Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1909-01-08
THE 5tAVAL STORES INDUSTRY
BY FREDERIC j. HAsKIN.

SAVANNAH, Ga, Jan. 3.-Savannah is
the center of the naval stores business of
the world. In the Savannah board OF
trade each forenoon is fixed the controll-
ing prices of naval stores which Will pre-
vail for the next twenty-four hours from
London and Barcelonias to Bombay and
Melbourne.
Yet when the secretary of that board
of trade received letter, he did the
other day, from a gentleman in New York
asking for information as to the best
place to buy a fog horn for his yacht,
the fact was borne i'm upon the Savannah
people that there are many people, land
lubbers and sea-faring men, who don't
know what naval stores really are.
Naval stores are turpentine and rosin.
That's all. These two valuable products
of the gummy sap of the long-leaf pine
enter into the industrial life of the world
through so many portals that it is diff
cult to catalogue their multifarious uses.
! Just why the name Naval Stores" is APP
piled to them, and to them exclusively,
is something about which there is much
disputation and very little information.
1t is the usually accepted theory that the
name originated when pine tar or pitch
was much used for calking ships and was
the prime necessity of ship chandler
stock in trade But whatever the origin,
it remains a fact that Naval Stores" is
the universal trade name for turpentlne
! and rosin when those useful commodit-
les are placed in the market; whether
their ultimate purpose shall be to thin
| the paints on some masters palette and
| rosin the bow of some great violinist,
| or whether they will come to paint the
| side of a barn or assist a circus perform
er to cling with his toes to the slack
] wire.
Savannah is not only the center of the
! naval stores trade, but is also the largest
/ market for~the actual stores OF turpentine
and rosin. Years ago when the turpen-
/ tine business was restricted to the pine
| forests of more northern states, Whining
| ton. North Carolina, was the chief port.
| Charleston succeeded to the honor when
/ the North Carolina pine forests were
| exhausted. Then Savannah, adjacent to
| South Carolina, Georgia and Florida, be-
came the chief ports. Florida now pro-
! duces the greater part of the naval
| stores, and Jacksonville Is fighting nara
for the supremacy of the market.
| 8.
| The business has its distinctive nomen-
clature and measurements. All rosin is
sold at a rate based upon 2S0 pounds,
| and one doesn't know until after the bar
rel he has purchased is weighed how
much the bill will amount to- although
/ the price quoted was for a barrel" Rosin
\ is graded in twelve different qualities,
according to color. The clearest and the
purest, made from the sap Of newly
/ tapped tree. is called water white
1 Then comes window glass" both OF
4 The
next highest grade is Nancy" then
come Mary, Kate, Isaac, Harry, George,
1 Frank. Edward Dolly and Bob. 1t is
/ odd to hear a man quoting prices on
/ Nancy and Dolly, at so much per barrel,
| over the telephone. But the mystery Is
| soon cleared away when one is informed
that the three lowest grades, formerly
< designated A, 2. and c, were combined
to form grade B. There was confusion IN
| talking over the telephone in using the
| grade letters, so Grade B became Bob,
| Grade ID was called dolly" and so on
mn the list to the aristoeratic Nancy
who is almost as clear and crystal as
window glass" .,.
spirits Of turpentine. on the other hand,
| IS All Of one grade and the price Quota
| ton is a much simpler matter. d But as
there is danger of adulteration by the
use Of wood turpentine," that IS, tur-
pentine distilled from wood blocks, and
as the temperature affects the pure spir-
| its materially it is necessary to keep a
| close watch upon the stock and the mar
ket The state of Georgia provides Sc
curity against fraud and aduteration
bv stringent regulations, enforced under
| the direction of a state supervising IN
| spector of naval stores. tl-G
| Turpentine is used IN vast number OF
the liberal arts and is am Increasingly inn
portant article of commerce. Originally
turpentine was obtained from the tur-
pentfne. or terebinth, tree which grows
| in southern Europe. This is OF very
| fine quality and Is still produced m
| small quantities in France and Spain.
other turpentine spirits are produced
| in small quantities from the Canada bal
| sam fir, but practically the whole trade
looks to the long-leaf pine forests OF the
| southern United States for its supply.
The supply has not been equal to the
demand and the forests have yielded up
their blood to the turpentine stills in one
| state after another until now Florida,
Georgia Alabama, and Mississippi are
the greatest producers, the Carolinas hav-
ing been more nearly exhausted.
/
| gether a bed of roses for the operator.
! OF late years he has come in for much
criticism from various sources some of
| IT perhaps deserved. much of 1t wholly
unjust One cannot ride through the pipe
forests of Florida and see how the tur-
pentine farmers are taking the life blood
| of trees too small TO serve for telephone
poles without being forced to the con-
clusion that this IS a kind of reckless
forest destruction which should be check
! ed Lumber men say that it does not
| hurt timber to be turpentined, in fact,
that it often improves the lumber pro-
duct But it does kill pine trees when
the turpentine farmer cuts and bieeds
| them If the tree is large enough to be
used for lumber there is no injury and
! permanent gain In the case Of very
small trees there is a permanent injury
for a temporary gain.
! In addition to this forest fires thrive
| in turpentine farms. The SCARED trunks
of the deserted trees. no longer under
the watchful eve of the ~e guards, are
as so much finder and millions of dol
lars of value is destroyed every year
J in this manner
Many of the charges of peonage made