48 



THE SOUTHERN LUMBERMAN 



particulars Furniture is moved from place to place j s that the wood must be fairly light, moderately a facsimile of the casting to be molded. It is 



and is not designed for any particular room or c h e ap/not too dark in color, and it must produce 



space. Fixtures are intended to remain in the posi- elastic excelsior. The article has uses other than 



tions where the maker places them, and they can- &g packing mate rial. Upholsterers make mattresses, 



not be moved without more or less injury. They are 

 divided into three classes, based on the uses in- 

 tended office, store and bar. Office fixtures in- 

 clude desks and tables built in certain spaces and 

 intended to be left there; partitions between differ- 

 ern parts of the same room, and benches and seats 

 which are made fast to the walls or the floor. Bar 

 fixtures consist of racks and cabinets for glasses, 

 frames in which to exhibit commodities for sale, 

 and the bar itself. The fixtures for stores in 

 elude counters, showcases, cabinets, shelves and 

 benches and seats made to fit certain places. Banks 

 use the same class of fixtures as offices. No at- 

 tempt is here made to name or enumerate all arti- 

 cles classed as fixtures. That would not be pos- 

 sible, for special kinds and odd articles are con- 

 stantly demanded. Sometimes the line separating 

 fixtures from furniture cannot be exactly defined, 

 nor the separating line between fixtures and finish : 

 but after due allowance is made for exceptions the 

 fixture industry is adequately defined in its scope. 



No other industry in Tennessee buys wood of so 

 high average price. The material is expensive be- 

 cause much of it is of high class and must be 

 had in large sizes. Cabinets and counter tops 

 require broad panels, and they are expensive. If 

 extra wide, they are built up, usually of several ply 

 veneer. An examination of Table 18 reveals the 

 fact that a number of woods which are cheap in 

 other industries are costly in this. That is due to 

 high grade and large prices. Sycamore is $30, white 

 ash over $40, red oak, $42, white oak still higher 

 and so on. The cheapest is shortleaf pine. The 

 whole quantity of that wood listed was used by a 

 single manufacturer who was able to buy it cheap. 

 Fixture manufacturers in Kentucky pay an average 

 price of $26.20 for their wood; it costs $34.52 in 

 North Carolina. $41.44 in Illinois, $40.40 in Mary- 

 land, $44.12 in Wisconsin, and $38.28 in Tennessee. 



It should be borne in mind in this instance as in 

 so many others that a mere ratio between prices 

 for woods employed in a given industry in a num- 

 ber of states is not always a safe ground for the 

 conclusion that the material is cheaper or dearer 

 in one state than in another. A difference in price 

 for a certain wood may be due to difference in 

 grade; or a large amount of a costly wood in- 

 creases the general average of all; or one cheap 

 wood in large quantity lowers the general average 

 of all. Mahogany in Table 18 cost $155 a thousand, 

 and 80,000 feet were reported. Suppose it had been 

 800.000 instead of 80,000. The average cost of all 

 woods reported for the industry would be raised 

 above $75 a thousand. 



The woods in Table 18 which were largely em- 

 ployed as cores or backing for veneers or as in- 

 side frames or shelves are red gum, shortleaf pine 

 chestnut and black gum. The others possess figure, 

 grain or color fitting them for outside places. 



cushions and filling for seats and backs of parlor 

 furniture of it; but the amount going into commodi- 

 ties of that kind is much smaller than that em- 

 ployed for packing. Excelsior, even of the finest 

 grades, is not in the same class with hair of Spanish 

 moss for upholstery. It is packed in bales like hay 

 and is sold by weight. It is not usually shipped far 

 from the place of manufacture, but each industrial 



buried in damp sand which is tamped about it. The 

 pattern is then removed in a way provided for, 

 and the hollow space, the shape of the pattern, re- 

 mains. The metal is poured in and the casting is 

 formed. The flask is the box which holds the sand 

 into which the casting is run. High-class wood is 

 not essential for flask making as it is for patterns. 

 The foundry is not the only user of patterns. They 

 are necessary in shops of many kinds, and a cer- 

 tain class of patterns are called models. 



Most of the sycamore and some of the maple in 

 the miscellaneous table were converted into butcher 



EXCELSIOR. 

 Table 19. 



Kinds of wood 

 Yellow poplar . 

 Black willow . . . 

 Shortleaf pine . 



Basswood 



Buckeye 



Cottonwood .... 



Quantity used annually 

 feet B. M. per cent 

 52.27 

 18.18 

 15.91 

 5.00 

 4.55 



Totals 



575,000 



200,000 



175,000 



55,000 



50.000 



45,000 



1,100,000 



4.09 

 100.00 



Average 



cost per 



1,000 ft. 



$ 9.58 



8.15 



8.05 



9.11 



9.24 



9.20 



Total 

 cost f. o. b. 

 factory 

 $ 5,510 

 1,630 

 1,409 

 501 

 462 

 414 



$ 9,926 



Grown in 



Tennessee 



feet B. M. 



