35 
Part IV.] R. S. Pearson: Antiseptic Treatment of Timber. 
experiments in progress on the Idar-Brahmakhed Extension of the 
Bombay, Baroda and Central India Railway, where up to 10 per cent, 
of the Red Sarayah sleepers have had recently to be removed, owing to 
damage by white-ants and to splitting. From the report it appears that 
the attack is not superficial but that the interior of the sleepers has been 
attacked. This clearly denotes two facts, i.e., that the treatment still 
holds good on the surface of the timber and that the antiseptic solution 
did not penetrate sufficiently deep into the timber. These facts do not. 
necessarily tend to condemn the process but point to the fact that either 
the treatment was not carried far enough or that Red Sarayah does not 
lend itself readily to treatment unless pressure is applied. The writer 
is not prepared to accept the sweeping statement made by the inspecting 
officer that “ at least after a period of over six years, the process does- 
not cause timber to be immune from attacks of white-ants,” and this 
for the reason that the Powellized sleepers in many other localities, after 
nearly the same period, show no signs of white-ant attack. 
The next few years should definitely settle the question whether this 
process is suitable for treating Indian timbers, laid down in the varying 
climates of this country, while from the results obtained to date it is 
evident that the process must be combined with more careful methods 
of seasoning the timber. 
In making the above statement, full consideration has been given to 
the fact that some of the Powellized sleepers laid down in Burma have 
failed within 8 years and that 10 per cent, of the Red Sarayah sleepers 
have had to be removed due to white-ant attack; on the other hand, 
the results so far obtained with the Powellized Pinus longifolia and 
P. excelsa sleepers, both perishable timbers in an untreated state, are 
distinctly encouraging. 
(7) Field Experiments carried cut with Avenarius Carholineum 
oil- 
(i) Arrangements made to carry out the experiments and the 
NUMBER OF SLEEPERS TREATED. 
The lines on which this group of experiments were carried out were 
entirely different from those of the Powellizing experiments. In this 
instance, the whole work was carried out by the Forest Department : 
the Forest Officers in the various provinces supplying the timber free, 
while the cost of extraction, conversion and treatment was borne by the 
Forest Research Institute. The Terminalia tomentosa sleepers were 
treated by Mr. Copleston, Divisional Forest Ofiicer, North Division, 
[ 105 ] E 2 
