The Brownsville daily herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1897-1910, 1909-03-27
WHY WOOD DECAYS.
10 The Herald:


Washington, d. c., March 26.-
Piles driven by the hut jewellers of
the Baltic centuries ago are as sound
today as when first placed The
wooden collins in which the Egyptians
buried their dead are still preserved
in perfect condition after thousands
of years of service.
The longevity of timber under
these two extremes of climate and
moistures conditions has naturally
made people ask, waht causes wood
TO 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 or
ganisms are so little that a micro
scope 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 its
cross tie bill running up into seven
figures and the farmer who spends a
hundred or so dollars a year for
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 satisfac-
tory method of preserving wood
against the inroads of decay. In
studying the means of preventing de-
cay wood-preserying experts have
learned many things about the OBJ
noxious fungi which sap the life of
timber.
The small organisms can grow Ell
Their in light or in total darkness; but
all of them require requisite amounts
of air, food, moisture and heat. If
one or more of these essential re-
quirements is lacking. they can not
live, and the decay of timber will not
take place. Wood constantly sub
merged in water never rots, simply
because there is an insufficient sup
ply of air. This condition accounts
for the soundness 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 so
long as it is bone-dry.
There are great many cases, how
ever, where it is impossible to keep
wood submerged in water. or in an
absolutely air-dry condition. In feet.
a large percentage of the timber
which is used is exposed to the wealth
er. and is subjected to decay simply
because it 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 condi-
lions are most favorable for its devel-
opment. In the coal mines of Penn
sylvania timber decays in two or
three years because the temperature
warm, humid and constant and the
air is damp. And in the South The
warm atmosphere often causes 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 water
proof A combination of these two
methods is most commonly used. as
when wood is treated with creosote
which fills UP the pores in the timber
and keeps out water and is also a
powerful antiseptic.
The United States government con-
siders the investigation of the pre-
sentative treatment of timber of such
importance that the business of one
branch of bureau in the department
of agriculture the 'Office of Wood
Preservation in the Forest Service at
Washington, is given over entirely to
the work of experiments in co-opera-
ton with railroad companies and in
dividuals in prolonging the life of
railroad ties2mine props. bridge tim
bers. fence posts and transmission
poles. Advice and practical assis-
lance is furnished all who request
this advice of the forester. The
lengthening 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