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Show USE WOOD FOR FUEL Many Farmers Can Relieve Heavy Demand for Freight Cars. NEEDED FOR WAR SUPPLIES In' Many States It Is Entirely Practicable Practi-cable to Replace Coal with Wood Saving Would Amount to 70,000 Cars. (Prepared hy the United States Department Depart-ment of Agriculture.) Farmers frequently are situated so they can prolilably supply fuel from their woodlands and thus relieve, to a considerable extent, the heavy demand for coal. A maximum price for coal has been fixed by the Government. This does not mean, however, that the railroads will he able to transport all of the conl which the consumers may desire or want. Every freight car is performing per-forming a heavy duty; and the fewer the cars that are used for coal the greater will be the number available for carrying other war commodities. Manufacturers, of course, cannot substitute wood for coal ; neither can city people, because this would result in even greater railroad congestion. Nor is it likely that in either the South or the West the use of wood for fuel can be greatly increased. But in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Mas-sachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York. New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, Wis-consin, Minnesota, Iowa, and Missouri It ought to be entirely practicable In many cases to replace coal with wood for fuel. In these 17 states Is a rural population of about 20,000,000, which, It is estimated, uses annually about 18.000,000 tons of coal. If, by substituting substi-tuting wood, one-quarter of the coal burned by farmers and one-tenth of the coal burned in villages could be saved, the total saving would amount to nearly 3.000,000 tons, or between 65,000 and 70,000 carloads. Reduce Coal Consumption. It Is where team-hauled wood can be used in place of railroad-hauled coal that the change should be made. Farmers who own woodlands and people peo-ple in villages who can purchase wood from nearby farms are the ones In the best position to reduce their consumption consump-tion of coal. It is not expected substitution sub-stitution of wood for coal will be complete com-plete or universal ; for many purposes coal is much more convenient. But for heating many kinds of buildings wood is the more convenient and cheaper fuel. This Is particularly true In the case of churches, halls, summer cottages, and other buildings for which heat Is required only occasionally; but Is then wanted In large volume at short notice. Furnaces are built especially for burning wood In 3 or 4 foot lengths. Short lengths, of course, can readily be burned In an ordinary coal furnace or In a box stove, though this Is rather wasteful of fuel. Many furnace manufacturers, manu-facturers, however, make a special wood grate for use In their furnaces. One advantage In burning wood Is thnt on moderately cool days the furnace can be run at a lower ebb than when coal Is used, consuming only enough fuel to remove the chill. When wood Is used In a round pot furnnce, care should be taken to have each piece lie flat. If a stove grate Is too coarse for wood, a sheet Iron cover over a good part of the surface will make It suitable, suit-able, or a few fire bricks cai be used. Relative Heating Value of Wood and Coal. In the matter of heating value, one standard cord of well-seasoned hickory, hick-ory, oak, beech, birch, hard maple, ash, elm, locust, or cherry Is approximately equal to one ton (2,000 pounds) of anthracite coal. It takes a cord and a half of soft maple and two cords of cedar, poplar, or basswood, however, to give the same amount of heat. One cord of mixed wood well seasoned sea-soned equals In heating value at least one ton (2,000 pounds) of average-grade average-grade bituminous coal. If the consumer can buy coal at $8 a ton, it would hardly be worth bis while to burn first-class wood at $8 a cord, except in an open fireplace, because coal is a more convenient fuel. If, however, coal becomes so scarce that It cannot be secured in sufficient quantities, quan-tities, the consumer will, in some cases, have to burn wood at $10 or even $15 a cord. Methods of Making Cordwood. The most common method of making cordwood is to cut the trees into 4-foot 4-foot lengths with the ax and split the larger pieces. The pieces are then piled in a standard cord, which is 8 feet long, 4 feet high, and 4 feet wide. The contents are 128 cubic feet, of which about 70 per cent is wood and 30 per cent air. Wood cut 4 feet long can be sold to brickyards, limekilns, metal-working plants, and other industries, indus-tries, but is too large for household use. This method is used chiefly where the tree growth is comparatively small, ns n second growth, because such wood splits easily. 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 15 feet. These are "snaked" out to the edge of the woodland and there sawed and spilt Into lengths proper for the stove or furnace. The sawing 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 a better profit this year than ever before, on account of the higher prices which are likely to prevail. Wood is a much less perishable crop than many which the farmer raises. When properly piled, the better kinds of wood will last from two to three years, though it steadily deteriorates after the first year. To have the best heating value, as well as to reduce the cost of hauling, haul-ing, wood should be thoroughly seasoned, sea-soned, which means air-drying It from six to eight months. When piled so as to get a good circulation of air, however, 50 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 to have wood cut by contract for from $1 to $1.50 per cord. With the present high price of labor, however, the cost may exceed $2 a cord. The great difficulty dif-ficulty In securing farm labor Is during dur-ing the harvesting period. If farmers can secure sufficient labor to harvest their crops, they should be able to keep enough men to cut and haul wood later In the season. In fact, the profitable profit-able employment of one or two extra men on the farm during the winter may help to solve labor difficulties during dur-ing the rush season. The prices which cordwood will likely bring this year offer an opportunity oppor-tunity for the farmer to improve his woodland. Improving the woodland means taking out the poorer trees. In the past this has seldom been practicable, prac-ticable, for the Inferior wood was not marketable. With wood bringing only from $4 to $5 a cord, there is very little opportunity to secure a profit of even $1 a cord. But with the prices Indicated for the coming winter, thinnings thin-nings become practicable over a wide range of country In the vicinity of good j markets. |