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NOMENCLATURE. German, die tanne, silbertanne. English, the silver-tree. 

 Dutch, denneboom. Italian, abete. Russian, pichta. Hungarian, fonnyo-fa . 



USES. The Norway spruce yields an abundance of thick yellow pitch at Burgundy 

 pitch, especially when it's planted in rich fertile soil. To extract the pitch thin strips of the 

 bark are peeled away down to the wood. The resin or pitch oozes from everywhere in the 

 opening; it can be gathered from spring until fall, provided that one takes care to keep the 

 cut open. The pitch seems to emerge only from the bark; none of it comes from the wood. 

 Pitch collected during hot dry weather is better than that taken when the weather is damp 

 and rainy. The tree can supply pitch for thirty years with just a single cut, but if the cuts 

 are repeated it will die much sooner. Burgundy pitch is an ingredient in several 

 ointments. Occasionally it's used alone, spread on the skin or on cloth to apply it to the 

 areas afflicted by rheumatic pain. It's mixed with grease, and it's used to lubricate the 

 axles of carriages to reduce friction. A thick resin is obtained by blending it with tar. The 

 inhabitants of Lapland, which has little vegetation, use this tree to great effect. They 

 make ropes out of the roots, as well as elegant baskets and chests of drawers that are sold 

 in Sweden, and they build lightweight boats with the wood. 



The red, silver, and black firs and especially the hemlock-spruce are used in the 

 United States to prepare a wholesome and pleasant drink, according to Duhamel. I tried 

 some in England. 1 agree that it might be healthy, but I always found it to be quite 

 unpleasant as a drink. The barks of these different trees are used for tanning leather. 

 Inhabitants of the Alps obtain a clear liquid turpentine from the silver fir that's used in the 

 arts and in medicine. An extract or oil of turpentine, produced by distillation, has been 

 used very successfully in England for a number of years as a treatment for tapeworm. 



