THECUBAREVIEW 29 



STUMP-CLEARING BY EXPLOSIVES^ 



For a good many years, high-class explosives have been used with great success for 

 clearing forest and other land of trees, stumps, boulders, rabbit warrens, ant-hills, etc. 

 In freshly opened areas it has the great advantage of breaking up the soil and so render- 

 ing it more easy to cultivate : on some hard soils its use can alone make it possible to 

 secure profitable crops. Thanks to modern improvements in the blasting cartridges and 

 the introduction of electric detonators for exploding the charge, this can be done without 

 risk, and at very little expense and trouble. When removing the largest trees and stumps, 

 after the necessary boring has been done, two or three holes only being required, the 

 operation takes only a few minutes. The size of the tree is of no apparent consequence, 

 it is only a matter of a hole more or less, a larger cartridge, or a stronger explosive ; 

 in other respects the methods employed and the labor involved are just the same. As 

 regards the boring, this can be done in two ways : 



No. 1. : By boring into the earth immediately under the tree or stump. 



No. 2 : By boring through the large root of the tree or stump. 



The first method is called an earth-hole, and this is the best method wherever prac- 

 ticable, the bore-holes being rapidly prepared with very little labor, and the concentration 

 of the charges of explosives well under the tree or stump will ensure success. 



The second method is to bore the hole or holes in the spur or large roots of the tree 

 or stump, sufficiently deep to burst the wood. By this process the charge, when fired, 

 shatters the large roots and completely severs them from the trunk, whilst the united 

 force from the concerted action of the various charges causes the tree or stump to be 

 completely uprooted. 



In preparing a borehole of the first or "earth-hole" description, the following instruc- 

 tions should be observed : 



Locate any possible opening between the roots for starting a l)orehole, taking care 

 not to disturb the surrounding" earth. 



When an opening has been found, boring operations may commence, and for this pur- 

 pose a crowbar or a .3-inch earth auger may be used — the latter for preference — and 

 the hole bored under the tree or stump in a slanting direction towards the centre tap- 

 root, or centre of the tree, using a little water to facilitate boring operations. 



The operator must be guided by circumstances as to where holes should be bored, but 

 a safe method to adopt is to locate the boreholes in such a way that all point to one 

 common centre — viz., the heart of the tree — or, assuming the tree or stump to require 

 three holes for blasting, let the boreholes be so divided that each hole is carrying about 

 one-third of the burden of the tree; in this way the tree or stum.p is balanced, so to 

 speak, upon the three holes. If this system is adopted, good results will follow if the 

 timber is sound. Should the tree be hollow, however, the holes should be carried under 

 the sound portion, so that the charge has good confinement. 



Briefly, the points to be observed are as follows : 



1. Locate the best positions for boreholes. 



2. Insert cartridges one at a time, and press firmly on bottom of borehole, using only 

 a wooden rammer. 



3. See that the primer is gently pressed home, and in direct contact with the mam 

 charge. 



4. Tamp well and solidly. 



5. See that all connections are well made. 



6. Before connecting with battery, test your cable on galvanometer: and the circuit 

 having been found complete, press down the rack-bar of the exploder firmly and quickly, 

 and the desired results will be speedily attained. 



* A plan of wire connections for exploding dynamite in the removal of stumps will be found on 

 page 27 of the August issue of The Cuba Review. 



Up to August 1.5th, 1,475,808 tons of GILTNER BROS., Eminence, Ky.,U.S. A. 



Cuba's sugar crop had been exported, as 



follows : Ik • Dealers and breeders of 



Three ports north of Hatcras. 1.178,347 tons i^ Kentucky Stallions, Mares 



-v^ r\ 1 -</. -I r>-~ <• M^Bk. 3nd lacks. 



New Orleans lfal,2o< f^Pfe^ ,^ HeVeford. Shorthorn, Hol- 



Galveston 14,999 W^WB'iJ^tXv ^''^'" ^"'^ Jersey bulls. Well 



Eno'land 95 320 wi^HHte^BVV '"'o'^sn mules in car lots for 



r-„„„j„ o-i.o ^K^5?^S| * ^"S^"" planters. 



Canada J.14d ^^ ^rar ^^ Export Trade a Specialty. 



Continental Europe 22,<42 H f| prices named on animals 



The total receipts in Cuba to the above ilM^'0if'^l^/mm$' delivered anywhere in the 



date were 1,816,778 tons. ^'*flf'f^''*w.,;, 'S^JISStv ■'. world. IVrite us your wants. 



