24 
BULLETIN 100t, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE . 
also used for drawer bottoms and mirror backing, because it is not 
inclined to warp excessively when used in this way. Thick veneer is 
used for core stock on which cabinet veneers are glued. Basswood 
veneer is used for the separators of storage batteries and for small 
cheese boxes. 
Table 14. — Consumption of basswood for excelsior, by States, 1911. 
State. 
Cords. 
State. 
Cords. 
15, 770 
3,960 
3,784 
2,772 
1,671 
Michigan 
1,590 
Ohio 
Virginia 
60 
New Hampshire 
25 
All other States 
3,410 
Total 
33,042 
EXCELSIOR. 
Statistics on production. — Statistics of the Bureau of the Census on 
the production of excelsior are available only for the year 1911. Table 
14 gives these statistics by States. The 33,000 cords of basswood 
consumed in that year in excelsior manufacture is equivalent to 
about 16,000,000 board feet of lumber. This was nearly one-fourth 
of the entire amount of wood reported for excelsior manufacture. 
Cottonwood and aspen grouped together and yellow pine were used 
in larger quantities, according to these statistics. When the different 
species are separated, however, aspen ranks first, basswood second, 
black cottonwood third, and the common cottonwood fourth. 
Wisconsin is the main State in the manufacture of basswood ex- 
celsior; for 1911 nearly one-half of the entire amount used for this 
purpose in the United States was reported for that State. Mills 
making basswood excelsior are now located principally in northern 
Wisconsin. 
Manufacture. — Excelsior is commonly termed " ribbon veneer," 
because it is composed of thin strands shaved from the surface of the 
wood. Requirements for excelsior are that it be elastic or resilient 
and light in weight and color. It is also preferred free from odor, 
although for some purposes, such as furniture packing, a slight odor 
is *not objectionable. The quality most demanded is resiliency or 
"life" — that capacity of being compressed into a small volume and 
of expanding after being so compressed. Wood for the manufacture 
of excelsior should be light in weight, not brittle, soft, straight-grained 
and preferably free from odor. A light-colored wood is also desirable. 
Basswood meets the requirements of an excelsior wood better than 
any other timber and produces the best grades. 
The scarcity and high price of the wood prevent its use in larger 
quantities. Excelsior manufacturers in regions where basswood 
