News and Notes
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NEWS AND NOTES. Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/jof/article/5/3/355/4760038 by guest on 27 September 2021 E. A. STERLING•In Charge. On May 3oth one of the best known forestersamong English speakingpeople, Sir Dietrich Brandis,died at Bonn, Germany. His fame was made through the successfulintroduction of for- estry principlesinto India, and the original organizationof the Indian Forest Department. Born and educatedin Germany,a pupil of GustaveHeyer at Giessen,hence thoroughly versed in forestry he succeededin graspingthe needsof entirely different conditionsin India from the start, when over half a centuryago he was calledto the sperintendencyof the teak forestsof Pegu. He was, to be sure, loyally and vigorouslysupported by Lord Dalhousie'sgovernment, and in x864 becamethe first Inspector General of Forests to the Government of India. In a different spirit from the know-nothing attitude that sometimeshas ani- mated American forest reformers,Mr. Eardley Wilmot writes, "To him and to his successorsand pupils, Messrs.Schlich and Ribbentrop(also two Germans) is due primarily the credit for the creation and organization of the forest departmentand for the introductionof methodsof managementadapted from the best European schoolsto suit the various circumstancesfor the vast forestsof India." His last work, a large manual on Indian Trees,only lately published,was the resultof his leisuresince x883,when he had retired to Bonn, without howeverlosing con- nection with the departmentof his creation. Probablyno other gatheringof industrialinterests has beenso assiduouslyand broadlyadvertised as the Fifteenth National Ir- rigation Congressto be held in Sacramento,California, in Sep- tember. Forestryalso is to be made a specialfeature, especially in the InterstateExposition which will be a part of the proceed- ings. Among the prizes and trophiesto be offered for special exhibitsthe DiamondWatch Companyand the PacificHardware Company have each presentedone for the best collective State exhibit of forest products,but the most suggestivetrophy is 356 ForestryQuarterly offeredby the CaliforniaWine Association,which is to be for a suitable substitute for oak staves, accentuating the growing scarcityof the supplywhich is coupledby a constantand rapidly Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/jof/article/5/3/355/4760038 by guest on 27 September 2021 increasingdemand. A committeeof the AmericanSociety for Testing Materials has made its final report at the tenth annual meetingthis year on standardspecifications for the grading of structuraltimbers, in- cludingthe definitionof standarddefects, standard names for structural timbers, and standard specificationsfor bridge and trestle timbers. The definitionsof standarddefects, modified as above,are as follows: Measurements which refer to the diameter of knots or holes shouldbe consideredas referring to the mean or average diam- eter. •. Sound Knot.---A sound knot is one which is solid across its face and which is as hard as the wood surroundingit; it may be either red or black, and is so fixed by growth or positionthat it will retain its place in the piece. 2. Loose Knot.--A looseknot is one not firmly held in place by growth or position. 3. Pith Knot.-•A pith knot is a sound knot with a pith hole not more than ¬ inch in diameter in the center. 4. Encased Knot.--An encasedknot is one which is sur- roundedwholly or in part by bark or pitch. Where the encase- ment is lessthan • of an inch in width on both sides,not exceed- ing one-halfthe circumferenceof the knot, it shall be considered a sound knot. 5. Rotten Knot.--A rotten knot is one not as hard as the wood it is in. 6. Pin Knot.--A pin knot is a soundknot not over « inch in diameter. 7. StandardKnot.--A standardknot is a soundknot not over x« inchesin diameter. 8. Large Knot.--A large knot is a soundknot, more than i« inches in diameter. 9. Round Knot.--A round knot is one which is oval or circular in form. News and Notes 357 •o. Spike Knot.--A spike knot is one sawn in a lengthwise direction; the mean or average width shall be consideredin measuringthese knots. Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/jof/article/5/3/355/4760038 by guest on 27 September 2021 •x. Pitch Pockets.--Pitch pockets are openings between the grain of the woodcontaining more or lesspitch or bark. These shall be classifiedas small, standard and large pitch pockets. (a) Small ]>itch]>ocket.--A smallpitch pocketis onenot over « of an inch wide. (b) StandardPitch Pocket.--A standardpitch pocketis one not over • of an inch wide, or 3 inchesin length. (c) Large Pitch Pocket.--A large pitch pocket is one over •- of an inch wide, or over 3 inchesin length. •2. ]>itch Streak.--A pitch streak is a well-definedaccumulation of pitch at one point in the piece. When not sufficientto de- velop a well-defined streak, or where the fiber between grains, that is, the coarse-grainedfiber, usually termed "Spring Wood," is not saturatedwith pitch, it shall not be considereda defect. •3. Wane.