Los Angeles herald., 1909-06-12
HUNDRED MILLION
CROSS TIES USED
YEARS SUPPLY COSTS ROADS
S56,00O,o00
SOFT WOODS PRESERVED BY
CHEMICALS
Large Demand Decreases Supply of
Hard Timber, Forcing Purchase
Of Specially Treated Logs
of Inferior Quality

WASHINGTON, June 11.-During the
year 1908 the steam and electric rail-
roads of the United States purchased
more than 112,OOO,OOO cross-ties, costing,
at the point of purchase, more than
$50 00O, 600, an average of fifty cents per
tie, according to statistice just made
public by the bureau of the census in
co-operation with the United States
forest service This was some 100000
| 900 ties less thu the quantity pur-
chased in 1907, when the total was APP
proximately 1853, 100000, the highest ever
recorded.
The decreased purchases in 1908 were,
of course, chiefly due to the business
depression which affected every line
of industry. This forced most of the
roads to purchase only the ties which
were absolutely essential for renewals,
and heavily cut down the purchase for
new track.
In 1908 only 7,431, 900 cross-ties were
reported as purchased for new track
as against 23,557 900 in 1907. OF the
total number of ties purchased for all
purposes, the steam roads took APP
proximately ninety-four per cent, leav-
ing about six per cent for the electric
roads.
Many Woods Used
1t is very interesting to note the wide
range of woods used for cross-ties. The
preliminary report by the census
| bureau lists separately fifteen classes
or species OF these the oaks are now
and have always been by far the most
| important.
The oak ties amounted to more than
| As, 900. 900, or forty-three per cent of the
quantity purchased. Next to these
ranked the southern yellow pines, with
| 81, 500 ,000 or nineteen per cent of the
total.
1t will be seen that the oaks and
southern pines combined furnished
nearly three-fourths of all the ties
bought by the railroad companies last
year. Cedar and chestnut supplied
more than 5000, 900 ties each, and Doug
las fir nearly as much.
About 100000 tamarack ties were
purchased, nearly 100000 cypress ties,
and, In round numbers, 100000 each of
western pine and hemlock. Redwood,
white pine, lodgepole pine, gum, beech,
spruce, and several other woods were
used in smaller quantities.
White Oaks Preferred
While the oaks, ana particularly the
white OAKS, nave always DS0h tiO PIC
| ferred woods for cross-ties and still
form a large proportion of the total,
the increasing prices which the roads
have to pay for satisfactory oak ties
are forcing them to look more and
more for substitutes. This accounts in
part for the great variety of woods re-
| ported.
White oak, untreated, makes a tie
which gives excellent service for many
years, but it has been found possible
| to take woods which naturally are not
durable, give them a treatment with
either creosote or zinc choloride, which
will prevent decays and thus get much
longer service from item than can be
secured from untreated oak ties.
Among the woods which have been
most largely treated so far are the yell
low pines, particularly loblolly pine
| Douglas fir, western pine, and lodge
pole pine.
New Woods Treated
This years statistics adds to the list
two kinds of cross-ties which previous
lv had not been reported in sufficient
quantity to justify listing them separ-
| ately. These are gum and beech.
The purchases of gum ties in 1908 ex'
ceeded 260,0O0 while but slightly more
than 5000 of them were reported in
the previous year. OF beech ties, the
purchases in 1908 amounted to nearly
1913 900, against but little more thar
81 900 in 1907.