The Durham recorder. [volume] (Durham, N.C.) 1879-19??, 1890-04-02
AMONG TAR-HEELS.
DEVELOPMENTS OF ONE OF
AMERICAS LEADING IN
DUSTRIES---LIFE OF A
PINE TREE.
a Primitive Glass Who Live
Happy and C0ntenIed Lives
in the Isolation of the
Great Forests.
Philadelphia Times.

Philadelphia Times.
In ante-bellum days the produc.
tion Of the three valuable constitu,
ents Tar, pitch and turpentine--
that enter so largely into the man.
ufacture Of naval stores, was in {
crude state of development, and al
the breaking out Of the war the
great turpentine producing district.
Vt North Carolina we're compare
lively deserted, as most OF the men
had either enlisted or were impress
ed into the Confederate service. The
process Of manufacture was so slow
and tedious that.the demand at times
was far IN excess Of the supply, and
the cost of transportation Of one OF
the important clements, rosin, was
so exirayagant that il was permitted
to run to waste from the stills, COW
erIag the ground for acres in ex-
tent, ard from three 10 four feet in
thi, kness, which, mixing with the
sAnd, became extremely hard. pre-
senting a smooth, fiat surface, and
greatly resembling solid rock in APP
pearance.
When peace was declared the de-
mand was greatly multiplied, and
the introduction Of better railroad
facilities and the erection Of modern
mechanical and scientific appliances
gave the industry an impetus that
was wonderful, and to-day one can
hardly comprehend the magnitude
Of the business or believe the i'm
mense proportions into which it has
expanded during two. decades. In
deed, the people who are employed
IN she manufacture OF these three
important commodities are really
unconscious Of thepart they are per-
forming in the developing Of one of
the greatest industries in the United
Stated. They rarely wonder be-
yond the confines Of the tall pines;
a newspaper seldoms finds it way
into their midst; they know little
concerning events transpiringIn the
busy outside world, isolated as they
are from intelligent and progressive
civilization.
Here they live in their Tiude huts,
hidden away in the depths Of these
great forests, in ignorance and soll-
tude, gathering the crude material
from nature's laboratory and pre-
parlng it for market in the stills.
This i their only occupation, for a
remarkable feature Of the country
in inxtaposition to these forests is
the sterility Of the soil so barren,
in fact, that but little grass isfound
in some sections.
The life Of a pine tree for pro-
dueing purposes Is computed at
about eleven years, and the several
stages through which il passes ere
Il i cast aside as a dummy" TO US
u technical phrase, is curious indeed.
First come the scariiiere, men with
half moon-shaped knives, who make
IN incision in the trunk near the
roots about three inches deep. This
cut IS termed a "box, each Of which
contains from two to threequarts Of
sap, and the average numberof these
boxes to an acre OF trees Is sixteen
hundred.
Then follow the ''sappers,n who
examine the gum to see that it is
ripe and closely upon their heels
come The clippers" men who carry
long, curiouslY shaped iron or wood
81 spoons and an ordinary water
bucket. The bucket placed against
the "box,n the spoon inserted In the
cavity. and tie sap scooped out. By
L dexttrous twist Of the wrist, &C
qured BY long and constant prac-
tice. tlrse 'dippersn will .'clean"
tho box 1T one scoop. Then there
is aprvcess known as ''cornering, /"
which requires a brigade Of shack
ers." IL the season Is good and the
WELD prolific, piece Is cut out from
the top aud bottom Of the 'box" BY
the "hacker," with his gouge, and
the tree Is tapped for the second
time.
For d time the largest distillery
was located near Wilmington, N.
C., with d capacity Of producing l.
coo barrels Of gum turpentine per
day, bat dislillpries on q more mod
ern plan andUf still greater capacity
have been erected n intervals IN The
districts. Look where YOU may The
country seems one vast area of bar.
rcls piled one upon tic other. Wag.
4 "a "A