FURNITURE AND FURNISHINGS 



logs are sawed into proper lengths to fit the turning- 

 lathes, some of these machines being able to turn logs 

 ten feet or more in length. The logs are then placed 

 in great tanks of hot water which are heated by steam 

 coils, and are then steeped and soaked until the outer 

 layers of the wood are thoroughly softened. As most 

 of the wood used in veneering is of an extremely dense 

 structure, this soaking process requires some time, 

 frequently many weeks, before the logs are softened 

 to a sufficient depth for cutting. 



When ready for cutting these logs are taken from 

 the soaking-tanks and placed at once in the great 

 lathes. Here they are revolved in such a manner that 

 a thin layer is sliced off along the entire length of the 

 log, the cutting-knife being so arranged that the entire 

 outer surface of the log to a depth of several inches may 

 be removed as a continuous sheet resembling paper as 

 it comes from the roll of the modern printing-press. 

 These great sheets are absolutely uniform in thickness, 

 and as they emerge from the lathe are cut off in widths 

 of convenient size, dried, and piled up like reams of 

 paper. 



In this manner a log two feet in diameter may be 

 pared continuously until it has been reduced to a thick- 

 ness of nine or ten inches. The amount of veneer 

 furnished by such a log is determined of course by 

 the thickness of the shaving, but at the usual thickness, 

 it would furnish something like thirty thousand square 

 feet of the material. 



As just noted, veneering cut in this manner is not 

 usually considered of the finest quality. The direc- 

 VOL. ix. 15 [ 225 ] 



