TANNING MATERIALS 71 



found principally in the East along the southern Appalachian Mountain 

 regions, while the latter is found entirely in southern Oregon and Cali- 

 fornia. 



Chestnut oak (Quercus prinus) is found most abundantly in Virginia, 

 West Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina, Kentucky, and southern 

 Pennsylvania, in order of importance. It seldom grows in pure stands 

 but is associated with a number of other oaks and hardwoods. It grows 

 chiefly on the northern and eastern slopes of the mountains. Its bark 

 is exceedingly ridged, some indentations often being 3 in. deep. The 

 peeling operations are carried on generally from late in March to middle 

 of June or later, and the general plan of peeling the bark is very similar 

 with chestnut oak as with hemlock. 



The presence of considerable quantities of chestnut oak, together with 

 the hemlock forests have established the location of many tanneries in 

 western Virginia and in West Virginia. An increasing amount of chest- 

 nut oak bark is being consumed from year to year. There is serious 

 danger of the supply of this wood being exhausted if the present rate of 

 consumption continues. Many of the chestnut oak forests grow in more 

 or less inaccessible places, and in portions of northeastern Tennessee it 

 was estimated that only 2 per cent of the entire cut of the chestnut oak 

 was converted into lumber, whereas 75 per cent was cut exclusively for 

 the bark alone. In northwestern Virginia a tannery which has been in 

 operation for thirty years on chestnut oak bark alone, is now gradually 

 accepting the bark of other oaks. The bark competes, moreover, with 

 hemlock bark and chestnut extract. The managers of tanneries claim 

 that hemlock bark is best employed by combining it with chestnut oak 

 bark. Chestnut oak extract is also used with chestnut wood extract to 

 give strength, tenacity, and greater impermeability to leather. 



In 191 1 the ruling price in Virginia and West Virginia for chestnut 

 oak bark was about $8.50 per cord delivered on cars. During the sum- 

 mer of 1916 prices had risen to from $11.00 to $12.00 or more. During 

 1917 and 1918, it had risen to still higher figures. The average cost of 

 harvesting chestnut oak bark prior to the war was about as follows : 



