Rensselaer Republican, Volume 13, Number 9, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 19 November 1880 — odds and Ends. [ARTICLE]

odds and Ends.

**■?*«* y-tl-dnstriai progress isAbe disposition ifested to utilise, and in very valuable waya,too,varfousodda and encto and leavings cfstoertfa which until recenHy have mere an * l ithmuill - awujffKß waaa V - - • * - re sim os & c very Hung, uv uUhiLcT iiow cant and apparently wertbleas it may be, if only we can discover the ■Mans by which to rebderit It for application to some practical puxpoaa. Indeed, the time is arriving when important industries from whoso proseeution largo flortuneo eon bo made, win bo built up in this country simply by utilizing rnmmim substances widen our ancestors never aaved and contidared valueless. oeverai important uses to wtucii oawuUßt is or can be put, furnish a good illustration with which to corroborate tho foregoing aaowrtinno Sawdust that to worked into a plaatfe masa, mixed with glue or gypsum, and given proper abapo by being pressed in molds, has been to a small extant used in the manufacture of ebony piano keys, brush handled knife handles, fire kindlers, Hocks for ftiel, etc. A Louisiana planter urges the extensive use of sawdust as a fertiliser. He aays that if four cart loads of sawdust bo spread over aa acre of the poorest toad for the period of four years, it will render it very rich. Sawdust rota readily and imparts to tho soil a yellow appearance. Placed on tho snrihee of the ground, it prevents various weeds from growing, ana keepo the ground moist. It has been found especially serviceable in promoting the growth of fruit trees, and of potatoes and cabbage. But still more valuable waya of utilising sawdust than any hitherto suggested are being foreshadowed. W. Grossman of Petersburg, Va_ bas secured a patent for making rail road ties, fence posts, paving and building blocks, eto, out orsawdust. The wood formed by the process, which is represented to be simple and cheap, can endure a heavier pressure than ordinary wood, can take a polish, and, it is claimed, may be made fire and and so that no insects can injure it. This wood can also be cut and sawed, and nails driven into it without trouble.