JuxT 31, 190S] 



SCIENCE 



145 



southern states, the seriousness of the situa- 

 tion is apparent. The textile mills of the 

 country represent a capitalization of nearly 

 a billion dollars, and bobbins, shuttles and 

 spindles are just as necessary parts of these 

 mills as the throttle is to the locomotive. 

 Fortunately the shuttle manufacturers have 

 found another source of supply in the dog- 

 wood stands in the far northwest part of the 

 country. Two large companies manufactur- 

 ing spindles, shuttles and bobbins have erected 

 plants in the Cascades in Oregon, whose dog- 

 wood forests are the greatest in the world, the 

 tree often attaining a height of 75 feet and a 

 diameter of one to two feet. The southern 

 dogwood is rarely more than 6 inches in di- 

 ameter. Extensive stands of dogwood are 

 also found in California and Washington. 

 Up to the present time, lumber users in the 

 Pacific northwest have found dogwood value- 

 less except for fuel, and its utilization for the 

 manufacture of shuttles will bring about a 

 considerable increase in stumpage values of 

 this tree. These companies, at their Oregon 

 plants, will not only manufacture the articles 

 named, but will utilize every part of the tree, 

 turning to account the waste wood and pro- 

 ducing such by-products as pyroligneous acid, 

 acetic acid, protacetate of iron, acetate of 

 lime, methylated spirits, solvent naphtha, 

 wood tar, wood pitch, and various forms of 

 charcoal. Dogwood is indispensable in the 

 manufacture of shuttles, bobbins and spindles, 

 because it is the only wood which takes a high 

 polish and wears perfectly smooth by friction 

 under water. The discovery of the adapt- 

 ability of the Pacific dogwood, however, has 

 not aided the eastern manufacturers, and they 

 have been obliged to look for substitutes nearer 

 home. The most promising of these are 

 mesquite and tupelo gum. The wood of the 

 mesquite is heavy and very hard, close 

 grained, and has a compact structure. It is 

 probable that it would be eminently adapted 

 for the manufacture of shuttle blocks, as it 

 appears to have all the requisite qualities of 

 weight, hardness, and susceptibility to a high 

 smooth polish. Already it has proved well 

 fitted for the manufacture of spools and 



bobbins for which white birch is now so 

 largely used. The tupelo gum is medium hard 

 and heavy, and has a compact fibrous struc- 

 ture. It has not yet been utilized to much 

 extent in the textile industries, though it is 

 quite probable it will play an important part 

 in the future, since it combines with several 

 necessary qualities the exacting property of 

 wearing smooth by friction. 



UNIVERSITY AND EDUCATIONAL NEWS 

 The University of Illinois, on July 3, let a 

 contract for the erection of the physics build- 

 ing, for which the last legislature made an 

 appropriation of $250,000. The building is 

 to be of brick with Bedford stone trimmings, 

 and is to be fireproof. Its length is 178 feet 

 and depth 125 feet. The first floor is rec- 

 tangular, and the three upper floors are U- 

 shaped. The space between the wings on the 

 first floor is used for the large lecture rooms, 

 in which overhead lighting is used. In addi- 

 tion to the large laboratories and class-rooms 

 for the regular undergraduate courses, the 

 building contains twenty-four small labora- 

 tories specially arranged for research students. 

 The university was fortunate in letting its 

 contract at a time of lower prices, so that 

 funds are available for satisfactory furnish- 

 ing and equipment of the building. The 

 building is to be completed in the summer of 

 1909. A contract has also been let for an ad- 

 dition to the natural history building, for 

 which the last legislature appropriated $150,- 

 000. 



A SCHOOL of journalism has been organized' 

 in the University of Missouri, with Professor 

 Walter Williams as dean. As a laboratory- 

 feature it has the University Missourian, a 

 small but well-balanced daily newspaper, upon 

 which the work will be done, under the direc- 

 tion of experienced newspapermen, by the- 

 students of the school. Courses will be given 

 in the history and principles of journalism, in 

 newspaper administration, in illustration, in 

 the libel law, in news-gathering, in reporting, 

 in editorial writing, in office equipment, and 

 in other purely professional branches. In 

 addition, courses will be given in English 



