Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1846-09-19
DURABILITY OF TIMBER IN A WET STATE.

In digging away the foundation of old Savoy Palace
London which was built six hundred and fifty years ago,
the whole Of the piles consisting Of oak, elm, beach, and
chestnut found in perfect state Of sounnes also
was the plankng which covered the pile heads"
This paragraph is taken from English paper The cedar
swamps Of Cape May afford remarkable proofs of
the durability Of timber in state,
On the north side of Maurice River Creek the meadows
and cedar swamps, far up the fast land filled with
buried cedas TO an unknown depth In 1914 1915
tempt was made to sink well curb Dennis Greek
Landing but after encounterng much difficulty in cutting
through number ofogs, the wokmen compelled
to give up the attempt by finding the depth Of twenty feet
compact mass Of cedar logs.
Il constant business Dennis Greek to mine cedar
shingles" This is done by probing the sofl mud Of the
swamps with poles for the purpose of discovering buried cedar
timber and when log found the mud cleared off, the
log cut up into proper lengths with long handled saw
and these lengths split up into shingles and carried out of the
swamp ready for SALE This kind of work gives constant
poyment TO large number of hands The trees found are
from four to five feet in diameter they lie in every possible
position and of them have been buried for many
centuries Thus stumps of which grown to great
age, and which have been decayng century, are found
standing IN the place in which they grew while trunks
very aged cedars are lying horizontally under their
OF these instances Is thus described manuscript from
Dr. Bresey, OF Dennis Creek who has himself " mined
many thousand cedar shingles and is now engaged in the
business have in my mine cedar and hall
feet over, under large cedar stump feet in diameter
Upon counting the annual growhs Of the stump found
there were thirty Of them in inch that there
1850 in the three feet from the the outside of the
tree The stump must thus have been 1850 years grow
ing To all appearance the tree TO which it belonged has
been dead for centuries for after stump in these meadows
decays down to the wet there is decay-none at
least that is perceptbe Now have 1850 years the
growth of the stump and 500 for lis decay and 500 for the
growth Of the tree under ii for this must have grown and
fallen before the which the stump belonged sprouted
We thus carried back for the term Of perhaps q 600
years. of which 1900 determined, beyond question: by
the growth of the trees"
The better opinion is that these have gradually sunk
through the soft mud of the swamps after having attained
their growth and fallen Many, however have decayed in
their erect position, for the swamps full Of umps standing
they grew.
Within short distance Of the mouth Of Dennis Creek and
about three miles from any growing timber be at low
water IN the bed OF the stream cedar aud pine
stumps about feet below the surface of the meadow with
the bark still adherng some, when the mud is removed.
As passes the creek few miles the sumps approach
the surface and the edge Of the live swamps they become
very numerous.-TIenton Gazette.