CHAPTER XV
FORESTS AND FOREST PRODUCTS
Outside the food-stuffs, probably no other material is more generally used by human beings than the products of the forests. More people are sheltered by wooden dwellings than by those of brick or stone, and more people are warmed by wood fires than by coal. Even in steam-making a considerable power is still produced by the use of wood for fuel.
Neither stone nor metal can wholly take the place of wood as a building material; indeed, for interior fittings, finishings, and furniture, no artificial substitute has yet been found that is acceptable. For such purposes it is carried to the interior of continents and transported across the oceans; and although the cost has enormously increased, the demand has scarcely fallen off.
Forest Areas.—The great belts of forests girdle the land surface of the earth. A zone of tropical forest forms a broad belt on each side of the equator, but mainly north of it. This forest includes most of the ornamental woods, such as mahogany, ebony, rosewood, sandal-wood, etc. It also includes the most useful teak as well as the rubber-tree and the cinchona. Another forest belt in the north temperate zone is situated mainly between the thirty-fifth and fiftieth parallels. It traverses middle and northern Europe and the northern United States.
This forest contains the various species of pine, cedar, and other conifers, the oaks, maples, elms, birches, etc. Most of the forests of western Europe have been greatly depleted, though those of Norway and Sweden are still productive. The forests of the United States, extending from Maine to Dakota, have been so wellnigh exhausted that by 1950 only a very little good lumber-making timber will be left.
The destruction of forests has been most wasteful. When a forest-covered region is settled, a large area is burnt off in order to clear the land for cultivation. In many instances the fires are never fully extinguished until the forest disappears. The timber of the United States has been depleted not only by frequent fires but in various other ways. The lumbermen take the best trees and these are cut into building-lumber. The railways follow the lumbermen, cutting out everything suitable for ties. The paper-makers vie with the tie-cutters, and what is left is the plunder of the charcoal-burner.
Forestry.—In most of Europe the care of the remaining forests is usually a government charge. Only a certain number of mature trees may be removed each year, and many are planted for each one removed—in the aggregate, several million each year. In the United States, where the value of the growing timber destroyed by fire each year nearly equals the national debt, not very much has been done to either check the ravage or to reforest the denuded areas. Many of the States, however, encourage tree-planting. In several, Arbor Day is a holiday provided by law.
The general Government has established timber preserves in several localities in the West. The State of New York has converted the whole Adirondack region into a great preserve. Forest wardens and guards are employed both to keep fires in check and to prevent the ravages of timber thieves; excepting the State preserves however, the means of prevention are inadequate for either purpose.
THE LUMBER INDUSTRY—A LOG JAM
To be valuable for lumber of the best quality, a forest tree must be "clear"; that is, it must be free from knots at least fifteen feet from the ground. In the case of pines and cedars, the clear part of the trunk must have a greater length. To produce such conditions, the trees must grow thickly together, in order that the lower branches may not mature.
The growth of trees thus set is very slow. Isolated pine-trees will reach the size large enough for cutting in about fifty years, but the lumber will be practically worthless because of the knots. On the other hand, pine forests with the trees so thickly set as to make a clear, merchantable lumber require at least a century for maturity.[49] Oak forests require a much greater period.
As a rule, the forest growths of the United States are found in the areas characterized by sandy and gravelly soils. Thus, the glaciated region of the United States and Canada for the greater part is forest-covered. The sand barrens along the Atlantic coast usually are forest areas. The older bottom-lands of most rivers are often forest-covered, especially when their soil is coarse and sandy.
There are large areas, however, in both the United States and Europe, that are treeless. In some instances this condition, without doubt, resulted from the fires that annually burnt the grass. With the cessation of the prairie fires, forest growths have steadily increased.
In other instances these areas are treeless because the seeds of trees have never been planted there. The high plains at the eastern base of the Rocky Mountains are an example. This region is deficient in the moisture required to give young trees the vigorous start that will carry them to maturity. Moreover, the westerly winds and the streams of this region come from localities also deficient in forestry, and there are therefore no seeds to be carried.
As a rule, the distribution of forests is effected by the winds and by moving water. The prevailing westerly winds of the temperate zones have carried many species eastward and have extended the forest areas in that direction. Freshets, floods, and overflows have been even more active in carrying seeds, sprouts, and even trees into new territories. Waves and currents have likewise played a similar part. Wherever the soil of the region into which the species have been carried is moist and nutritious, the forest growth has usually extended.
The Pine Family.—The pine family includes the various species of pine, tamarack, spruce, hemlock, fir, juniper, larch, cypress, and cedar. A few members of the family thrive in the warmer parts of the temperate zone, but for the greater part they flourish between the fortieth and sixtieth parallels. Most of the species found in low latitudes are mountain-trees. They constitute the greater part of the American and Russian forests. The American pine forest is thought to be the largest in the world.
The white pine (Pinus strobus) is the most valuable member of the family. Its value is due in part to the fact that the wood is soft, clear, and easily worked, and in part to the accessibility of the forests. Not much inroad has yet been made upon the great Russian forest, owing to the fact that the timber is too far away from seaports and water transportation. Rough lumber becomes too expensive for use when transported by land, but it will stand the expense of shipment by water many miles.
The Georgia or long-leafed pine (Pinus palustris) is also commonly called pitch pine, turpentine pine, and southern pine; it grows chiefly along the south Atlantic coast and in the northern counties of Georgia. It is harder than white pine and makes excellent flooring.
The sugar pine (Pinus lambertiana) occurs mainly in Oregon and California. The grain is fine and soft and the trees reach a large girth.
