The Washington herald., 1909-06-20
Railroads Require ,OOO,'
900 of Them a Year.
FIFTEEN SPECIES OF WOOD
Average Cost in 1905 Was Fifty
Cents Each-ThiA Has Driven Con-
structiOn Managers 10 Timber
Cheaper Than White Oak-Inereas-
ing Use of PreservatiOns.


] United States purchased in 1908 more than
/ 1l2, ,O00,OO0 cross ties. costing at the point
Of purchase over S56.OO0.OOO an average Of
fifty cents per tie, according 10 statistics
just made public by the Bureau Of the
/ Census in cooperation with the United
States Forest Service.
/ This was 100000 ties less than the
quantity purchased in 1s07. when the
| total was approximately 152. 7O0.O00 the
highest ever recorded. The decreased pur-
lchases in 1905 were chiefly due 20 the bust
ness depression. which affected every
line OF industry. This forced most Of the
roads 10 purchase only the ties which
were absolutely essential for renewals,
and heavily cut down the purchase for
new track.
Steam Roads Take % Per Cent.
In 1905 only 7.4s1.OOO cross ties were re-
! ported as purchased for new track, as
against 2S.557OOO In 1907. OF the total
number Of ties purchased for all pur-
poses. the steam roads took approx
mately "a per cent. leaving about per
! cent for the electric roads
]
OF woods used for cross ties. The pre-
liminsry report by the Census Bureau
! lists separately fifteen classes OF. species.
/ Of these the oaks are now. and have al
ways been, by far the most important
/ The oak ties amounted 70 more than 4s,-
10000. or g per cent, OF the total quantity
purchased.
NJ. o., al -a,,t-- 49,. c,,,,.h,- -.-t,,,-.
pines. with p 500 coo. or 10 per cent OF the
| total. It 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.
Soft Woods Are Used.
Cedar and chestnut supplied more than
100000 ties each. and Douglas fir nearly
as much. About 100000 tamarack ties
were purchased. nearly 3.500600 cypress
/ ties. and IN round numbers 10000 each
OF Western pine and hemlOck Redwood.
white pine. lodgepole pine. gum, beech.
! spruce, and several other woods were
used in smaller quantities.
While the oaks. and particularly the
white oaks, have always been the pre-
/ ferred woods for cross ties. and still
1 form a large proportion Of the total the
increasing prices which the roads have
/ had 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 reported
White oak. untreated, makes tie which
gives excellent service for many years.
49,. % bae bea- fo,,.s ,>o--gr.s- - -.
woods which naturally are not durable.
give them a treatment with either creo-
sote or zinc chloride, which will prevent
decay. and thus get much longer service
from them than can be secured from un-
treated oak ties. Among the woods which
have been most largely treated so far
are the yellow pines. particularly Ioblolly
/ pine, Douglas. fir. Western pine. and
/ lOdgepole pine.
Two New Kinds Employed.
This years statistics adds TO the list
two kinds OF cross ties which previously
had not been reported IN sufficient guam
I tity to justify listing them separately
1 These are gum and beech The pur-
chases Of gum ties in 1908 exceeded 26O.-
600. while but slightly more than 1900 OF
them were reported IN the previous year.
/ OF beech ties the purchases IN 1908
amounted to nearly $4,000. against but
/ little more than 1900 in 1901.
| These are woods which are distinctly
not suitable for cross ties unless they are
/ given preservative treatment Their in
| creased use. therefore, is one Of the many
results OF the progress Of wood preserva-
/ ton IN the United States. For many
years beech has been one Of the principal
/ cross-tie woods in Europe, where its
value, when given chemical treatment,
was long ago recognized
/ It is not uncommon for European roads
to secure from twenty to thirty years
! service from beech cross ties. Untreat-
/ ed, they would not last long enough to
/ warrant their Tse AT al