New-York tribune., 1908-03-01

Portland, Ore, which manufactures more lurn-
ber than any other city in the world has a
daily output of two million feet from it's eleven
sawms. There are so many hungry machines
waiting for this product that the old-fashioned
method of seasoning out of door for year
or two viii not answer; the lumber is hus-
tied into kiln and seasoned by steam hot
air in four days.
The planning machines of the Pacific Coast
consume vast quantities of raw lumber for CELL
ings and floors. mOuldings and sidings. They
travel at gait of sixty feet a minute without
stopping for knots, although they do screech q
little
The turning lathe in its many varieties is an
incessant devourer and is responsible for more
familiar objects than any other machine in
the list The legs of tables and chairs handles
of tools, brooms and golf clubs, stair banisters,
curtain poles, baseball bats bowling balls, pill
and powder boxes, dice cups, oars. paddles,
diaboo spools, tent poles, mailing tubes pulleys,
door knobs, chess men and countless other ar
ticles are made by the turning lathe
The principle of most lathes is the samoa
knife brought to bear on a rapidly whirling
block of woodruff there are ingenious applica-
tiOns to produce a wide variety of articles For
example. in the automatic back knife lathe the
steel cutter is waved and grooved in the exact
pattern of a fancy banister post and. of course,
slices the wooden blank accordingly sepa-
rate knife must be made for each pattern and
the capacity of the machine is up to three thou
sand pieces a day. An intricately carved newell
post that would have required days for a hand
worker to produce is turned out in eight sec
onds.
In some lathes the object to be carved is au-
tomatcally guided against revolving knives by
a mechanism which has an arm following the
nd bcII of An
of tho pattern may be made or reproduction
of its proportions in another size. This style
Of lathe is used for such irregular forms as
wheel spokes and handles of axes and hammers.
The knives whirl at 300 revolutions a minute;
the machine has d capacity of 400 spokes and
half many axe handles day.
Five thousand handles for housewives broorns
have been turned out in day on another style
of lathe, and a boy has turned ;},S25 chair legs in
one day on the same machine. Straight.
tapereI swelled handles made. heavier
and longer lathe is employed for 1agstaffs, pike
poles, small masts and booms for sailing
craft.
According TO an expert of the firm Of F. e.
Estes & Sons, which has recently been called
upon by the Philippines government to carve
and pass opinion on a lot Of unknown tropical
timber the greatest wood eater among lathes
is the doWcI machine. bowels are simply round
sticks used by furniture dealers for chair rungs
and other purposes. The gymnasium wand is a
doWel. Birch maple, beech, ash and oak are
used fer these sticks according to the need
one lathe viii turn out in ten-hour day ten
thousand dovels three feet long and half an inch
in diameter. This means a daily consumption
of one thousand feet of lumber y single firm
having fifty lathes in its different factories
produces hundred million bowels a year
which represents the timber on two thousand
acres Of forest land
ClOthespins come next after bowels in wood
consumption by lathes A hOmely, casual little