The sun., 1896-02-09
LOGGING GIANT CYPRESS.
A PECULTAR LUMBER INDUSTRY IN
SOCTHERN SWAMPS.
Negroes Gir,iiing and Telling Trees While
standing Waist Deep in Water Log
a Tro,ieya and Their Uses n Cypress
t,hur,h x,sth S-yprrss Furniturc.


q Tro,teys and Their Uses n Cypress
Church with Cyprcss Furniture.
Cypress lumber has not made much progress
In the markets of this city. but 1t is difficult
to convince n Southerncr that II is not the com
Ing wood for both interior aud exterior con-
struction. ard its constantly increasing pop
, ularlty IN tho southern States has led to cnor-
nous investments in cypress swamp land.
logging machinery. and mills for working up
tho logs into planks. mouldIrgs. shingles, and
other rorma of building material. Invest
mcnts IN the cypress industry increase every
y"ar and those who are Interested confidently
assert that. after the pine lands OF this coun-
try arc exhausted, cypress will be plentiful.
and moreover, appreciated.
Cypress logging IL nmphibious sort Of .
business. The best Of the trees grow in 30
called swnmps. which are often merely forests
through which the living water courses toward
tho sea In thousand channels. 1t Is seldom
found on stagnant swamp land. and tho best
timber grows where clear running water cir
cuates round the roots of the giant trees.
There are hundreds of such places In Florida
and Louisiana.
Live cypress timber is so heavy that It sinks
II fclled when green, and consequently the
lu,nlcrmcn have to work from eight months to
n year in advance of the cutting to prepare the
tim Der by Eirding the trees and thus pre-.
venting the circulation of the sap. Thousands
of trees are killed thus far in advance OF the
Telling. Girlling is both arluous and danger
work. 1t Is done bv ncg;o choppers who
stand often waist deep in water in the hauhts
of the dreaded moCcasin snake, the alligator,
and tho wildcat, to say nothing of the swarms
of mosquitoes ana other equally pcstiferous In.
sccts. The negroes endure nll the hardshps
for 81 day, and last winter, when the cold
wave swept through the SOUTH and the tenn
pcruture for weeks was near the freezing point,
these hardy fellows were kept Mt the work Of
girdlng and logging. They were safe from IN.
sccts and reptiles, but suffered intensely from
cold, for they were constantly wet to the waist
and had no dry land to go to when their days
task over.
On the picturesque Ocilawaha River. In Flor.
ida, one phase of the cy press lumber industry
is seen to the hest advantage. This wonderful
river Is fed by clear, cold springs OF tremend-
Gus volume, and 1t winds for many miles through
endless of moss-draped cypress trees. 1t
has hundreds OF loops, branches, which
leave It Mt one point only to return to it at an.
other, between its source and its junction with
the st. Johns.
Between the main river and tho branches,
which all more less navigabc. Is flooded
.orest land through which the water slowly cir
cuiates to the depth of two or three and some-
times four or five feet. 1t Is in these flooded
tracts that the cypress trees grow to pcrfec-
tion. Ono company, with headquarters at Pa
atka and Office at Boston, controls the lum-
berinG on this river. The company bought
100000 acres of cypress land fol 80 cents to 81
an acre. and several years ago engaged num-
Der of sturdy loggers from Saginaw. Mich. to
take charge of the work. 1t was all new to the
Michiganders, but they took hold with great
aptnsss apt and Quickly broke in the negroes to
lawaha swamp resounded with the blows of
the axe. the shouts OF men, and the crashing
n ION
branches OF their ncighbors and fell with u pro-
d.igious splash into the waters OF the swamp.
Then above all could be heard the rafting,
jarring, and clanking of the novel logging ma
chiuery as it snaked the huge logs from the
which they were RATED TO the big river.
A logging camp in this swamp consists Of Q
hoistinr engine, and is secured with its square
press tree dcnudcd of branches and decorated
with n band of red cloth near the top. stretch
to another similar giant a quarter of IA mile
back in tho swamp is n taut steel cable from
an endless steel cable which winds and UNI
winds upon the spool of the engine. Attached
tongs capable Of spanning a log iive feet in
diameter; Leading away from the boat is q
Trees are cleared away on each side of the cable
to the full extent Of Its grasp. and the lane ter
line stands. .' This point reached. he cable Is
taken down and nnother lane soon radiales
from the pull boat. W lien uEc or SlN lanes
have been made the tract has been pretty we'll
cleared OF scrviccablc trees, and the boat and
camp arc moved to II new point of vantage.
II is cross,cut in lengths of twelve to sixteen
feet. and the jaws Of the grnpnel or blight OF
whoOp from the foreman of tho gang notifies
the engineer, who blows his whistle and starts
the engine. AS the Convcyor cable tghtens.
the forward end of the log rises clear Of the
water and stumps and the other end trails
spray 1t rcurs over knees and stunps
and splashes in the open pools. Sometimes a
yenturcsomc negro straddles the log. and. cling
ing to the chain or grapnel, rides out TO tho
house boat TO- get Ms dinner or grind an ,,n axe:
than the spectacle of IL tenderfoot upon a buck
ing bronco.
The negroes Mt these lumber camps. of which
there are four on the Ocklawnla. live for
month ut time on the house boats. On pay
gather t rat At Col tiickris,'s store at weiaka, =
charming little Village on the st: Johns. near
iScy i %n for f rn"s
Of sag,naw Mch Whp &c comes ;,d up frTm Palni, ;,
MhSM S T' to pay yGSl hm o a II # f & aqs s
the evening of tho 10th of the month they are
disHnpom,ed but they aon p % show h it, and ;yaa .ss9a
double pay. They know that Thomas Nelson
smith will arrive next day sure enough When
somewhere in the ncighborhood for them to at
tend and any number of opportunities to risk
their earnings nlon peculiar card game OK
which they are chamourcd.
smith whois the Gc,G!mpany's surcrintend.
the white employees have houses there. II is
the town most convenient 10 the river. ana tho
small RATS which com" down the Ocklawaha
nrc masscd into ono big raft opposite the town
by ten expert luml"rmcn from Michigan. and
nrc towcd hence Ia The sawmlll at Palatka.
This, however. IL only one OF the numerous
cypress industries in Florida and there are
many more ul III" same kind IN Louisiana and
Alabama. where living wutcrcour ,cs penetrate
the cypress SwnmUs. Where there is not good
waterway in Louisiana an even nor" costly
plant is used Frequently. \ sOwmil is placed
at the cdg" OF II ci press swamp and from tho
slabs nnd sawdust Of the nearby trees II rail-
road bed IA in II out into the swamp, and the
place OF the pull boat is taken hy heavy fat
ear. secured 10 near; trees with guy ropes,
And having on board n powerful pulling engine.
Often Ia such CNsei the trolley Is dispensed
with, aud III" logs are dragged out hoI Hnntally
with direct cable from tie drum Of the en-
Grc. being skiddrl upon the log ear which is
IN he'd ahead of the pun ear. In such cnses
n peculiar dcvic" Is used 70 grnpp" the end "t
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