--Wane is bark, or the lack of wood from any cause, on edgesof timbers. x4. Shakes.--Shakesare splitsor checksin timber which usu- ally causea separationof the woodbetween annual rings. •5. Rot, Dote and Red Heart.--Any form of decaywhich may be evident either as a dark red discoloration not found in the sound wood, or the presenceof white or red rotten spots,shall be considered as a defect. •6. Ring Shake.---An openingbetween the annual rings. •7. Through Shake.--A shake which extends between two faces of a timber. The following trade names are those now recommendedby CommitteeQ: •. Southern Yellow Pine.--Under this headingtwo classesof timber are used, (a) Longleaf Pine, (b) Shortleaf Pine. It is undertsoodthat thesetwo terms are descriptiveof quality, rather than of botanical species. Thus, shortleaf pine would cover such speciesas are now known as North Carolina pine, loblolly pine, and shortleafpine. "Longleaf Pine" is descriptive of quality,and if Cuban,shortleaf, or loblollypine is grown under such conditionsthat it producesa large percentageof hard sum- mer wood, so as to be equivalent to the wood producedby the 358 Forestry Quarterly true longleaf, it would be coveredby the term "Longleaf Pine." 2. DouglasFir.--The term "DouglasFir" to coverthe timber known likewise as yellow fir, red fir, westernfir, Washington Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/jof/article/5/3/355/4760038 by guest on 27 September 2021 fir, Oregonor Puget Soundfir or pine, northwestand west coast fir. 3. Norway Pine, to coverwhat is known as "Red Pine." 4. Hemlock, to cover Southern or Eastern hemlock; that is, hemlockfrom all Stateseast of and including Minnesota. 5. WesternHemlock, to cover hemlockfrom the Pacificcoast. 6. 3•pruce,to cover Eastern spruce; that is, the sprucetimber coming from points east of Minnesota. 7. Western•Cpruce, to coverthe sprucetimber from the Pacific coast. 8. White Pine, to cover the timber which has hitherto been known as white pine, from Maine, Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota. 9. Idaho White Pine, the variety of white pine from western Montana, northern Idaho, and eastern Washington. •o. Western Pine, to cover the timber sold as white pine com- ing from Arizona, California, New Mexico, Colorado, Oregon and Washington. This is the timber sometimesknown as "West- ern Yellow Pine," or "Ponderosa Pine," or "California White Pine," or "Western White Pine." I •. Western Latch, to cover the speciesof larch or tamarack from the Rocky Mountain and Pacific coastregions. •2. Tamarack,to cover the timber known as "Tamarack,"or "Eastern Tamarack," from States east of and including Min- nesota. •3. Redwood, to include the California wood usually known by that name. The standard specificationsfor bridge and trestle timbers are as follows, to be applied to solid membersand not to composite members: GENERAL REQUIREMENTS. Except as noted all timber shall be cut from soundtrees and sawed standard size; close grained and solid; free from defects suchas injuriousring shakesand crookedgrain; unsoundknots; knotsin groups;decay; large pitchpockets, or other defectsthat will materially impair its strength. News and Notes 359 StandardSize of SawedTimber.--Rough timbers when sawed to standardsize, shall mean that they shall not be over ¬ in. scant from actual size specified. For instance,a I2 in. x i2 in. shall Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/jof/article/5/3/355/4760038 by guest on 27 September 2021 measurenot lessthan ii4a in. x I•4a in. Standard Dressing of Sawed Timbers.--Standard dressing means that not more than ¬ in. shall be allowed for dressing eachsurface. For instance,a I2 in. x i2 in. shall after dressing four sides,not measureless than ii• in. x II• in. STRINGERS. No. I. Longleaf Yellow Pine and Douglas Fir.--Shall show not lessthan 80 per cent.of heart on eachof the four sides,meas- ured acrossthe sidesanywhere in the length of the piece; loose knots,or knots greater than • in. in diameter,will not be per- mitted at pointswithin 4 inchesof the edgesof the piece. No. 2. Longleaf Yellow Pine, Shortleaf Pine, Douglas Fir, and Western Hemlock.--Shall be squareedged, except it may have I in. wane on one comer. Knots must not exceed in their largestdiameter ¬ the width of the face of the stickin whichthey occur. Ring shakesextending not over • of the length of the pieceare admissible. CAPS AND SILI•. NO. I. Longleaf Yellow Pine and Douglas Fir.--Shall show 85 per cent. heart on each of the four sides, measuredacross the sidesanywhere in the lengthof the piece; to be free from knots over 2« in. in diameter; knotsmust not be in groups. No. 2. Longleaf and Shortleaf Yellow Pine, DouglasFir and WesternHemlock.--Shall be squareedged, except it may have I in. wane on one corner, or « in. wane on two corners. Knots must not exceedin their largest diameter¬ the width of the face of the stick in which they occur. Ring shakesextending not over • the length of the pieceare admissible.