THE SEASONING OF WOOD. 21 
7. Dimensions of Stack (Endwise or Side wise Piling). 
The customary width of stacks is from 8 to 16 feet. The height is governed by 
the size and character of the lumber and by the methods of moving it. 
8. Treated Ends (Endwise or Sidewise Piling). 
The ends of lumber 2\ inches thick or over, unless of the lower grades, should receive 
a brush treatment of paint or some liquid filler. 
The rules just given are based on information obtained through 
field investigations and from lumber manufacturers and wholesale 
and retail dealers, and accord with the best lumber-piling practice 
in general commercial use. Certain species of wood, however, re- 
quire particular care in air-drying, and in this case slight variations 
from the rules are necessary in order to secure the best results. Some 
lumbermen in the South, for example, find that thick red oak checks 
badly on the ends, and in air-drying such stock have adopted tha 
scheme of protecting it with sun shields, as shown in Plate V,figure 1, 
which they claim reduces end-checking to a minimum. 
Mills cutting red gum formerly experienced difficulty in drying 
the lumber, on account of its tendency to warp. This objection, 
however, has been largely overcome by the exercise of care in sea- 
soning. In erecting a pile of gum lumber, stickers are placed every 
2 feet apart, some lumbermen claiming that 18 inches in none too 
close to obtain the best results. Another scheme in more or less 
general use among gum-lumber manufacturers is to construct the 
pile so as to have a flue or " chimney" in its center, thus providing 
ample air circulation vertically through the stack, as shown in 
Plate V, figure 2. 
Green cottonwood, basswood, and yellow poplar lumber is likely to 
stain badly when piled. Accordingly, a number of lumbermen either 
end-dry the material or pole-dry it for a week or two and then place 
it in a "stuck" pile. In end-drying, the boards are stood up on end, 
edge to edge, under a specially built shed, with stickers arranged 
horizontally one above the other at specified distances. Such a 
pile presents exactly the appearance of a regular lengthwise pile of 
lumber set up on end. 
Plate VI, figure 1, shows a quantity of yellow poplar lumber being pole- 
dried, while Plate VI, figure 2, shows the frame used for the purpose. 
Hickory and ash lumber frequently check badly when air-dried. 
Lumbermen in the southern hardwood region have found that these 
checks will close up entirely if the lumber is first stuck-piled for 
6 to 8 months and then bulk-piled and protected by good covering, 
preferably sheds. 
Plates VII and VIII show lumber piles in yards where careful 
attention has been given to the matter of piling and yard arrange- 
ment. 
