The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1922-10-18
Frederick Haskin's Letter
5auii,,g the Wood Supply


forest fires is not in the virgin tn.
Der but in the cutover land. !,
which the young trees have moi =.
reached merchantable size. n.
burning the wealth OF the futs,.
Three-fourths of all cut-oyer -
est lands would reforest themsei,..
II 1t were not Tor fires.
The fire hazard, too. is the ch,..
deterrant to private owners az =.
over lands to reforest them. n,
hesitate to lock up consider,Al.
investment which is always ssA
ject to destruction from an unne.
ventable cause. A better controi !,
fires would undoubtedly result n
an increase in commercial refur,.
tation.
Yet it is forward looking M,
who will invest in a business n.
profits of which will accrue cnIv',e
his grandchildren. The slaS
growth Of trees does not reco..
mend forestry as business for -
impatient man. Science, therefor,
, is coming to the aid of those ~
would like quicker profits. II i
doing this through what is knov.
as laminated construction. T.
Laminated wood constructil,
was greatly developed during n.
war by the Forest Products labo1.
tory. In plain language, it cob.
sists of glueing. small pieces M
wood together to form a larks
piece and then turning or otherwks
working or using the large piece b
il it were a piece of clear timber
Clues have been developed thar
are practically as strong as (be
wood itself. and they are now prac.
tically waterproof and bacteria
/ proof. Already such objects ar
gunstocks, airplane propellors.
axletrees. bowling pins, and the
like are being made of Illuminated
wood, and the development is ex-
pected to produce beams, girders,
and stringers that will be as strons
and durable as clear timber.
Using Laminated Wood.
The extension OF the use d
laminated wood will have prj
found effect upon the lumber indus
try in more ways than one. 1t vii
encourage the commercial plant
ing of forests by enabling the uS
of trees much smaller than thos
now usually cut, and will thu
shorten the rotation in forest cdl
ture. Furthermore, by MAXIM
saleable small pieces of wood here
tofore held valueless, laminatio
; will extinguish the burning sla
piles which have been as perpetaa
an adjunct Of the modern sawmil
as the altar fire was in the ancien
temple of Vesta. 81
| Illumination will have another d
feet. Heretofore the practice l
the weeds has been to reject thos
sections Of legs which by reasa
of imperfections would not saw Y
into clear timber. The section h
jected might contain much usabl
wood. but if it was not ertiret
sound it was left on the floor
the forest to rot and add to the FIR
hazard. n the mill can mark
small pieces of wood, it can cut .
ithese hitherto discarded logs %
save what good timber they al
tain. I
To the same end the forest pf(
ducts laboratory is urging chat
i. makers and other users of wood
: small pieces to order their lumbl
cut to size at the mills, abandonil
their present practice of buyil
large pieces and saving them
: themselves. This will further e.
courage the more complete utiltH
ton of the logs cut in the forest.
AS to the use of products, q
qualifications of the conservat!
crusade are almost endless. II
: Chicago packing house has not y
l found a use for the pigs squti
but the lumbermen have discover
!, they can use the trees bark. Co
5 taxpayer can be made of the b.
which accrues at the wood pu
mills. Bark after the tannin j
been extracted can also be so use
;, Waste wood at the veneer factor
r makes excellent paper, the stie
' fists have discovered. Newspape
. can be de-inked and made up ID
/ new paper.
: Even sawdust, into which 10 ?
J. cent of all timber coming to {
n mill is converted, has not escap
: attention. 1t can be used as 4
r man food. with a cow acting as
Il termediary between the sawm
t and the diner. In other words, it
possible by a simple chemical pi
It cess to turn much of the celluif
It of sawdust into sugar which
= digestible by cattle.
% Grain alcohol can also be ma
A of sawdust and of the SIN
l. branches and twigs Of trees. ]
o scientist forsees the day wAe1
IS large part of the automobiles OF
J. United States will be driven
Il L. IN