﻿4 BULLETIN 12, IT. S. DEPAKTMENT OF AGBICULTTJKE. 



tant places in the primitive blacksmith shop. It is very strong and 

 stiff and was preferred as handles for heavy forge hammers. The 

 wood was frequently demanded in the construction of bellows, an- 

 other indispensable adjunct of the blacksmith shop. Here, too, it 

 was strength and stiffness that gave it a place. 



The wood is difficult to work in the carpenter shop and is not 

 especially attractive in color or figure, yet it was sometimes selected 

 when a handsome high-grade article was demanded. Among heir- 

 looms, dating from the time of the Dutch settlers in New York, a 

 carved spoon rack cut out of beech has come down to the present time. 



Doubtless by far the greatest use of beech during the two cen- 

 turies following the earliest settlements on the Atlantic coast was for 

 fuel. It was convenient almost everywhere, and the farmers pro- 

 cured it easily. The large open fireplaces then common consumed 

 enormous quantities of fuel, much of it beech. 



ARTICLES REQUIRING FREEDOM FROM TASTE. 



Woods which are free from objectionable taste find place in the 

 manufacture of commodities which come in contact with foodstuffs, 

 and beech has long been one of the chief woods so employed. Built- 

 up butchers' blocks are constructed of beech, though not as many as 

 of maple, and for the same reason meat boards, cutting tables in 

 meat-packing houses, and skewers are made of this wood. Lard 

 tubs, butter boxes and pails, and the beaters for ice-cream freezers 

 are other commodities for which beech serves admirably. For ice- 

 cream beaters the persistent hardness of the wood when subjected to 

 attrition and abrasion while wet gives it peculiar fitness. Sugar 

 hogsheads are made of beech, partly because it is a tasteless wood 

 and partly because it has great strength. It is an excellent material 

 for churns. Refrigerators, kitchen safes, and kitchen tables are 

 made of beech in consideration of its freedom from taste and also 

 because the wood is little affected by water. A large class of wood- 

 enware, including veneer plates, dishes, boxes, paddles, scoops, 

 spoons, and beaters, belongs to the kitchen and pantry, and beech 

 is one of the common woods of which they are made. Beech picnic 

 plates are made by millions, a single machine turning out 75,000 

 a day. 



It is customary in some parts of the country to filter cider through 

 a mat of beech shavings to improve the taste and deepen the color. 



AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENTS. 



The range of implements, machines, and apparatus about the farm, 

 in the manufacture of which beech holds an important position, is 

 wide and varied. In most instances it is employed because of its 

 strength and stiffness. Frequently, however, its cheapness is the 