The loblolly pine (Pinus tæda) has a considerably larger area than the Georgia pine, extending into Indian Territory. The short-leaf pine (Pinus echinata) occurs in small areas from New York to the Gulf of Mexico, and across to Missouri; it is the Chattahoochee pine of Florida. The pitch pine (Pinus rigida) occurs in various areas mainly north of the Ohio River and west of the prairies. The lumber cut annually from these pines aggregates about thirty billion feet.
The common white cedar (Chamæcyparis thyoides) occurs along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts nearly to the Mississippi. On account of its fine grain it is much used in cabinet work and as a finishing wood. Red cedar, probably a different species, occurs along the Atlantic coast. It is largely used in the manufacture of lead-pencils, and the forests are wellnigh exhausted.
The redwoods are confined to the California coast, mainly in the coast ranges, near the ocean. Ordinary redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) resembles red cedar, is soft, and very fine in grain, and shrinks but little in seasoning. It is a most valuable timber both for common and for ornamental use. It very frequently attains a diameter of five or six feet; the big tree sometimes exceeds sixteen feet in diameter and reaches a height of nearly four hundred feet.
Other Industrial Woods.—The oaks, like the pines, form a nearly continuous belt across the northern continents, lying mainly south of the pines; they do not extend much south of the thirtieth parallel. The white oak of the New England plateau and Canada commands a high price on account of its strength; a considerable quantity is exported.
The "quartering" of the lumber used in ornamental work is produced by sawing the logs, which have been split in quarters, so that the silver-grain shows on the faces of the boards. The bark of the oak is rich in tannic acid and it is much used in tanning leather. Cork oak (Quercus suber) grows mainly in Spain and Algeria.
Black walnut (Juglans nigra) grows in the river-bottoms of the Mississippi Valley and in Texas. The merchantable supply is not great, and the wood is therefore growing more valuable each year. Hickory is used where great strength is required, and also for various tool-handles. Maple is largely employed in making furniture. Ash is a very common wood for tool-handles.
Shade-Trees and Ornamental Woods.—A large number of trees are yearly transplanted, or else grown from seed, to be used as ornamental shade-trees. For this purpose the elm, maple, acacia ("locust"), linden ("lime"), catalpa, ash, horse-chestnut ("buckeye"), poplar, and willow are most common in ordinary temperate latitudes, both in Europe and America. In warmer latitudes the Australian eucalyptus ("red gum" and "blue gum"), magnolia, palmetto, laurel, arbutus, and tulip are common. The local trade in ornamental trees is very heavy; the trade is local for the reason that the transportation of them is very expensive.
Tropical Woods and Tree Products.—Many of the tropical woods are in demand on account of their beautiful appearance, and in many species this quality is combined with strength and hardness. Mahogany is obtained from Mexico and the Central American states, and also from the West Indies. The former is classed as "Honduras"; the latter is generally known as San Domingo mahogany and commands the highest price. Rosewood is obtained from Brazil, and is used almost exclusively in piano-cases. Both are cut into thin veneers, to be glued to a less expensive body.
Ebony is the heart of a species of persimmon obtained mainly in Ceylon and the East Indies. Very little of the so-called ebony is genuine, most of the ebony of commerce consisting of fine-grained hardwood, stained black. Jarrah, an Australian wood, is now very generally used for street-paving, and for this purpose it has no superior. Teak probably has no equal for strength and durability. It is not touched by the teredo and other marine worms.
Boxwood (Buxus balearica) is a high-growing tree, native to India, but growing best in the islands of the Mediterranean. The wood is very hard, of yellowish-brown color, and so fine in grain that it finds a ready market in nearly every part of the world. Probably the larger part is used by engravers. A large amount of the wood is also used in the manufacture of folding-rules, and in inlaying. Constantinople is the principal market, and nearly ten thousand tons of the selected wood are sold yearly.
Lignum vitæ, or guaiac wood (Guaiacum officinale), grows profusely in the West Indies and along the Spanish Main. It is used both in medicine and in the arts. Shavings of the wood steeped in water were once considered a cure-all, hence the name. The wood is very hard, heavy, and is split with the greatest difficulty. It is therefore much employed in making mallet-heads, tool-handles, nine-pin balls, and pulley-blocks. In tropical countries it is employed for railway ties. West India ports are the chief markets, and the United States is the chief consumer.
A LOG RAFT, WINONA, WIS.
HAULING LOGS TO THE RIVER
Copyright, 1898, Detroit Photographic Co.
THE LUMBER INDUSTRY—A LOGGING STREAM, MENOMINEE, WIS.
Logwood is the wood of a tree (Hæmatoxylon campechianum) growing in Central America and the West Indies. The best quality comes from Campeche, and it is marketed mainly from Central American ports. It is almost universally used for dyeing the black of woollen and cotton textiles, and logwood blacks are the standard of color-prints.
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
In what structures has timber been supplanted by iron and steel?
In what manufactured article has timber supplanted the use of rags?
When a pine forest is cut away, what kinds of timber are apt to come up in place of the pines?
In what manner does the railway draw upon the forests?—the paper-maker?—the farmer?—the tanner?—the beaver?—the teredo, or ship-worm?
From what country or countries do the following come: boxwood, rosewood, sandal-wood, cinchona, bog oak, jarrah?
FOR STUDY AND REFERENCE
Make a list of the forestry growing in the State in which you live; so far as possible, obtain a specimen of each wood, prepared so as to show square, oblique, split, and polished sections; for what purpose, if any, is each used?
Consult "Check-list of Forestry of the United States" (U.S. Department of Agriculture).