22 BULLETIN 12, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGEICULTUEE. 



A long list of novelties draw upon yelloAV birch, including many 

 kinds of small boxes and kegs in two pieces, such as pill boxes, and 

 boxes of soap, toilet powders, medicines, tacks, paper fasteners, school 

 supplies, and other articles almost without number. 



MISCELLANEOUS. 



The miscellaneous uses of yellow birch range from workbenches 

 and grain doors down to toothpicks. It is not the exclusive material 

 for any of the many commodities into which it is converted, but holds 

 an important place as a contributor. The textile mills make spools 

 and bobbins of it, but paper birch is better. Brush manufacturers 

 find many places for it, but sweet birch and sometimes the heart- 

 wood of paper birch are preferred. It goes into millions of tooth- 

 picks, but is not generally liked as well as the white paper birch. 

 It is widely utilized for shipping boxes, baskets, and crates, and it 

 is one of the stiffest, strongest woods procurable, but on account of 

 its excessive weight it is sometimes discriminated against. It is 

 excellent for veneer boxes, and that is probably one of the most im- 

 portant places it fills. Citrus fruit from northern Africa and the 

 islands and countries of the Mediterranean is often sent to market 

 in boxes of yellow birch, made from veneer cut in New England. 

 Skewers from this tree are in many markets, but those of hickory 

 are usually preferred, because they show less tendency to split and 

 splinter. Button molds and the wooden body of tassels are fre- 

 quently cut from yellow birch. Soap sticks draw from the same 

 source of supply. Carefulh^ selected heart wood finds many places 

 in interior finish, such as newel posts, stair rails, chair and base- 

 boards, spindles, brackets, and sometimes panels, partitions, and 

 ceilings. Much of it is unselected for color, since uniform effects in 

 almost any stain can be obtained w^ith both heartwood and capwood. 



Other uses for yellow birch are in the manufacture of artists' 

 materials, palettes, easels, rules, and stretchers ; tradesmen's triangles 

 and squares, dumb-bells and Indian clubs for the gymnasium; puz- 

 zles and toy blocks for children, and novelties of many kinds. 



DISTILLATION. 



The products of distillation from yellow birch are the same as 

 from beech, for the w^oods go to the chemical plants together. 



Oil of yellow birch is sometimes employed to flavor candy and soda 

 water. 



PAPER BIRCH. 

 (Betula papijrifera.) 



PHYSICAL PROPERTIES. 



Weight of dry wood. — 37.11 pounds per cubic foot (Sargent). 



Specific gravity. — 0.5955 (Sargent). 



Ash. — 0.25 per cent of weight of dry wood (Sargent). 