575,000 



200,000 



175,000 



55,000 



50,000 



45,000 



1,100,000 



Grown 

 out of 



Tennessee 

 feet B. M. 



region has factories which supply the markets 

 within reach. 



Miscellaneous. 



Much wood is used for manufacturing purposes 

 in Tennessee which does not go to any of the in- 

 dustries represented in Tables 2 to 19 inclusive. 

 It is made into various articles, so different in char- 

 acter and purpose that they cannot be logically 

 grouped in amounts large enough to be properly 

 called industries. All such are represented in Table 

 20 as "Miscellaneous." Eighteen woods are In- 

 cluded, all of them American, and all but one long- 

 leaf pine native of Tennessee. It is not practica- 

 ble to list all the kinds of articles made from the 

 woods shown in the miscellaneous table; but some 

 of the most important follow. 



iSome of the black walnut is bought by manufac- 

 turers of firearms, and is made into gunstocks and 

 pistol grips. This has always been the leading gun- 

 stock wood of Tennessee, as well as of the country 

 generally, and it holds the place in spite of ad- 

 vancing price. It does not appear, however, that the 

 price paid for the walnut in Table 20 was very high. 

 In former times a good many gunstocks were made 

 in Tennessee which never saw a factory. They 

 were cut out by hand for old-fashioned rifles, and 

 were usually of maple. At the present day a few 

 gunstocks are so made in the state, though no report 

 of them was compiled in a way to render the data 

 available for Table 20. Yellow wood (Cladrastis 

 lutea) is used. This wood is known also as yellow 

 ash, yellow locust and gopher wood. It takes a 

 good polish and is serviceable. 



White pine is the best wood for patterns because 

 it cuts easily and holds its shape well, provided it 

 has been thoroughly seasoned. Choice pattern 



FIXTURES. 

 Table IS. 



Kinds of wood 



White oak 



Red gum 



Birch 



Shortleaf pine . 



Black gum 



Mahogany 



Red oak 



Chestnut 



White ash 



Yellow poplar . 

 Sugar maple . . . 



Sycamore. 



Blach w<!nut . . 



Totau. 



Quantity used annually 

 feet B. M. per cent 



510,000 



350.000 



130.000 



100,000 



100,000 



80,000- 



80,000 



60,000 



55,000 



30,000 



20,000 



15. Of") 



3,0<P 



33.27 



22.83 



8.48 



6.52 



6.52 



5.22 



5.22 



3.91 



3.59 



1.96 



1.30 



.98 



.20 



1,533,000 100.00 



Excelsior. 



The low average cost of wood bought by excelsior 

 manufacturers is due to purchase in log form. Logs 

 smaller than ordinary saw timber are suitable; but 

 there, should not be too many knots. Excelsior is 

 nothing more than narrow shavings cut by ma- 

 chinery adapted to that purpose; and if these shav- 

 ings are broken into short lengths, as is likely to 

 be the case if the wood is knotty, the product be- 

 comes little better than sawdust, and, of course, 

 depreciates in value. The principal use for it is 

 packing breakable articles of merchandise for ship- 

 ping. If the excelsior is not soft, yielding and some 

 what elastic as a mass, its worth is reduced. The 

 machines that make it are equipped with knife- 

 like points for slitting the bolt of wood length- 

 wise, and another blade that shaves off tha scored 

 surface and makes the narrow, thin ribbons of wood 

 constituting the manufactured article. There are 

 different qualities, depending upon the fineness of 

 the ribbons and the quality of the wood used as raw 

 material. Yellow poplar is the leading wood for 

 this industry in Tennessee, and costs $9.58 per 

 thousand feet; in Wisconsin the principal excelsior 

 wood is aspen and costs $11.37; in North Carolina 

 white pine and yellow poplar are reported in equal 

 p-nounts. the former costing $6.34, the latter $10. 

 Most regions have one or more available woods; 

 some have many. The most essential requirement 



Average 

 cost per 

 1,000 ft. 



$43.33 

 16.00 

 51.85 

 12.00 

 16.00 



155.00 

 42.44 

 21.33 

 40 45 

 35.00 

 25.00 

 30. PO 

 50.01 



$38.28 



Total 



cost f. o. b. 



factory 



$ 22,100 



5,600 



6,740 



1,200 



1,600 



12,400 



3,395 



1,280 



2,225 



1,050 



500 



450 



150 



$ 58,690 



Grown in 



Tennessee 



feet B. M. 



285,000 



225.000 



30,000 



100.000 



100,000 



Yo',665 



50,000 

 30.000 

 30,000 



Y.666 



1,000 

 938,000 



Grown 

 out of 

 Tennessee 

 feet B. M. 

 225,000 

 125.000 

 100,000 



80,000 



' 10,666 



25,000 



' 20.666 



8,000 

 2,<130 



595,000 



woods come from old trees such as are seldom found 

 in forests now. Material of that class is often called 

 pumpkin pine or cork pine. Foundries use some 

 of the best obtainable wood for patterns. Other 

 species have taken the place of white pine for cer- 

 tain kinds of patterns; cypress is one and sugar 

 pine of California is another, but neither of them 

 was reported by pattern makers in Tennessee. 

