Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-02-27
RAILROAD TIE IS
HUMBLE FACTOR
In Development Of CountryS Re-
sources, Strip OF Wood Plays
important Part
SUBSTITUTE NOT YET FOUND.
Best Material for Ties b. White Oak,
And This b Becoming Ncrl Scarce
Prepared Woods Figure.

Special Correspondent
Washington Feb. e3.ThJt tue uum-
BILE railroad tio is q most Important
factor in the material development OF
the country is great ruth that rs it-
te understood by people outside OF
railroad circles The putting engine
that speeds at the rate off mile or
more "a minute over thc country i- a
slave TO the two steel rails that I'M
sur, q smooth and safe road. and these
rails in turn depend 900 the old-fash-
lphed wooden Cr0ss-tic which holds
them in place
Yankee invention has not set found
"a substitute which has induced the
railroads to give up wood. although
experts say chat the day Win surely
come when the c0untrys forests viii
mo- longer Doe called upon Goo supply
the demand FOR ties. up to the present
time it seems that poo other material
has been found which has the resi-
liency OF wood and which at the same
time causes less wear and tear ON the
rail- fastenings. and ruadbcd
The countrys railroads during the
last two or three years use no 100000
20 $50. 0o3 900 of sawed and hewu ties
year. Tho ideal tie timber is white
oak. which combines tho qualities Of
durability hardness. strength. and close
grain. IL rs not only excellent FOR ties.
hut lis widely used n ship building for
general construction in CUopcragc, On
the manufacture ~ carriages. Tor aEri-
cultural implements. interior finish Of
houses. and for furniture. ON occount
~ this wide use. the supply has been
greatly reduced and some of tho rail-
roads have been forced Goo pay almost
prOhibitiyc prices for ties. nr 10 sub
stitutc other and cheaper woods t0 re-
place the white oak ties rapidly disap-
pearing from their lines.
over 90 per cent OF the ties recently
purchased by the railroads of the
country are oak. according tU latest
statistics OF United States forest ser
vice. Cross-ties of Southern pine
formed somewhat less than % per cent.
Douglas fir tics ranked third with APP
proNimately 10 per cent of tho total
Naturally the proportion of these two
timbers viii increase AS the supply of
oak dwindles. This is also true of CO..
dar chestnut cypress. western pine.
tamaIack, hcmlock and other trees
which are coming into the market as
tie timbers.
Cedar. which IS very durable, has
been extensively used 90 take the place
Of white oak for ties. but 10 is so soft
that Il Is readily cut by the rails. This
neccssitutes the use ~ tie plates and
other protectice devices when cedar
ties are used As the supply OF cedar
is also running short 10 is necessary
for the railroads to seek further for
new tie timber. one Of the woods
which has all the requisites OF a
good tie, with the exception of durabil-
lty. is the beech
A beech lie generally consists large
by OF sapWOOd. which partly accounts
FOR its lack OF dura blity, but. ON the
other hand. allows "a thorough and
easy preseryatiye treatment In Ger
many and France, beech ties have
been successfully preserved from de-
cay and are used very extensively.
Beech is found widely distributed
throughout the eastern part of the
United states, and at the present time
Is comparatively sheap and abundant
II. therefore the railroads whose lines
are located I'm the region where beech
Is abundant can make use of this wood
treated with some suitable preseryative.
another source of supply OF tie timber
will Dee opened mp.
Stumpage values have been lncreas-
ing 500 rapidly during The last few
years that many railroads have found
Il necessary TO modify their timber poll
icy and they yearly apply preserya-
uves TO "a greater number OF ties and
90 more kinds Of woods. Substitute
woods natural vary with different Sec
lions Of the country. but in most cases
they lack the two essential qualities
found boo white oak namely. resistance
To- mechanical wear and % decay. En-
perience proves that wear can be
successfully retarded hN the use of
tie plates and other mechanical de-
vices. and decay can bee postponed
by the application Of proper preserya-
uves The new conditions have made
10 necessary for many railroad compau-
les 10 meet the problem OF preserva-
ton by establishing treating plants at
central points OF distribution along
their lines