704 



Popular Science Monthly 



unnecessary top cross-braces and attaching 

 an overflow spout near the top of one end. 

 The operation of this instrument is very- 

 simple, being based upon the principle that 

 a submerged body displaces a volume of 

 water equal to its own solid contents. The 

 tank is filled with water to the overflow 

 spout; then the wood material to be meas- 

 ured is submerged. The displaced volume 

 of water escaping through the opening or 

 overflow represents the exact volume of the 

 submerged -material. 



Some of the results concerning wood 

 waste secured by the use of this instru- 

 ment are almost incredible. For example : 

 a white pine tree, which in its original 

 condition comprised 25.05 cubic feet of 

 wood and bark, was converted into shingles. 

 It yielded 603 shingles (4 x 21 inches) 

 which displaced 11.86 cubic feet- of water, 

 showing that only 47.3 per cent of the wood 

 originally in the tree remained in the 

 finished product. The exact percentage of 

 waste would be difficult, if not impossible, 

 to obtain by other means. — J. S. Illick. 



Submerging billets of wood. The water dis- 

 placed and forced out into the graduated pail 

 will be equal to the solid contents of the wood 



Here Is the Xylometer. It Measures 

 the Waste in Wood Products 



THERE has always been a large amount 

 of waste in converting a tree into 

 lumber and other products. The first 

 logical step in the reduction of this waste 

 is an accurate determination of the amount 

 of waste and a careful study of the process 

 of manufacture and remanufacture. A 

 xylometer offers the most practical means 

 of determining the percentage of waste 

 and may be of inestimable value to the 

 forester, woodsman and mill operator at- 

 tempting a closer utilization of forest 

 products. 



The xylometer is an instrument which is 

 not well-known in America but which has 

 been in use for years 

 in European countries. 



The type here 

 shown was 

 improvised 

 from an ordi 

 nary round- 

 end galva- 

 nized steel 

 storage tank 

 by removing 

 a number of 



The automatic engine. Its speed is adjustable. 

 Even the cooling is automatic, the flywheel whirling 

 air into the engine base like a centrifugal fan 



The Simplified Gasoline Engine. It's 

 the Hired Girl of the Country 



THIS miniature motor is the house- 

 wife's faithful laundress, churner, etc. 

 It can be operated with as much success by 

 a child as by an adult. One turn of the 

 light flywheel and the engine starts off. By 

 simply turning the thumbscrew over the 

 main bearing, its speed is adjusted. 



The cylinder of the motor is inverted. 

 This allows the gasoline to flow from its 

 tank directly into contact with the electric 

 spark caused by the spark coil of the igni- 

 tion system. The 

 result is that some 

 gas will immedi- 

 ately explode 

 and the en- 

 gine can be 

 quickly 

 started even 

 in the cold- 

 est weather. 

 The inver- 

 sion of the 

 cylinder, 

 moreover, makes 

 it a simple mat- 

 ter to enclose its 

 hot end in an iron 

 housing, out of 

 the way of the 

 children's fingers. 



