Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1910-07-20
MANY TESTS OF
VARIOUS WOODS
EXPERIMENTS BE.
ING CONDUCTED AT FOREST
PRODUCTS LABORATORY.
Madison. Iulv hi.

az the university during the last five
weeks of its operation, such progress
has already been made as to lead
to the belief that Madison will some
day go down in the history of manu-.
s2eture as the birth place OF a new
eeonomy. Five weeks is no time in
which to accomplish much, and the
chemists at the laboratory say that
often from six months to a year is
necessary before anything of value
can be learned by experimenting.
Much of this time at the local sta
ton is going to be spent in the per-
lection of the machinery with which
these tests are being carried on.
When the tests were still being made
in Washington the market was
secured for machines and instru-
ments. and when It was learned that
such as were available were impracti-
cable. their use was not only aban.
doned but the experiments for which
they were wanted we're dropped Tor
the time.
With the establishment of the labor
atories here. things have taken a diff
ferent turn. Engineering geniuses
and machinists are working In har-
mony with the chemists. and machines
are made for the work and the work is
no longer being made to at the avail
able machines
AT the present time the timber
physics department is using a new In
vention made of several other instru.
ments and called an 'icalorimiter"
with the use of which the practical
values of different kinds of kiln
dried woods is determined TINS In
strument has only recently been per.
feeted by Frederick Dunlap at the
head Of the department and interest
ing results OF his experiments are be-
ing awaited. So far he has learned
nothing OF any special value but he
expects soon to learn by what means
woods may be treated with the best
and most profitable results.
In the timber tests department ex
perlments with machinery have aoout
been finished too, and the equipment
is such that the torsion OF woods Will
be tested more severely than ever
before. An impact testing machine
has lately been put into use and at
present experiments are being made
to de, nine the commercial value Of
the several brands of wagon axles on
the market. The results of these
tests viii be made known later
| The impact tests in this depart
ment are interesting In the extreme
The machine used In the test Is de.
signed not entirely unlike a guillo
tine, but instead of the murderous
knife Is the scientific weight OF fifty
pounds that is allowed to fall on
different specimens OF wood at differ
ent heights. by means OF this ma.
chine the relative strengths OF sugar
pine and hickory have been deter
mined. The latter is more than twice
as strong as the former. Before the
relative values OF the many other
kinds of woods 50 far tested can be
estimated, the process Of anclysis
will have TO be completed. In this De
partment tests are being made to pre-
vent sap-staining. and splicing and
jointing tests will also be made
Nothing in these two lines of expert
ments has as yet been accomplished.
An interesting branch Of the labor
atory Is the wood preservation de
partment. The object Of tine chemis
IN charge, f. NJ. Bond, is to find
way by which wood may be preserved
n not from decay at least for a rea
sonable length of time. This will b
made TO apply 10 such woods as ar
extensively used on the farms AM
out Of doors generally. Fence post
have already received great deal o
attention and railroad ties also, bu
nothing has as vet been learned.
Sfr. Bond is also trying naf5 y
discover some means of destroyint
the wood fungi TO which decay is al
tributed. II such a discovery can b.
be made II VIII not be difficult, salt
Mr. Bond. to preserve wood almost IN
definitely At present he Is WORKING
on a chemical composition that cal
be used as d preservative TO work II
Opposition to the ravages Of tn
fungi. when wood Is once destroyec
BY decay it cannot be used for an.
other purpose. II cannot even b.
ground into pulp for paper and th'
preservation Of the natural resources
win depend largely on the expert
ments that are now being carried OF
In this city.
In the paper and pulp department
experiments along the lines Of per
fectlng the machinery have beel
made 70 take up the time OF the gov
eminent experts more than anyoninl
else Some experiments have beel
started with woods from the western
. states. particularly The pine, spruc
and fir trees, but little has so IA
been tried with, the hard wood tree
If the east. No attempt has so ia
been made to make paper but IN
: few weeks this win be started.
Several years ago an attempt va
made IN This department, white sti
+ ia Washington, 20 manufacture pape
from corn shucks, but tine paper az
pears to have been highly gnsatisfar
tory as no further efforts along thes
. lines have been made. II was said a