UTILIZATION OF ASH. 39 
black ash are used occasionally in mixture with other hardwoods for 
chemical pulp. Ash saplings, an inch or so in diameter, are used in 
New England for barrel hoops in the absence of hickory. ‘They are 
split into two to four pieces, and the hoops made from 44 to 10 feet 
long. The hoops bring $4.50 to $12 per 1,000, depending on the size, 
and cost $2 to $4 per 1,000 to produce. 
LUMBER AND STUMPAGE VALUES. 
ASH LUMBER PRICES. 
Present wholesale prices of different grades of ash lumber in the 
principal centers of its distribution' are given in Table 13. These 
prices are for ash in car lots as sold to the retail and factory trades. 
They are based on lumber properly manufactured and graded under 
the grading rules of the National Hardwood Lumber Association and, 
to a less extent, those of the Hardwood Manufacturer’s Association. 
These two rules are quite similar in wording, but the former requires 
inspection to be made on the poorer side of the piece, while the latter 
requires both sides to be considered in determining the grade. Also,. 
the latter has a grade of No. 4 common which the former does not 
have. Inspection on one side is more satisfactory from the jcbber’s 
standpoint, while inspection on both sides is preferable to the manu- 
facturers. 
The standard lengths for ash lumber are from 4 to 16 fect, and 
the standard thicknesses are usually 1, 14, 14, 2, 24, 3, and 4 inches 
when dry. 
Bright sap is no defect in the “ first and seconds” grade in ash, 
while in plain sawed oak it is only admitted as no defect when less 
than one-half the width of the board in the aggregate on the one side, 
and in quarter-sawed oak when not over 1 inch in pieces 8 
inches and over wide. This makes the grading of ash less rigid than 
that of oak, 
