The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1904-07-17

Irecord on making the biggest wooden
lbowl Gu record, and if the big one
shown here is not that identical bowl
it must be it's companion piece.
Some Commercial Woods.
The commercial woods of the State
are shown to advantage in this open
space in sections of plank cut through
the heart of the tree, with the bark
edges left on, giving a proper idea of
| size, variety and quality. Half of the
| length is vanished and half left
plain so that one can see the natural
| wood and also observe the effect of
| polish and varnish. Poplar is prom
inent, Of course, for this is one of
| their great woods, and among the
specimens shown is board feet 4
| inches wide, including bark. There is
cypress in evidence as wide as feet:
| to give evidence of magnitude in that
| line, and there is black gum that is
mot black, but white, and also of wide
| dimensions. Another white wood in
evidence is magnolia, and there is also
! a new one in hemlock that looks like
| white pine that ought to come in for
special attention at the hands Of lum-
| bermen if there is enough of it to be
l n
on the mountains is called candy bal
sam. and then there is a member of
the Juniper family. a white cedar that
grows in the lowlands, that is extern
sively used for pals and other wood
enware. There is white ash, too. that
grows in parts of the State, and also
| a fine sample of curly ash.
There are several samples Of the
| red cedar for which the esatern part
| of "a iS ia St11
make the famous cedar pals out Of
| and also the source of supply of cedar
| for lead pencils. OF special interest to
package men, there is to be seen
samples of sycamore, the old time to-
! bacco box wood and some big elm
that suggests location for coiled elm
hoop factories. OF the several pecu-
lar woods that may be seen in this
display, one is called sourwood. and
is used as imitation cherry. 1t has
grain and general texture so near like
cherry that when it is stained and
varnished it would puzzle even an ex-
pert.
French Briars'' Home.
Another one is mountain laurel; and
the visitors to the fair who are look
ing for a place to locate a special wood
working industry should get Commits
sioner General II. II. Brimley, of the
North Carolina exhibit, to show them
| his display of 'briar1 pipes which are
made from this wood. We have all
met the wood before; that is, all of
us that have been South; you see it
in the shape of souvenirs of all kinds
and on all sides down in the historic
Lookout Mountain district of Tonnes
see, but here you see it in different
form. The stumps and roots are
grubbed UP in the mountain sections
OF North Caroliua. sold for so much
a ton-Mr. Brimley WAS not able to
give the exact figure-to saw mills
that cut them into pipe blanks. then
shipped to Rochester, N. Y, where the
pipes are made. Mr.. Brimley got
sample lot of these pipes in the differ
ent stages of the process of manufac-
ture, and is displaying them here in
the hope of interesting some one who
will put up a factory there near the
source of raw material supply
Locust Pin Blanks as Cash.
Upon the wall is displayed a nice
collection of locust insulator pins for
telephone and telegraph poles furn-
ished by the Nantahala Company. of
Franklin, N. c., about which Mr..
Brimley furnishes bit of information
that suggests the old days of coonskin
currency. He says that up in the
mountains of Western North Carolina
the blanks for these pins have such
generally recognized standard of
value that they pass current in lieu Of
checks or money. The mountaineerS
bring them into town and trade them
to stores for merchandise just as they
do butter and eggs, and you can see
piles and piles of them in the yards of
the stores in that section of the coun-
try. Now, if some man can just cite
an instance of a half dozen pin blanks
being handed to a bartender in ex-
change for a drink, thrown up in the
loft, stole out and passed over the
same counter few more times, we
will have a repetition of the old coon
skin tale that has become a part of
pioneer history Mr.. Brimley says
this mountain laurel is closely related
to the Mediterranean heath, the wood
used by the French for making the
original French briar" pipes.
Chestnut and The Worms.
There are several very interesting
studies in wood, ore of which is a big
chestnut showing worm holes here and
there. 1t is so nearly like oak that Que
feels that it is pity that it must be
Handicapped with this worm trouble.
The sample shown is about feet wide
and suggests all sorts of possibilities
II 1t could be secured Tree from lHooe
defects. But there is the rub, the
worms take to this timber like duck
to water, and while in some places 1t
may be found comparatively free from
them, it is not unusual to find great
sections of fine timber that is SO in
jured by them as to make 1t dlSheart-
ening. Still, this timber ought to be
good for such material as railway
crossing planks, road bridges, etc.
OF Historic interest.
For those who like historic things
there are two attractions OF speclal
note one is a section of yellow poplar
estimated to be 500 years old. Ihat
| is, from an estimate of the CROWN
rings, it has been figured that the tree
was that long in growing. Inc sec
! ton, which is displayed against the
back wall is about feet in diameter,
| and came from the MOUNTAINS or
| Cherokee county. Another historic DIT
| Of wood is a walnut log 81 inches III
diameter known as '"The Big Walnut
! Tree of the Moore Cove. This log Is
the second cut of a walnut tree that
was bought by the Williamson Veneer
| Company, shipped to Baltimore ,and
| made into veneer The tree MADE o.