 Foundry flasks go with patterns. The pattern is 



$ 9.02 



blocks. The old-style block, which was simply a 

 piece of a log the proper length and stood on 

 end, is not holding the ground it once had. Health 

 boards and sanitary committees have discouraged 

 its use on the ground that it is not conducive to 

 health. The piece of a log checks and the opening 

 cracks form lodging places for bacteria and other 

 impurities where the scrubbing brush cannot reach 

 them. The built-up meat block is less objection- 

 able because it checks less. Thoroughly seasoned 

 pieces are fitted together and held with dowels and 

 glue. Blocks of that sort wear as well as the one- 

 piece kind and are replacing them. 



Some of the hickory in the table was converted 

 into skewers, a meat shop article, consisting of a 

 small peg for preparing certain cuts of meat for 

 the pot or oven. 



A number of woods figure in the manufacture of 

 play-ground equipments which are rapidly gaining 

 in favor in all parts of the country. Among the 

 articles are swings, slides, teeter boards, flying 

 Dutchmen, toboggans and the like. 



Brooms are listed among the miscellaneous man- 

 ufactures. The handle is the only wooden part of 

 most brooms. The search for suitable wood tor 

 broom handles is active. At one period in broom- 

 making history in this country it was desirable 

 that the handles be of light material such as bass- 

 wood and yellow poplar; or. at any rate, woods were 

 not discriminated against because they were light 

 in weight. The advance in recent years in the 

 price of broomcorn has caused manufacturers to 

 look with more favor on heavy woods for handles. 

 Brooms at wholesale are sold by weight, and if 

 the handle is heavy a little less broomcorn may be 

 used without resulting in an underweisht broom. 

 Handles are of beech, birch and maple, with smaller 

 lots of other woods. In some Southern States gum 

 and magnolia have been successfully tried. 



The manufacturers of pumps draw for supplies 

 upon the woods listed in Table 20. The sucker rods 

 are of ash and hickory; the handles of beech, 

 maple, hickory or ash: and the logs yellow poplar, 

 maple and basswood. The well sweep of early times 

 and the old oaken and cedar buckets that hung in 

 the wells are passing away and the pump is taking 

 their place, but the change is by no means complete 

 in Tennessee. Though the manufacture of pumps 

 has reached respectable proportions, the bucket 

 and sweep linger among the hills and valleys. 



Laundry methods and appliances are likewise 

 undergoing change, and a considerable part of the 

 wood listed in the miscellaneous table is converted 

 into washing machines, stationary tubs, wringers, 

 dryers and other modern conveniences which are 

 driving from use the old-time back-breaking tubs 

 made by sawing whiskey barrels in two. The old 

 tub and its worthy mate, the home-made rubbing 

 board, have not disappeared, nor will they soon 

 disappear entirely; but machinery to run by steam 

 or some other power than muscle has entered the 

 field and has lifted from feminine shoulders part of 

 the burden that has oppressed since the days when 



MISCELLANEOUS. 

 Table 20. 



3.414.628 



3.000.000 



1.352,000 



1,187.000 



1.080.000 



1,050.000 



700,000 



565.000 



400,000 



Kinds of wood 



Red gum 



Cottonwood 



Hickory 



White oak 



Shortleaf pine 



Red oak 



Black ash 



Yellow poplar 



Chestnut 



Beech 325.000 



Sycamore 200.000 1.45 



Sugar maple 115.000 .83 



White ash 100.000 .73 



Basswood 100,000 .72 



I^nngleaf pine % ; . . 100.000 .73 



Silver maple 70,000 .51 



rtlack walnut 25,000 .18 



White pine 8,000 .06 



100.00 



Quantity used annually 

 feet B. M. per cent 

 24.76 

 21.75 

 9.80 

 8.61 

 7.83 

 7.61 

 5.07 

 4.10 

 2.90 

 2.36 



Totals 13,791,628 



Average 

 cost per 

 1.000 ft. 

 $14.40 

 21.00 

 17.71 

 19.59 

 19.85 

 18.17 

 14.00 

 18.69 

 In. 00 

 15.23 

 15.00 

 23.13 

 14.00 

 18.00 

 19.00 

 16.43 

 30.00 

 33.75 



$17.70 



Total 



cost f. o. b. 



factory 



$ 49.162 



63,000 



23,940 



23,255 



21,440 



19,075 



9,800 



10.560 



6.000 



4.950 



3.000 



2.660 



1.400 



1.800 



1,900 



1.150 



750 



270 



$ 244,112 



Grown in 



Tennessee 



feet B. M. 



1,050,000 



402.000 



1,187,000 



300,000 



990,000 



ViVn'.OOO 

 400.000 

 300.000 

 200,000 

 50.000 

 100,000 

 100,000 



'50,666 



25.000 

 3.000 



5,722,000 



Grown 

 out of 

 Tennessee 

 feet B. M. 

 2,364.628 

 3,000.000 

 950,000 



780.000 



f,0 000 



700,000 



25,000 



5,666 



100,000 

 20.000 



5,666 



8,069,628 



