The daily morning journal and courier., 1902-05-05
FENCES OF BLACK WALNUT
THE GOOD OLD TIMES WHEN
 FINE WOOD
Went Begging-AnersS the Lumber
 mems Convention.


 A Inducements convention is never in session very many hours before somebody begins to critieise our pioneer | forefathers for cutting up walnut trees into fence rails for walnut wood IS now so scarce that it brings a higher
 price in the market than mahogany
 and it's use is confined to the making of gun stocks, knife handles, panels and
 veeneers on cheaper woods. The old
 haircloth covered parlor suites of wal
 nut, beloved by our grandmothers, lind
 a ready sale, for the framework can be
 worked over into small articles.
 But, alas, the pioneers needed corn l fields, and the cornfelds had to be fenc- ed in from wild animals and tame stock. Then the hickory trees came | down to build log houses and to make | ax handles and wagon spokes; and | what so good for the first benches, ta- bles, chests of drawers and bsdsteads as red cherry So hickory and red cherry are scarce, too, now, and when | building, decorating and furniture
 making have become fine arts we must take the woods the pioneer has left us and do the best we can with them. Heading the list of woods to-day in building is pine--hard, soft white, yell low. A big pine tree is a joy to the cir cular saw. A log may be twelve feet in diameter at the base and 150 feet long, It saws easily, planes to satin like surface, glue holds it and nails do not split it. The white pine of the North is such delight to the builder that it. too, is growing scarce, and the spruce is often used as a substitute. The hemlock serves for rough build ng.
 The yellow pine forests of the South furnish much building material, sn1 the
 inferior trees are cut up into pack kng cases. Cypress masquerades as Georgia hard pine and many giant redwood tree must be astonishe1 to find itself labeled chsrry," although, in spite of it's beautiful color. it must know it is too soft to deceive anyone who knows anything about wood Red cedar has no im!tators, for it's odor cannot be duplicated It is a very arls- tocratic wood indeed, intimately aseo. cfated with literature and commercial accounts, for most of it eoss into lead pencils. A cedar chest is always prized for the faithfulness with which it cares for furs and rugs and expensive gar ments of wool, for the odor of cedar is something the wool moth cannot abide.
 Hickory is still reserved for wagon spokes and hubs and ax handles and other articles requiring torghness. Beech makes heavy strong tmbers Pines, however, are used for ship masts and telegraph poles fence pests and shingles The cabinet and furniture weeds thta are native to this country are oak, maple, birch, elm. cherry cycl- more, ash and basswood. Quarter sawed O. e.. quartered and tawed across the grain) is probablv the fav0rite for stair building. interior finishing and solid furniture. II takes every color an finish, and is thus adapted to any scheme of decoration. while It recom- mends itself for its hardness and dura- bility Curly birch and brd-eye maple are also made into beautiful finishings and furiture. Birch Is often stained to the color of mahogany but the maple is beautiful white wood with soft brown ''eyes.' which some reop'e think as handsome as white mahogany.
 When your mother wants a new floor for the kitchen she demands hard maple in narrow matched boards. It will cost as much as a p9rlor carpet, but it will take scrubhings for gener- atlon and come out white every time! Her kitchen table will. probably h white ash; as will the cheaper bed room furniture and chairs Tae rolling pin in all probability will be maple, and the potato masher genuine cherry don't know why this is true, but many and many is the modern house that has not a scrap of cherry wood in it except the potato masher: and sometimes that is beech wood, An, me! and our grand fathers used to make rail fences out of walnut trees and milk stoos out of wtli cherry, Chicago Chronicle.