The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-08-08
NAVAL STORES FARM
GOVERNMENT MAY BUY ONE FOR
EXPERIMENTS IN GEORGIA.
T0G0BEFoRE NEXT CONGRESS
MIR. j. p. WILLIAMS PRIME MOVER
IN THE MATTER.

|
Georgia Experimenting at states
boro to simplify Present Processes
of Manufacture of Naval Stores.
Wants to Chop and Kill Trees
Less-UpOn His Report viii he
fredicated the Appeal to the Gov
crnment--Mr. williams BuIIish on
Turpentine.
Prof. Charles H. Herty of the Uni
versity of Georgia is making expert
ments at Statesboro, Bullock county,
with what he believes are better and
cheaper methods of manufacturing
spirits turpentine and rosin, and if he
succeeds in demonstrating the eceno-
my and practicability of other methods
the result may be a radical change in
the present way of handling these
products. The purpose of the expert
ments is to ascertain whether there is
better, way of extracting the gum
from the tree, and also as to distilla-
| ton.
The National Tank and Export Com
pany of Savannah is directly behind
the movement, which they believe will
result in great good to the industry.
| Not only is it proposed to introduce
better processes of manufacture, but it
is also expected to enlist the interest
and cooperation of the government in
the protection and preservation of the
| yellow pine forests of the South, which
have heretofore been cut down without
| any thought of their preservation
| thereby making it very probable that
| the next few years will find the for
ests completely devastated by produc-
ers without their having received due
compensation therefor.
The naval stores interests have long
recognized the fact that it is impossible
to get remedial legislation through the
state legislatures of the Soutlr for the
reason that there appears to be no de-
| sire to enact laws that will interfere
with the wholesale slaughtering of tim
Der. 1t is through Prof Herty, who is
one of the collaborators of the For
estry Bureau, that it is hoped to get
recognition from the government, as
he will make an elaborate report to the
department on the result of his ex-
periments. 1t is believed this will
arouse sufficient interest to induce the
| government to aid in the establish
ment of an experimental farm some
where in the turpentine belt of Georgia
| for the purpose of gathering informa-
ton and utilizing to the best advantage
| the product of the, pine tree. While
the request for the governments aid
in establishing such an experiment sta
ton will be based largely upon Prof.
| Hertys report, and the reasons it is
believed it will show why government
aid should be given the importance of
protecting one of the South's most val
liable assets by legislation will also be
urged as a reason for governmental CO.
| operation.
Another object of the Statesboro ex-
| periments is to do away with the pres
ent way of extracting the gum from
the tree if possible, by providing some
sort of metallic cup for it to flow in.
| The present method is to chop in the
side of the tree about two or three feet
from the ground what is known as a
'box," and into which the gum flows
and collects. and is later dipped out by
the gatherers. From time to time the
| tree is Clipped off, above this box
until the whole side within ground
reach is cut away. The same process
| is then followed on the opposite side,
so that by the time this is finished the
| tree is done for. This process is, of
course, gradually devastating the for
ests, as the trees either die, or are so
damaged that they are fit for nothing
sawed. Thousands of acres of old tur
.pentine lands are thrown away in the
| South because of the want of more
enlightened method of treating the
tree. 1t is understood that Prof Herty
proposes substituting some sort of gal
vanized iron cup, which may be ad-
| justed to the tree and the gum ex-
tracted without so great risk of stop
| ping it's growth. With the use of the
right appliances it is believed the life
of the tree will be greatly prolonged,
and instead of a temporary revenue, as
at present, the producer will have
permanent revenue from his forests
These cups, or something like them,
l'were experimental with for this pur-
| pose some years ago, but they were
| found to be too costly for practical pur-
| poses. Hence they were not generally
| adopted on this account
The labor question, which is a source
of continual trouble to the naval stores
producer will be largely solved by
methods that will lesson the demand
for hands. If devices were used that
would dispense with the box-cutting
and chipping producers would be, less
concerned than at present about now
they are to offer sufficient inducements
to get their hands to remain until they
| can gather their crops.
Mr.. ]. p. Williams, president of the
]. p. williams Company, and also
| president of the National Tank and
Export Company and the Georgia,
Florida and Alabama Railroad, regards
the outlook for an advance in spirits
as probable. He said:
Until a few years ago the cotton
farmers of the South were in exactly
the same helpless position that the
naval producers are to-day. Planters
| had no interior warehouses, no interior
| banks and the result was they had TO
rush their cotton to market and let
It go for what it would bring. Now
| the interior is full of warehouses,
which will receive cotton and give
| their warehouse receipt therefor, upon
which the banks will make prompt and
| liberal advances, 1t is similar pro-
| vision that is to help the naval stores
| producer. The tank companies at Sa
| vannah, Pensacola. Jacksonville and
New Orleans will receive and receipt
| for spirits, and If ready and satisfac-
tory sale is not found for 1t It may be
| held for better market. The surplus
! product will thus be taken care of.
zone of two things confronts pro-
| ducers, they must either play at
losing game, or prices must advance.
! The fact that substitute has not yet
been found, together with the steady
increasing demand from all parts of
the world, makes the outlook for bet
ter prices for spirits decidedly favor