﻿November, 
  1907 
  

  

  AMERICAN 
  HOMES 
  AND 
  GARDENS 
  

  

  435 
  

  

  Burning 
  Stumps 
  and 
  Rubbish 
  at 
  the 
  End 
  of 
  the 
  Clearing 
  

  

  calling 
  for 
  the 
  expenditure 
  of 
  immense 
  quantities 
  of 
  labor, 
  

   and 
  much 
  expense 
  in 
  tools 
  and 
  animals 
  used 
  in 
  completing 
  

   the 
  work, 
  of 
  clearing. 
  It 
  is 
  just 
  here 
  that 
  dynamite 
  comes 
  

   in, 
  performing 
  a 
  service 
  of 
  great 
  value 
  to 
  those 
  who 
  use 
  it, 
  

   doing 
  the 
  work 
  it 
  has 
  to 
  do 
  with 
  excellence 
  and 
  dispatch, 
  

   and 
  permitting 
  the 
  instant 
  cultivation 
  of 
  the 
  ground 
  or 
  its 
  

   utilization 
  in 
  other 
  ways 
  without 
  loss 
  of 
  time 
  or 
  energy. 
  

  

  In 
  undertaking 
  to 
  clear 
  a 
  piece 
  of 
  ground 
  of 
  tree 
  stumps 
  

   it 
  is 
  obvious, 
  if 
  the 
  land 
  is 
  to 
  be 
  speedily 
  utilized, 
  that 
  the 
  

   work 
  must 
  be 
  done 
  as 
  quickly 
  and 
  as 
  economically 
  as 
  pos- 
  

   sible. 
  And 
  the 
  question 
  of 
  economy 
  is 
  not 
  alone 
  that 
  of 
  the 
  

   money 
  cost 
  of 
  the 
  tools 
  and 
  materials 
  used, 
  but 
  includes 
  also 
  

   the 
  economy 
  of 
  time 
  — 
  the 
  

   most 
  costly 
  thing 
  in 
  the 
  

   w 
  o 
  r 
  1 
  d 
  — 
  an 
  ignoring 
  of 
  

   which 
  often 
  means 
  many 
  

   heavy 
  losses 
  and 
  much 
  

   fruitless 
  labor. 
  

  

  It 
  will, 
  for 
  example, 
  take 
  

   two 
  men 
  with 
  a 
  team 
  of 
  

   horses 
  from 
  a 
  half 
  to 
  two 
  

   days 
  to 
  remove 
  a 
  single 
  tree 
  

   stump, 
  according 
  to 
  its 
  size 
  

   and 
  the 
  depth 
  to 
  which 
  it 
  

   has 
  grown. 
  Even 
  with 
  ex- 
  

   pert 
  workers 
  the 
  task 
  is 
  la- 
  

   borious 
  and 
  expensive, 
  and 
  

   when 
  multiplied 
  by 
  a 
  hun- 
  

   dred 
  and 
  several 
  hundreds 
  

   — 
  as 
  will 
  be 
  the 
  case 
  in 
  a 
  

   forest-grown 
  country 
  — 
  the 
  

   very 
  cheapest 
  land 
  may 
  be- 
  

   come 
  unpleasantly 
  costly. 
  

  

  The 
  greatest 
  saving 
  ef- 
  

   fected 
  by 
  dynamite 
  is 
  in 
  

   time 
  and 
  labor. 
  It 
  is 
  a 
  sav- 
  

   ing 
  so 
  large 
  that 
  the 
  cost 
  of 
  

   the 
  raw 
  materials 
  and 
  the 
  

   simple 
  implements 
  required 
  

   bear 
  hardly 
  any 
  proportion 
  

   to 
  the 
  cost 
  of 
  the 
  work 
  by 
  

  

  old-fashioned 
  methods. 
  As 
  

   a 
  matter 
  of 
  fact 
  the 
  tools 
  

   and 
  implements 
  needed 
  are 
  

   the 
  simplest: 
  a 
  long 
  auger, 
  

   a 
  firing 
  battery, 
  starters, 
  

   and 
  a 
  coil 
  of 
  fine 
  copper 
  

   wire. 
  Nothing 
  more, 
  save 
  

   the 
  dynamite 
  itself, 
  is 
  

   needed 
  for 
  the 
  work. 
  Yet 
  

   there 
  is 
  one 
  other 
  thing 
  re- 
  

   quired, 
  and 
  that 
  is 
  care. 
  Dy- 
  

   namite, 
  according 
  to 
  the 
  

   popular 
  mind, 
  is 
  an 
  exceed- 
  

   ingly 
  dangerous 
  compound. 
  

   Carelessly 
  used 
  it 
  is, 
  of 
  

   course, 
  dangerous 
  in 
  the 
  

   most 
  positive 
  sense. 
  But 
  the 
  

   most 
  dangerous 
  article 
  is 
  

   quite 
  safe 
  if 
  handled 
  as 
  it 
  

   should 
  be, 
  and 
  dynamite 
  

   only 
  needs 
  to 
  be 
  handled 
  in 
  

   this 
  way 
  to 
  be 
  without 
  any 
  

   ordinary 
  possibility 
  of 
  

   harm. 
  One 
  must 
  avoid 
  

   subjecting 
  it 
  to 
  shocks, 
  and 
  

   it 
  must 
  be 
  kept 
  at 
  an 
  even 
  

   temperature, 
  neither 
  too 
  

   cold 
  nor 
  too 
  hot. 
  

  

  Imagine, 
  then, 
  if 
  you 
  

   please, 
  a 
  modest 
  unpretentious 
  country 
  house 
  standing 
  in 
  a 
  

   somewhat 
  open 
  ground, 
  whose 
  distinguishing 
  feature 
  is 
  the 
  

   numerous 
  tree 
  stumps 
  that 
  rise 
  above 
  the 
  soil 
  in 
  every 
  direc- 
  

   tion. 
  The 
  outlook, 
  even 
  on 
  pleasant 
  days, 
  is 
  gloomy 
  enough 
  

   and 
  most 
  discouraging 
  to 
  anyone 
  who 
  supposes 
  that 
  each 
  

   individual 
  stump 
  must 
  be 
  cut 
  out 
  with 
  the 
  spade 
  and 
  dragged 
  

   away 
  with 
  a 
  team 
  of 
  horses. 
  As 
  a 
  matter 
  of 
  fact 
  this 
  method 
  

   proved 
  not 
  only 
  so 
  expensive 
  but 
  so 
  slow 
  that 
  a 
  more 
  effec- 
  

   tive 
  means 
  was 
  sought 
  and 
  dynamite 
  was 
  pressed 
  into 
  service. 
  

   The 
  very 
  simple 
  tools 
  have 
  already 
  been 
  named. 
  The 
  

   chief 
  one 
  was 
  the 
  long 
  auger, 
  which 
  was 
  used 
  for 
  boring 
  

   holes 
  in 
  the 
  base 
  of 
  the 
  stump 
  for 
  the 
  reception 
  of 
  the 
  dyna- 
  

  

  A 
  Final 
  Explosion 
  Left 
  Everything 
  Ready 
  for 
  the 
  Burning 
  of 
  the 
  Debris 
  

  

  