Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1910-07-22
7TEE

developed an horticultural industry to proceed
hand in hand with the preparation of quebracho
posts for fences and construction work sleepers
for railways, and of tanning extract, Athe three
industries for which this unique tree is at present
utilized.
"Rollizos" is the Spanish word commonly
ployod in the trade for the rough and untrimmed
logs (which the word means) from which only
the bark has been removed. They are still sup
piled by smaller camps from dwarfed under
growth not great enough for other purposes than
posts, beams, cabin pillars, cart axes When
the forest first invaded these logs were the
only product brought out of it, and the stories told
of the primitive methods adopted by the natives
for transport carry back before the days of
steam and machinery A popular way Of loading
the logs was to lay them the ground on ropes;
then the animals were embarrassed and the cart
was tilted bodily upside down over the logs;
these were then made fast TO the body of the cart,
after which maneuver it was brought back to its
normal position. OF course only twowheeled carts
were used. AS soon as modern methods were in
troduced, and better carts or wagons became
known, these primitive and cumbersome habits
disappeared although in the far interior even to-
day rolzos still brought TO market in this
manner. "Durmientes," according to the Spanish.
or sleepers, in the English idiom probably the
most important product of the quebracho of the
Argentine Republic.
The industry Of making sleepers has assumed
huge proportions The difficulties of former days
have been largely overcome by the Introduction
Of modern machinery especially saws and some
of the mills many miles distant from any main
railway are equipped and organized in manner
which would reflect credit any similar plant In
the United States. Special are needed to
penetrate the wood but they furnished from
the factories of England France, and America.
This mill business is carried by many com
panies although the tendency is to concentrate
the management into fewer but larger organiza-
lions One company owns tract Of land of about
1000 600 acres and is prepared to cut timber,
fashion 1t into logs and sleepers, prepare tanning
extract and utilize every other resource which the
land provides. Another company can turn out
90 900 to go 900 sleepers week This number, how
ever can by no means meet the steady demand
for railway building which is characteristic of this
portion Of South America. Sleepers laid at
about an interval Of two feet from center to
ter Assuming, therefore, only 1000 sleepers for
every mile it will be seen that go 900 enough
for only IS miles years supply at fullest capac-
fly VIII consequently build only $50 miles of rail-
way But the Argentine Republic Uruguay, Chile
and Bolivia all contiguous to the Chaco. are con-
structiug more than this mileage, so that it Is
easy to see that every sleeper turned out from
modern mills can at once find a local market
These sleepers are now finished at the mill, and
the mill is situated the spot in the forest itself
most convenient for carrying on the process.
Quebracho extract prepared for tanning skins