﻿8 BULLETIN 12, U. S. DEPAKTMENT OP AGRICULTURE. ' 



Sicily orange and lemon trade. This is shipped in bulk and the boxes 

 are made abroad. 



Large quantities of beech broom handles are on the market. The 

 wood is not as popular as maple, because of darker color and a little 

 more weight, but its service is as satisfactory. Makers of carpet 

 sweepers find place for some high-grade beech, and it enters more 

 largely into brush backs than any other American wood, due to its 

 ability to hold its shape while alternately wet and dry. Its use, 

 however, is confined to cheaper grades of brushes, and it does not 

 compete with mahogany and ebony. 



Beech, because it is smooth, hard, and elastic, holds an important 

 place in the manufacture of children's games and toys. It is one of 

 the best woods for rolling hoops. It serves also as drum hoops and 

 as corners for various gaming boards. The entire crokinole board 

 is often of beech. Rockers for hobby horses, hand sleds, and parts 

 of toy wagons are commonly made of this wood. The stereopticon 

 is a small apparatus and does not require much wood, but beech 

 appears to be used more than all others combined. 



There are few musical instruments in which wood is used which 

 do not find beech serviceable for some part. Draw stops in organs, 

 the framework of pianos and pipe organs, the shells of drums, parts 

 of mandolins, and frames and horns of talking machines are often 

 of beech. 



It is listed among woods available for weaving and knitting ma- 

 chines, particularly for certain styles of shuttles and spools, and for 

 bobbins in lace-making machines, crochet hooks employed in hand- 

 work, and in darning machines. The pairs of concentric hoops for 

 stretching fabric to be embroidered are often of beech, the wood's 

 strength and stiffness making it possible to have such hoops very 

 thin and narrow. 



Larger machines and appliances also find this strong, smooth wood 

 valuable. Carpenters' workbenches are frequently made of it, but 

 more particularly the bench screws turned from solid pieces. This 

 tool must stand trying service, and there are not many woods, 

 especially those of moderate cost, that will endure the strain. Other 

 articles for which beech has proved its value are factory trucks, 

 pulley blocks, and parts of weighing machines. 



Printers and bookbinders use much machinery, many tools, and 

 various kinds of cabinets and furniture made of wood, and beech, 

 next to sugar maple, is most often employed. Type cabinets and rule 

 cases, as well as the ordinary type cases and case racks, are frequently 

 made of beech. The list of other articles for printers and book- 

 binders in the construction of which beech is a favorite material 

 includes ruling machines, sewing frames, clamps, galleys, mallets, 

 quoins, sort racks, and wooden type. 



