HASPS AND STAPLES FOR WOOD CHESTS.

Material. Hasps and staples shall be naval brass (composition N-c) castings; hinge pins shall be made of brass rod.

Components. Hasps and staples will be ordered in sets; each set shall consist of the following parts, and shall be complete and in perfect working order:

One hasp.

One staple.

Eight brass wood screws, flat head, No. 14 by 1 inch.

Plans. The shape, design and arrangement and countersinking of screw holes of hasps and staples shall be in accordance with the plans, Fig. 48. These plans give the general dimensions of each part, which must be adhered to strictly in so far as position of screw holes and all other parts that require cutting and fitting of the woodwork are concerned, so that any part may be immediately replaced by any other similar part purchased under the same specifications without any additional cutting or fitting of the woodwork.

Purposes. These hasps and staples are intended for use on deck chests, boat chests, chests for inflammable liquids, chests for inflammable medical stores, etc.

LUMBER.

The various kinds of lumber used in the Navy may be divided into two general groups; namely, pine and hardwood. Pine is also classed as an evergreen wood, meaning that the leaves do not die and fall off in winter

e other evergreens

much used as lumber, in the Navy, are spruce, hemlock, cedar, cypress, etc. The hardwoods are ash, beech, birch, oak, maple, hickory, poplar, mahogany and many others.

Hardwood is a trade name and does not necessarily mean that the wood is hard, but that it comes from a tree which is not an evergreen.

Evergreens.

White Pine. This is a light, soft, straight-grained wood, slightly yellowish in color; is not very strong, but is a good wood for interior finishing in cabins and state rooms, a most excellent material for pattern making, being easy to work and holds glue well; good for plugs or wedges to stop leaks on account of swelling, when wet, more than other woods. White pine weighs from 25 to 30 pounds to the cubic foot.

Yellow Pine.--Sometimes called longleaf pine, hard pine, pitch pine, Georgia pine, etc. It is found along the South Atlantic and Gulf Coast of the United States. Loblolly and Cuban pine are also included sometimes under this head. This wood is strong and hard, an excellent material for heavy framing timbers and floors in buildings. In the Navy it is used for decking on large ships; for risings, flooring, gun platforms, etc., in small boats, and for miscellaneous heavy work of all kinds. Weighs from 40 to 45 pounds per cubic foot.

Short-Leaf Pine.-Sometimes called second-growth or Carolina pine; it is lighter, not so strong or durable as longleaf; the fiber is softer and the grain coarser than hard pine; it splits very easily and is only used for the cheapest work; rarely ever used on ships of the Navy. Weighs about 32 pounds per cubic foot.

Sugar Pine. Sometimes called Western pine; is straight grained, soft; is easily worked, resembling white pine somewhat

when finished; a very good lumber for interior housework; not much used on ships of the Navy. Weighs about 22 pounds per cubic foot.

Bull Pine. Also called California yellow pine; has a closer grain than most other pines-is very resinous, and quite a good strong wood for framing purposes. Weighs about 29 pounds per cubic foot.

Douglas Fir.-Also called Oregon pine; is an excellent lumber for structural purposes, and is used almost exclusively on the Pacific coast, for the same classes of work as the hard pines are used on the Eastern coast. Weighs 32 pounds per cubic foot.

Spruce. There are black spruce, white spruce, Norway spruce and others. Spruce is a strong, tough wood, an excellent material for joists, studs and general rough framing; it is much used for piles, submerged cribs, cofferdams, etc. The tough, straight grain of spruce makes it an excellent material for masts and spars of ships, the straight spruce poles being used with as little cutting down as possible. Weighs 30 pounds per cubic foot.

Balsam Fir.-Sometimes called single-spruce; is very similar in appearance to other kinds of spruce except that it is lighter in color and inferior in quality; is very brittle and splits easily. Weighs 23 pounds per cubic foot.

California White Fir.-Also called silver balsam; is not very strong and quite soft; used mostly for box lumber. Weighs about 22 pounds per cubic foot.

California Red Fir.-Also called Shasta fir; is soft, not very strong, but is rather close grain and durable in the soil; it is much used for bridge timbers and general building purposes. Weighs about 29 pounds per cubic foot.

Hemlock.-Hemlock is somewhat similar, in appearance, to spruce though much inferior as a building material; it is brittle, liable to be shaky, and splits easily; it has a coarse, uneven grain, and while it holds nails quite well, is generally

soft and not considered durable; it is used mostly for rough framing timber. Weighs about 28 pounds per cubic foot.

White Cedar.-Is a soft, fine-grained durable wood, but is not very strong or tough. It is an excellent material for planking small boats, and is much used for this purpose in the Navy. Weighs about 25 pounds per cubic foot.

Red Cedar. Has a reddish-brown color; is somewhat similar in texture to white cedar, but is stronger and more durable; it cannot be had in as wide pieces as the white cedar because it is a much smaller tree. On account of its durability it is an excellent material for posts, sills, sleepers and timbers placed in contact with the ground or near it. Red cedar posts will last for years, in the ground, without showing signs of rot. It has a very pungent odor which repels insects; it is therefore an excellent material for the shelving and drawers of clothes closets, and for chests in which clothing, furs, etc., are to be kept free from moths and other insects. Weighs about 30 pounds per cubic foot.

Cypress.-Cypress is somewhat similar in texture and appearance to white cedar, being tougher, however, and of a slightly darker color; it is an excellent material for planking small boats for which it is much used in the Navy; it is also used on some classes of joiner work. In house building it is extensively used for shingles and weather boards, also for interior finish. Looks well under stains or in natural color varnished. Weighs about 35 pounds per cubic foot.

Hackmatack or American Larch.-Also sometimes called Tamarack; is used principally for obtaining natural growth knees for ships and boat building; the knees are made by cutting out a part of the lower trunk, retaining the projected root to form the arm of the knee; these pieces are very strong, being formed by the natural growth of the roots from the body of the tree. They are shaped and fitted under beam-ends and other places where angular bracing is required. Hackmatack is very resinous and quite a durable wood; it does not rapidly rot; even