30 
Indian Forest Records. 
[Vol. III. 
Indian and European Records. 
Dr. Warth gives records of results obtained with impregnated 
chloride of zinc sleepers on German lines, where the species were oak, 
Scotch fir, and beech. On a line in Hanover 168,690 treated oak sleepers 
and 81,002 treated beech were laid of which 2*20 per cent, and 
4*90 per cent, respectively failed after 10 years; in another case, out of 
78,385 treated Scotch fir sleepers laid down on the Brunswick line, 
1*93 per cent, failed after the same period. 
In 1864-65 a Burnettizing plant was erected at Kotri, on the Indus, 
costing R40,047, including buildings, etc. This plant appears to 
have been worked on the Open Tank method. The process consisted in 
boiling the sleepers for 6 or 7 hours and then allowing them to remain 
in the tank for 48 hours, the liquid being heated by a system of steam 
pipes. The result is reported to have been most unsatisfactory. Dr. 
Warth most justly remarks that it is difficult to understand how 
R40,000 were expended on so simple a business. The cost of treating 
each sleeper is given as Rl-1-0, an extremely high price. What 
strength of liquor was employed is not stated, nor is any definite 
mention made as to the species of timber employed. 
Another example is given by Dr. Warth of sleepers impregnated with 
chloride of zinc in 1869 and laid in the Sind, Punjab and Delhi lines. 
The species chosen for the experiment were Deodar and Chir (Finns 
longifolia) some being treated by pneumatic injection and others by the 
Open Tank method. In the latter case the process consisted in soaking 
the Deodar and Chir sleepers for 4 hours in a solution heated to 77°C. 
These treated Chir and Deodar sleepers were laid down on the Delhi 
section, while untreated Deodar were laid down at the same time on the 
Punjab section. In the former case the treated Chir and Deodar 
sleepers were packed in inferior ballast, while the untreated Deodar 
sleepers were laid in good ballast. The results after four years were 
that 6 per cent, of the treated sleepers were faulty, while only per 
cent, of the untreated sleepers were reported to be unserviceable after 8 
years. Obviously the comparison is unsatisfactory and proves nothing, 
for without doubt the bad ballast accounted for the rapid decay of the 
treated sleepers. Even without treatment Deodar has a much longer 
life than 4 years if properly packed, while it is quite possible that had 
the untreated Deodar sleepers been laid in the bad ballast they might 
have shown even a higher rate of decay than did the treated sleepers, 
103 
