The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1905-07-11
BLACK GUM LUMBER 4 VALUA-
BILE ARTICLE.

According to President Roosevelt
there are some good trusts and some
bad ones. He might have carried his
distinction between the different
trusts further and said that at times
some good may come out of some OF
those cIassed as Lad mes. Were
he inclined to do so he might point TO
a recent transaction of the sugar trust.
This monopoly, we believe, is set down
ty the public as IN of the very worst
OF the bad trusts: nevertheless. it has
started all enterprise which will be Il
Zig thing for owners of swamp lands
in eastern North Carolina. 1t will con-
vert into q merchantable article a nat
ural product of that section which
heretofore has been considered worth
less-the black gum trees of Our
sw amps and lowlands.
The article given below, taken from
the Raleigh News and Observer, will
be gratifying information to many
land in the eastern part OF our
state. If the process proves a success
there will be millions in it, for tie
swamp land owners of our state. 1t
will bring into the market q commodI-
ty heretofore considered worthless and
what is better still-at no cost to the
wners.
We hope that the owners of large,
tracts of land on which these trees are
found in abundance will realize the
value of their property and will de-
mand good prices for it-not exorti-
TAM ones, Of cOurSe-but they should
rot be willing to let their gum trees so
at a mere song just because, hereto
fore, they were considered worthless.
Of the new process of treating the
black gum lumber and the use to
which it is to be put the News and
Observer says:
Mr.. William Dunn. Of New Bern,
who has been attending tho meetings
of the finance committee OF the state
tosld of agriculture and Agricultural
and Mechanical college talks interest
ingly of his city, and. some
entertaining news. There is soon TO
be established in New Bern, he said,
a stave factory by the North Carolina
StaVe Company, q concern recently
chartered. This concern has a big and
permanent contract with the sugar re-
finely tristan immense COnIbiue--
to make slaves for it, furnishing two
Car loads OF sugar barrel slaves per
day. These staYes will be made Of
wood that has never before been
Utilized, the gum tree, which grows III
great numbers throughout all east
ern Carolina, and which has hereto
fore been considered as being abso-
luteJy useless and worthless. It
before brought any value, n only
since the spruce and white pine, from
which these slaves have been Inade,
Eegan to grow scarce in the forests of
Maine and other New England states,
v efforts been made to find another
adaptable and available kind of wood.
The black gum WIS found to grow to
immense size, frequently as large as
the oak, in the southern sWarops, from
Virginia to Florida, and especially in
North Carolina and experiments were
begun with it. The fbre Of the gum
tree was discovered to have a cross
iS'' ~ VI IA oil lin
when dried it warps and twists. and
for this reason it was Of no value
for eny purpose. But q process was
discovered by the manager of the
company at New Bern, 10y which the
fb1e is broken down, the twist or
warp taken out; and the wood is then
of the hest quality for barrel slaves
The process has been demonstrated
to lie a success, and it means the
utilization Of vast tracts of swamp
lands in North Carolina. and the
bringing of millions Of dollars to this
state. Half a dozen manufactures Of
the kind being constructed could not
e<haust the gum trees in the eastern
Carolina swamps as they grow mirac-
UiOuSly fast.
The sugar stave factory's SUCCESS
presents the possibility of other like
enterprises, these being oil barrel,
pork barrel and -four barrel slaves,
etc. There are, with the aid OF the
rev drying process. a great many
other uses that might be made of the
gum troo-