El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1913-01-11

II
~ IL write you from the edge of
l. Mahogany Land. This Motasua
valley which lies at the foot of the
Guatemala mountains, back OF Port
Barrios, has hundreds of mahogany
trees, which are being cut down by
the United Fruit company, that the
land NAV be used for banana planta-
tfons. The mahogany is so valuable
that it sells by the pound, and lew
trees would make good income l
have been in the mahogany country off
and on ever since left Panama, ana !
learn that valuable timber is being
taken from the northern part OF the
Panama republic. 1 found them. eN-
plotting the forests in Costa Rlca and
Nicaragua, and am told that many ma
hOgany camps are now working IN both
British and Spanish Honduras. Ihere
are American lumbermen sending ma
hogany TO Panama. all along the west
coasts of Central America Ihe 4oSS
are sent over the iSthmus by rail, and
thence shipped to Europe or the United
States The trees they are now cutting
here still lie in the clearing, but they
Will be taken by train to Port BarrloS,
and thence shipped
Central American Mahogany.
The mahogany of this part of the
world is the real article. We have
sOcalled mahogany in the philippines
and there are false mahOganieS IN
Nigeria, CeylOn, Madeira and Cali
fOrnia The true mahogany, the wood
earth, comes from this region 1t IS
found in the lOwlands along the east
coast from Mexico to Panama and
also in Colombia and Venezuela and IN
the islands of the Caribbean sea The
trees are magnificent. 1 have seen some
100 feet high and Sc feet IN clrcum-
ference. Not a few rise so feet above
the ground before the branches DeS1n
and some are so large that five men,
joining hands, cannot encircle them
There is no such thing as mahogany
forest. The trees do not grow close to
gether, but at wide distances apart
and the mahogany hunters climb the
highest trees of the forest and pick out
the mahoganieS by their bright colored
leaves. The leaves change from season
to season and at times, they are as
gorgeous as our leaves IN autumn. me
hunter marks the mahogany by the
color and then leads the cutters
through the jungle, hacking a road to
where the doomed tree stands. often
only two or three trees are found on
an acre, but two trees per acre are
enough to pay dividends. There IS a
record of one corporation which had
a mahogany concession of about 20
600 acres, the total yield Of which was
only 60 trees or less than two per
square mile. doubt II 1t paid.
How the Logging Is Done.
The ordinary tree ought to be at least
a yard in diameter, and the average
tree is usually one to two hundred
years old before 1t is ready for lum Der.
season but as the trees grow IN the
lcWIands the hauling can only be done
in the dry season when the ground IS
hard. As soon as the trees are telled
their limbs are cut off and the logs are
then taken to the nearest stream They
are RATED down to the market or they
may go to the railroad and be taken
to the ports on the cars. They are put
upon shipbOard as soon as they reach
port to prevent their being attacked by
the tOredO and other boring insects.
The wood is so valuable that 1t is han
died like fruit, and q close record IS
kent of it from the forest to the hands
Of the consumer. One of the chief mar
kets is London. and others are New
York and New Orleans.
In the Woods of Honduras.
A great deal of our best mahogany
now comes from British Honduras and
we get much also from the Honduras
republc. me BriI 71I1 Honduras tlInDeE
is exported from Belize, which is not
very far from Port Barrios, and I am
told that the wealth of that town has
largely come from this trade. The
forests are exploited by Iumbermen,
who hire gangs of natives for the sea-
son. and have the exporting houses to
advance the provisions and cash to
carry on the. cutting. The labor con-
Christmas holidays, the men being
hired by the year. Six months wages
are usually paid in advance, one-half
OF which is in goods and the other half
Icoil ne 4uAAAbGA -A4EAA d Z ctS QlSS4 JdLLtu
as are those of our own and other
countries, and they usually have a
carOuse before they leave Belize, during
which time the cash disappears.
The lumber camps are not piOus
places. Many of the laborers are
rOughs. and there are frequent fights
and considerable drunkenness. There
are also bad women who follow the
camps, and the crowd is not a Sunday
School one. The OVerseers live well
zach has his own boat, with from 2
70 20 indian rowers, and his own cook
indian valet.
Telling Mahogany.
me green mahogany is not easy to
4SH- and the bringing Of a large tree to
me ground is a days task for two men.
me ne cutting is done about 10 feet from
ne Dase on account of the wide spurs
winch project from the trunk and a
l,latIorm or scaffOld has to be erected
stand
After the trees are feIIed roads have
20 De made to the rivers and the
SSGGrea7Ins on the way must be bridged-
t- -oCn OF the wood Is hauled upon rude
- ucks which have wheels of solid wood
saved from the end Of log and haV-
Ny iron boxes fitted into the center
IIuch OF the work is done in the night
HS Jorchlights Of pitchpine. All this is
az az the dry season. The rafting is done
N the late summer or fall and the
camps break up about the middle of
december. After that the 1abOrers re- |
turn to Belize and they then receive
baiance due them. which results in an
other great spree
In Spanish Honduras.
1 understand there is a great deal of