The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1909-04-02
WHY WOOD DECAYS

Piles driven by the hut jewellers OF
TIE Baltic centuries ago are as sound
today as when first placed. The wood
en- cCffins in which the Egyptians bur-
led their dead are sill preserved in
perfect condition, after thousands of
years of service.
The longevity of timber under these
two extremes of climate and moisture
conditions has naturally made peo-
pie ask. What causes wood decay"
The answer is, fungi and bacteria,
low forms of plant life which live in
the wood and draw their nourishment
from it. The little organisms are so
little that a microscope is required to
see them, yet their work results in
the destruction of billions of feet of
timber each year, and the railroad
corporation, with it's crosstie bill run
ming up into seven figures, and the
farmer who spends a hundred or so
dollars a year foI fence posts are
alike drawing upon the knowledge of
experts in all parts of the world in
efforts to learn the most economical
and most satisfactory method of pre-
serving wood against the inrOads of
decay. In studying the means Of pre-
venting decay woOd-preserving eX
perts have learned many things about
the obnoxious fungi which says the
life of timber
The small organisms can grow
either in light or total darkness, but
all of them require requisite amounts
of air, food moisture and heat. If
one or more of these essential require
ments is lacking they cannot live, and
the decay of timber will not take
place. Wood constantly submerged
in water never rots, simply because
there is an insufficient supply of air.
This condition accounts for the sound
ness Of the old Baltic piles. On the
other hand, if wood can be kept air
dry it will not decay, because there
will then be too little moisture. The
timber used by the Egyptians will
last Indefinitely, SC long as it is bone
dry.
There are a great many cases, how
ever, where it is impossible to keep
wood submerged in water. or in an
absolutely air-dry condition. In fact,
a large percentage of the timber
which is used is exposed to the
weather, and is subjected to decay,
because 1T contains enough air and
enough water for the decompOsing or
ganisms to get a fOOthOld. Decay is
most serious where the atmosphere is
warm and damp, because these con-
ditions are most favorable for it's de-
velopment. In the coal mines of
Pennsylvania TIMER decays in two
or three years, because the tempera-
IOl ID " al III anu COuSldDJ anu lllC
air is damp. And in the south, the
warm, humid atmosphere often caus-
es the timber to rapidly decompose.
Decay may be prevented by two
general methods, by treating the wood
with antiseptics, thus poisoning the
food supply of the organisms which
cause decay and by treating it with
oils which render it waterproof. A
of these two methods is
most commonly used, as when wood |
is treated with creosC-e, which ILLS |
up the pores in the timber and keeps !
out water, and is also a powerful an
tiseptic
The United States government con- !
siders the investigations of the pre- /
teatment of timber of such |
Importance that the business of one /
branch Of a bureau in the department |
Of agriculture, the "ofice of wood /
in the forest service at !
is given over entirely to /
the work of experiments in cooper /
alton with railroad companies and in /
dividuals in proloAging the life of /
railroad ties. mine props, bridge tim
bers. fence posts and transmission
poles. Advice and practical assist .
ance is furnished all who request this .
advice OF the foregter. The Iengthen- .
ing of life of timber means the saving
Of thousands of dollars annually
through doing away with the heavy
expense of labor and cost of material .
for renewals.
The publisher of Dumb Animals, and .
Of l. . /,