The Jasper news., 1918-01-03

anthracite conl. II takes a. cord and a
half of soft maple and two cords of
cedar, poplar, Or Eastwood, however,
to give the same amount of heat.
One cord of mixed wood well sea-
soned equals in heating value at least
one ton $4,000 pounds) OF average
grade bitumlnous coal.
If the consumer can buy coal at So
ton, it would hardly be worth his while
to burn first-class wood at So cord,
except in an open fireplace, because
coal Is Il more convenient fuel. If,
however, coal becomes so scarce that
1t cannot be secured in sufficient guam
titles, the consumer will, in some
cases, have to burn wood ut $40 or
even $50 cord.
Methods Of Making Cordwood.
The most common method of making
cordwood is to cut the trees into A.
foot lengths with the Ak and split the
larger pieces. The pieces are then
piled In standard cord, which is 8
feet long, feet high, and feet wide.
The contents are 12S cubic feet, Of
which about 20 per cent is wood and
30 per cent air Wood cut feet long
can be sold to brickyards, limekilns,
Woodworking plants, and other indus
tries, but Is too large for household
use. This method is used chiefly where
the tree growth is comparatively
small, as in second growth, because
SlICh wood SDlitc oocily
Another method, and one better
adapted for old growth hardwoods
which are difficult to split Is to saw
the tree into logs OF convenient
lengths, say from 10 to 10 feet. These
are "snaked" out to the edge of the
woodland and there sawed and split
into lengths proper for the stove or
furnace. The saving is usually done
by machine, driven either by gasoline
or by electricity. The wood is sawed
into 16-inch lengths, as is customary
with stove material three runs are
theoretically equivalent to one cord
Actually they contain somewhat more
wood, since small pieces can be packed
more closely than larger ones.
Wood a Profitable Farm Crop.
Firewood ought to bring better
profit this year than ever before, on
account of the higher prices which
are likely to prevail. Wood is n much
less perishable crop than many which
the farmer raises. When properly
piled, the better kinds Of wood will
In CT fyI,n IN ,,o1,
1t steadily deteriorates after the first
year. TO have the best heating value,
as well as to reduce the cost of haul
ing, wood should be thoroughly sea.
soned which means air-drying it from
six to eight months. When piled SO
as to get good circulation of air,
however, so per cent of the moisture
may be removed in three months
Wood cut in October and November
therefore, may be burned the latter
part Of the winter.
Formerly it was common practice tC
81 to $1.50 per cord. With the present
high price of labor, however, the cost
may exceed 50 cord. The great diff
ficulty in securing farm labor is dur
Ing the harvesting period If farmers
can secure sufficient labor to harvest
their crops, they should be able tt
keep enough men to cut and haul wood
later in the season. In fact, the profit
able employment Of one or two eXtrf
men on the farm during the winter
may help to solve labor difficulties dur
ing the rush season.
The prices which cordwood will
likely bring this year offer an oppor
tunity for the farmer to improve hi
woodland. Improving the WOODLAND
means taking out the poorer trees. II
the past this has seldom been prac
ticable, for the inferior wood was no
marketable. With wood bringing onl.
from $4 to So cord, there is yer.
little opportunity to secure profit o
even 81 cord. But with the price
indicated for the coming winter, thin
nings become practicable over Wild
range Of country in the vicinity Of goo(
markets.