Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1900-01-18

few years to the south for its supply
of timber This has been most forci-
bly, shown in the chapter DEVOTED to
the subject in the magnificently
printed and illustrated volume The
Empire of the South which has just
been published and is now being dis
tributed by the Southern railway.
The author of the book, Mr. Frank
Presbrey, has presented many forcible
facts illustrative Of the fortunes
awaiting the South in this great
avenue Of national wealth. He says:
The Southern states contain at
present the largest amount of mar
ketable timber standing in any sec
ton of this continent and 39.5 per
cent of her area is wooded, as against
IS. : per cent for the entire country.
although larger amounts are
claimed as standing on the Pacific
coast, these are, by reason OF the dis
lance from places Of consumption,
practically for the most part out Of
the market and are being decimated
by reckless numbering and fires so
rapidly that even in amount they will
soon be less than the Southern re-
sources Prof. b. +. Fernow, Chief
OF the Forestry Division of the L. S.
Geological Survey, says the South
contains not only the largest amount
and the greatest variety of hard
woods, but it also contains in the
greatest abundance and perfection
that most important class of timber
which furnishes three-quarters of our
lumber consumption-the pine and
! its coniferous substitutes like the cy-
press, cedar, spruce and hemlock.
The Importance of this fact will APP
pear more strikingly in few years
when the white pine supplies of the
northern states will have been deci-
mated and brought to subordinate
condition. At present, OF the nearly
thirty billion feet Of pine and other
coniferous lamber used in the United
States, the Northern states furnish
the bulk, the Southern states little
over one-quarter. But presently the
white pine Of the north which now
reaches an annual output of eight to
twelve billion feet of material. will
gradually decrease, in fact, it has al
ready begun to decrease, and in the
same proportion the output of south
ern pine must increase. Northern
lumbermen are investing in southern
pine rapidly and in few years the
centre Of lumber production will be
found south Of the Ohio and Potomac
rivers.
The southern pine belt stretching
with width varying from 100 to POO
miles along the Atlantic and gulf
coasts and containing nearly one hun
dred and fifty million acres, contains
not less probably than twenty-five
million acres of unculled virgin pine,
and altogether probably over two
hundred billion feet of staining pine.
The quality Of this pine is world-re-
nowned, especially that of the Long
leaf, Yellow or Georgia varieties and
their associates the Cuban pines,
which for strength and durability ex-
eel all other pines of the market, 1t
is the material for heavy construction |
par crccllcRcc, while the S1ortleaf and |
Loblolly pines furnish excellent finish
ing material
In addition to the wood, these
pineries furnish annually from seven
to eight million dollars worth Of nav
al stores, rosin and spirits of turpen-
tine; and as Investigations of the |
division Of Forestry OF the United
States Agricultural department have |
lately shown without imparing the
value Of the wood
"a most excellent and pleasing sub
stitute for white pine in house finish
ing is furnished by the bald cypress. |
the big tree Of the south which haunts
the swamps along the rivers Its
lasting qualities in contact with the
soil Or in the shape Of shingles on a
roof have long given it foremost rank
among durable woods
,'The mountains of Georgia, Tenne-
see and North Carolina contain CON
siderable though scattered areas of
the northern conifers, white pine and
spruce, while hemlock skirts the noun
tain streams. But the features which
have made these mountain forests
famous are the big tulip trees and
magnificent development OF oak and
other hard woods. Trees Of diameter
over five and six feet and one hundred
feet to the first limb are not uncom-
mon This large-sized material. to
be sure, is not found spread over the
whole mountain range but occurs in
coyes and small areas here and there.
Being to degree secluded and distant
from means of transportation it has
been waiting for enterprise and de-
yelopment which would Justify the
extension Of railroads into its terri
cory
The states Of Kentucky and Ten
nessee and the northern parts of
Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi
participate in this wonderful hard
wood growth especially along the
many river courses, the Mississippi
and Yazoo deltas containing the larg-
est continuous areas Of hard woods,
being particularly rich in oaks. The
variety Of woods and the size TO which
northern species deyelope here are
astonishing.
More than two hundred species
may be found as constituting the
southern hardwood forest OF which
at least forty; five are of high econom-
ic value at present while others will
be better appreciated when necessity
arises Among the most important |
are several species Of white and red
oaks, attaining sizes OF four to five
feet, with clear trunks fifty to sixty
feet; the chestnut oak, furnishing best |
tanning materials for the leather in
dustry; tulip poplar five to six feet
and more in diameter, towering over
$50 feet above the rest Of creation;
ash and hickory of excellent dimen-
SONS and quality; red gum, wing in