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.
[Illustration: 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.
[Illustration: A LOG RAFT, WINONA, WIS.]
[Illustration: HAULING LOGS TO THE RIVER]
[Illustration: _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).