Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1869-10-08
sUfIAC AND OAK BARkS.
New SouTges of Wealth in Virginia and
the CarOlinRs.
10 CLIFF STREET, New YORK,
September 25th, 1869.

produced in almost every part OF North
Carolina las we, from personal observation
can bear witness, having travelled over the
greater part of the Stnte) and its accessl-
bility by means of inleta, rivers and the
numerous railways, which traverse all
parta of the State, af1ottiinG cheap and
transit to the several ports
along the coast, renders the enterprise to
which the accompanying article, Clipped
from the New York "Journal Of Com
mcrce" refern, peculiarly adapted to that
State We therefore take the liberty OF
asking it's publication in your journal, or
such extracts referring to the enterprise
in question, as you may deem OF interest
to the people of North Carolina, believing
it will tend to stimulate them IN the in
auguration of branch of commercial in
dustry which, when once established, wall
materially enhance the value OF every acre
of oak forest lands throughout the State,
which we believe may be made one of the
most productive elements Of wealth en-
bracrd within its borders. presenting as
they do the most ready resource Of extra
ordinary remuneration to which the llmltedS
pecnniary means Of the masses OF your
be employed.
Chestnut, Red, and Yellow Oak Bark
J0ssed and we'll grnund anal shipped III
bags, each kind by itself. commands q
ready sale in this city and Boston, nt from
$32 to $35 per ton. While Willow, Water,
S4ruttal, Post and White OAh Bark pre-
pnrrd in the Same careful manner, sells at
All average price Of +Z5 per ton. Black
Oak or quercitron Bark as tho cores
pendent of the Journal eff Commerce. writes
lis worth in the English and Continent
al markets from $40 10 800, gold per ton,
and in this country $50 per ton. If Bark
can be delivered in its crude condition for
Sc per cord the places Of shipment
along your rivers. lnlets and railways, and
the average cost of transportation per ton
from there to THU city and Boston, shall
not exceed EIGHT dollars, Bark can besde-
livered in this city and Boston, ground and
rOssed. with commissions Tor selling adj
deG, ut q p1ice not exceeding 1913 per ton,
(bapa are returned for refilling, and are
not counted in as part of the eXpeRsca) the
excess Mt which it soils beyond TINT sum,
constitutes the margin OF profit tho bust
ness returns to the shipper in North Caro-
lima, which is largo enough to stimulate
the people to the moat earnest effort in cs
t,hl.shing the manufacture in every part
Of the State where on abundance of oak
forest can be found contiguous to the IA
cillties OF cheap transportation to tide
water.
We are in receipt Of advices from prom
inent dealers in tanning materials IN Lon
don, Liverpool, Manchester and Leeds, by
which we are assured that American Oak
Bark properly ground and shipped in caaks
wilt sell readily in large amounts, and at
good prices. English quotations of sales
of ground Oak Bark shipped from Holland
to that market, justify the concluRion that
American Oak Bark ground and shipped
from the Atlantic and Gulf States direct to
Liverpool, will be highly remunerative to
all who may embark in tho trade, and will
eventually form one of the staple articles
in tho export trade of the South.
Any information your people may desire in
relation to the mode of preparing bark for
shipment, names of prominent dealers IN
Bark in this city, Boston, or in the Eng
lish markets, &C., that we arc able to i'm
part, will be cheerfnlly communicated, by
addressing rs by letter or otherwise.
JOHNSON & Sons,
10 Cliff street, Now York.
l have Just returned from somewhat
extended tour through the counties of
Eastern, Middle, Southern and South
western Virginia, and through the border
counties along tho northern boundaries Of
North Carolina, and l will assure you !
was much surprised at tho immense guam
tity of oak forest | everywhere saw, in
clnding the chestnut, oak, red oak, yellow
spotted willow, water, post and white oak,
all valuable for their superior tanning
properties OF the bark. Black oak Is
found, too, in great abundance all through
this region of country. The bark of the
black oak, as you are aware, constitutes
one of the most valuable dyeing materials
in use. Ground into quercitron it ia
worth $50 per ton. In London it is ono
ted as selling at $40. gold, per ton, and at
Antwerp, Hamburg, Berlin. and Leghorn
at considerable advances ON the English
prices for American quercltrOn. Made
into fiarine it sells at 81 per pound. The
color of the black oak is used for giving
the ground colors to the finest and most
costly fabricks made in prints
Interested to some extent in the manu-
facture of leather, curiosity prompted me
to ascertain al far as possible at what price
per cord oak bark in it's crude condition
COulu DO ucilV6TtA dG Luo SIhtlouS dlOAE
the railways and landing places on the
James river hnd Kanawha canal. l found
the price to vary from four to eight dollars
per cord, averaging as near as l could
Judge. about six dollars per cord. L learn
also that the average cost of the transpor
tation from the same localities to this city
or Boston would be about eight dollars
per ton.
Now, Mr.. Editor, the manufacture OF
leather in Eastern Massachusetts,, Rhode
Island and Connecticut calls for an annual
consumption of three or four hundred
thousand cords of bark or its equivalent
in the concentrated extract OF bark, which
is supplied mainly from the hemlock for
ests along the northern frontier OF New
, England and New York, and from beyond
the Canadian border. Delivered in the
} slab unrossed at the tanneries it costs the
| tanner from fifteen to twenty three dollars
per cord. Now every tanner knows that
cord of hemlock bark with the ross taken
off is worth onethird more than if unros