Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1906-04-05
SLACK. CoOPERAGE WOODS.
Tic species Used for Barrels. Kegs,
and Tubs studied by the Govern
mont WITH IL NicXH In Ernnamx.

mcnt with u View to Economy.
Three hundred million barrels. accord
ing to trustworthy estimates. are manu-
featured every year. Of these, probably
the greater number are used to hold solid
contents. such as flour, sugar, cement
lime, and potatoes or other farm prod
ucts, and are called "slack" barrels. as
distinguished from eight" barrels, which
are used for oil, liquors. wines. and other
fluids. Woods suitable for slack cooper
age ars commonor and cheaper than those
used for tight barrels which were once
made almost exclusively from the finest
white oak obtainable. and which must
always require material of high grade.
Nevertheless, slack barrels of the better
grade. notably flour barrels. require ma
tcrlal which, like elm, is rapidly become
ing scarccr. With the enormous drain on
supplies, manufacturers are already feel
ing tho need Of cconomizing in the use Of
tho rarcr woods and of finding service
able substitutes among those moro plcn-
tiful
IN tho past. the coopcrage industry
Wmch - highly fastidiouS in its choice
OF woods has cullcd tho best large trees
on hundreds If thousands Of acres Of
forest from which it can not again obtain
material for long period. Moreover. the
amount of wood discarded IN slack-coop-
orage manufacture ls necessarily very
large. ranging from - per cent of the
timber in slaves to II per cent in head
| lngs. This discarded wood is in large
part not disable for cooperagc. but some
| 81 1t could, IN many eases. be used for
the manufacture" of Snall-dmcnsion stuff
ana other similar products. Hero again
| a. IN the case of lumbcrug lumber
manufacture. "ud woodworking indus
trlos in general. the question of tn" uti-
! '"'V"u "i waste assumes prime import
dnc'. The niece ssarY consumption Of all
wood products not only must continue.
put must continue to grow, and con-
~'fVdtion "i resources must largely talk,
IN" form of substituting use for waste,
! TO convert the great waste of tho slack
'oop"raec mills into salablc products.
and thus to restrain needless forest dos
| truction, merits. therefore, careful study
| In consequence of this two-rold drain
upon supplies. first. in the exploitation of
| the forest and second. in tho high per
! centaSc of loss at the mill. slack rooper-
ago must now depend on small holdings
for supplies. In the Northern States il is.
ike the vohicl" industry. commonly
forced to 60 to tho farmers woodlot to
secure timber of the needed dimension,
| ana quality. Even a. it is. the average
| life Of hoop min IN ohio is only about
| four years. after which the ianuractur-
! or either goes out Of business or moves
| to fresh h,lds. Throughout that State
| and Michigan the large number Of ah,u-
| donod "oopora@" mills and the constant
shutting down of expensive modern
plants Indicate tho exhaustion or tho r.-
| cl"o. Under TIA" pressure of these condi-
tons the industry is shifting steadily
southwark.
| Manufacturers Of slack-coopora.,
| woods are well aware. from their long
! experience, Of tn. difficulties which b.-
~"t th'lr business. and are ready to prntt
! by any principles which a broad study nt
It's conditions may bring ont. Such -
| study. however they do not feel in .,
position to carry on individuAllv. For
| this reason tho tinted states forest SER
Nlro has tdkcu up tn" subject, with "a
view 1" ascortainug what Improvement,
ana economies in manufacture arc prac-
| tlcahI"; what woods can he added To tho
present list of cooperaGc woods. what
woods arc best adapted for each purpose
in cpopcraEe; and what arc the amounts
of woods consumed in tho industry.
! \ preliminary study Of slack-cooporarc
problems has already been complctod for
| Tn" North Central Central. and some of
tn" Eastern states. This has served to
suggest several lines of special invcstisa-
D non which arc TO be taken up i'm turn 10y
the service and, in addition. has brought
ont i'm some detail the requirements which
Ic"oporaG" woods must I'LL