SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY. 
was done in scattered institutions, particularly on testing timbers for air- 
plane construction, and also in the proper seasoning of such timbers. 
A good deal of research was also done on timber distillation to produce 
acetone for cordite manufacture. Several factories were erected and 
worked to produce this essential material. Following on this experi- 
STAIRWAY, STATE MUSEUM, SEATTLE. 
mentation, many English firms have erected seasoning kilns of a modern 
type, and so provided for a far more efficient utilization of timber in the 
United Kingdom. The need for a central laboratory is clearly indicated 
by the fact that several Government laboratories were engaged in testing 
timbers, and each had its own method of testing. The result is that the 
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