it takes 300 ties to tho mile 

 to keep a cinslrnclcl road in repair. Contractors, of course, buy 

 pieces of timbt-r land as near to the proposed line of road as jjossible, 

 |a%ing for tho timber an average of about 20 dols. per acre, or 

 j,-iving the proprietor of tho land 10 cents for every tie got 

 ut. The aveiajfe of a goo<I piece of timber land i< 200 ties to 

 ti.e acre and 12 ties to the tree. The hir.o of a cross tie differs 

 • n different roads, but the usual size demanded is 8 ft. Gin. long 

 r.nd 1^ in. fare. White or bnrr <r<k is considered the bent timber for 

 the ['aq.ore. all hough cherry, maple, a>h, and even loc-ust have been 

 LS-yl. The la.Ht nomod| were first used on tho little Miami rail- 

 roa/l, and after a time thrown aside as unfit for the purpose. 

 Railroad mi n much prefer tics hewn oat with an a«o to thoso 

 •awn in a mill, and many contend that tho first-named will 



considerably outlast the sawed ties. This theory is probably a 

 fallacy, as sawed ties have been placed alongsi<le of hewn 

 ties and remained sound twice as long. This business gives 

 employment to an army of choppers, who are paid 10 cents 

 apiece for each tie. Continued ])raetico makes tho choppers 

 expert in tho use of the axe, and a single man has been known to 

 get out thirty-live in a day; yet the average is only ten while an 

 expert will probably get out twenty. Duringthe war, when tics sold 

 at from GO to 05 cents, choiijiers were jiaid 121 cents ajiiece. Althongh 

 the contractor gets S!i cents apiece from tho railroads for each tic, 

 still there is a loss of from 5 to 7 per cent, on dockage and Btenlagc. 

 An inspector is sent by tho company to inspect the ties. Ihis is 

 generally a clerk from some of tho ofTices, who freqnently knows 

 liut little as regards the strength and durability of timber, and as a 

 confetjuenco some of the bett trees aro docked and only bring 

 20 cents apiece. The stenlngo is where the fcctionnien jmt in new 

 ties which have not been insi)ected and received, Mnd fail to report 

 the use of tho same to, tho roadmaster. Nearly all cros»-tiomoB 

 also contract for the bridge timbers and frcstling, as well as for 

 telegraph poles. For tho latter, chestnut and cedar aro generally 

 used, 'i'hey bring about 175 dols. njiieco, and aro cut mostly in 

 the Tamnrac swamps of Michigan and the forcsls of Southern 

 Kentucky and Tonnoseeo.— Hknky V. Mooiut, in tho Journal of 

 forestry. 



