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creosote is bought for that purpose, therefore, it should be certain 
that it is coal tar creosote. 
To obtain creosote oil from coal tar the tar is, in its turn, dis- 
tilled. But this distillation is like that used for other liquids in- 
stead of that employed for the coal. The still is heated, and as 
' the heat increases the "light oils" first pass over. Among these 
is the familiar carbolic acid. This is a powerful antiseptic, but 
it is not desirable in a wood preservative, for it evaporates so 
readily that it soon becomes lost from the wood. When a tem- 
perature of about 400 degrees has been reached, the distillate is 
turned into another receiver, and from this point on to 600 or 700 
degrees creosote oil is produced. One of the substances which is 
contained in this mixture is "naphthalene/' from which common 
moth balls are made. Coal tar creosote, thus produced, is the 
great wood preservative. 
The residue remaining in the still after the distillation is 
"pitch," which is used chiefly in the preparation of roofing felt. 
In America roofing pitch is the chief end for which tar is distilled. 
In Europe this is not so true. Now pitch for roofing must be 
rather soft. Therefore tar distillation is not carried so far in this 
country as it is in Europe. For creosote oil it would be better if 
it were carried farther, since the substances which distil at the 
higher temperatures, in most cases neither evaporate in the air 
nor dissolve in water as readily as those which distil more easily. 
Consequently they stay in the wood for a longer time, and protect 
it correspondingly longer from decay. Much. study is being de- 
voted by the United States Forest Service to creosote oil, to de- 
termine what its composition should be to give the best results in 
preserving timber, under different conditions, and how the most 
desirable creosote may be obtained. The reports of these studies, 
together with detailed description of the more economical pro- 
cesses of applying the preservatives to wood have been worked 
into circulars which the government has placed at the disposal of 
all users of timber and which will be furnished to all who make 
the request of the Forester at Washington. 
TIMBER OWNERS ORGANIZE TO FIGHT FIRE. 
One of the most important economic movements of the day 
about which the general public has yet learned little is the con- 
certed action of owners of timber in different parts of the coun- 
try in organizing associations to protect their holdings from fire. 
In the Pacific Northwest, the Washington Forest Fire Associa- 
tion has just elected officers at Seattle and begun work for the" 
year with 3,000,000 acres under its care. The plans include a 
system of patrol by rangers resembling the work done by the 
United States Forest Service in guarding against and extinguish- 
ing fires. 
