USE OP WOOD BY KAILEOADS. 117 



13. Oak, black walnut, and red elm are used for ties. Oak -will last 7 to 10 years, 

 walnut 5 years, elm 6 years. They are cut at all seasons, and no difference is noticed 

 as to durability. 



14. White and swamp oak are used for ties. Thorough drainage is necessary to in- 

 sure durability. The ties rot soonest in the cuts. Our road has been running 7 years, 

 and we are replacing ties, using such timber as can be got, many being of ash and 

 hackmatack, &e. They are best when cut in winter. 



15. Oak and hemlock are used, the former lasting 7 to 8 years and the latter 5 to 6. 

 They should be cut from December to May. 



16. Hemlock, oak, cedar, and hackmatack are used. The first of these lasts but 4 

 years, and no more are bought. Oak does not meet expectations for durability. They 

 may look sound, but are rotten inside.- They are used for curves, and will last 5 years. , 

 Old-growth hackmatack ties are good in holding spikes, and last 6 to 8 years. Good 

 cedar ties are the most economical for straight lines and light curves, and most of those 

 6 by 8 inches that were put in 7 years ago are in fine condition now. They will last 

 for years to come. Ties should be cut in fall and winter. 



17. White oak in all respects the best. Average life in track, 9 or 10 years. Cut in 

 winter. The Michigan division reports the use of white or burr oak almost esclnsively 

 for ties. The superintendent remarks : " We notice that small trees which will hew 

 to the right size are more durable thau ties sawed from larger trees. They are cut, of 

 late years, altogether in January, February, or March. There have been planted on 

 subdivisions of this road the following trees, more for shade than for timber, and as an 

 inducement to farmers to plant, viz : Between Toledo and Butler, Ind., 760 maples, 7 

 elms, 30 mountain ash, 19 evergreens, 10 chestnut, 1 cottonwood; between Butler and 

 Elkhart, 253 soft maples, 194 hard maples, 16 elms, and 1 sycamore; on Coldwater sub- 

 division, 1,018 maples, 2,353 larch, 2,839 chestnut,40 elm, 56 Norway spruce, 16 cedar, 

 30 white pine, 2 mountain ash, 5 white ash, 2 black ash, 12 black walnut, 18 butternut; 

 on Adrian subdivision, 2 ash, 3 basswood, 1,300 chestnut, 11 cottouwood, 61 elm, 

 2 hickory, 1,161 larch, 803 maple, 2 oak, 2 sycamore, 35 walnut, S3 evergreen. During 

 the last season there were planted on the Jackson branch, between Adrian and Jack- 

 son, 592 chestnut, 465 larch, 120 hard maple, and 10 elm trees. 



18. White oak ; average life, 5 years. Ties cut in winter months. 



19. White and post oak used ; mountain post-oak preferred. It will last 8 years in 

 rock ballast, 6^ years in gravel ballast, and 4^ to 5| years in mud bed. They are cut 

 between August 1 and March 1. By cutting when the sap is down two years of life 

 are gained. Hewed ties will last from 1 to 3 years longer than sawed ties, according 

 to the ballast in which they are bedded. 



20. For ties we use white oak, chestnut-oak, some locust, but very few of any other 

 timber. Locust is the most durable, lasting (except as they wear out by concussion 

 from the rails) 15 to 20 years. Average duration of good white-oak ties, about 8 years. 

 Ties last best if cut between August and April, and timber cut in spring and early 

 summer is not durable. Under heavy traffic, good ties will tvear out before decaying. 



21. Second-growth chestnut used, usually cut in December, January, February, or 

 March. 



22. Ties are made of white and rock oak, cut in fall and winter. 



23, 24, 25. White and chestnut oaks used for ties. They are cut in fall and winter, 

 and are found to last much longer than when cut in spring or summer. 



26. Cedar, tamarack, and hemlock used for ties. Cedar is cheapest and most durable, 

 lasting about 10 years. Ties are cut principally in winter. 



27. Chestnut and white oak commonly used! There is not much difference in the 

 two woods, but under high speed (as on this road) white oak probably excels in dura- 

 bility. They are cut largely in winter. No essential difi'erence has been noticed with 

 respect to season when cut. 



28. Yellow pine and yellow heart cypress used for ties. We find that the pine lasts 

 about 8 years, and the cypress much longer, but the latter is not adapted to roads 

 with much curvature, owing to its being soft and not holding the spikes well. Ties 

 are generally cut in fall and winter; have also had them cut in summer, and cannot 

 observe any difference as to durability. Round pine is largely used in piling in salt 

 water, and we are much annoyed by a worm that will cut off a twelve-inch pile in 

 four years. We are now trying the experiment of driving piles with the natural bark 

 on, and find it to succeed well, as the worm will not work while the bark remains. 

 We would advise the use of cypress for durability, where it can be used. 



29. White chestnut ; it lasts about 8 years. Cut in winter. 



30. White oak will last 10 years, if it is cut in winter, 



31. Black cypress used for ties. The sap rots oft' in about 3 years, but the heart- 

 wood will last 5 to 12 years, according to locality. On low wet ground, covered with 

 dirt, they will last longest. It does not hold spikes well, and they must be driven 

 down four or live times a year. They draw most in summer, and on high dry ground. 

 This wood is cut in winter, and will last twice as long if cut then than in summer. 

 Yellow pine has been tried for ties, but it decays about 20 per cent, a year after the 



