247 



and cut into short logs with crosscut saws. The timber is sawed 

 into boards in the woods on a rough staging built of poles, tied 

 together with withes. A sidehill is chosen for the operation, 

 which is the same as the old pit sawing, still practiced in modi- 

 fied form throughout the world where timber is not very plenti- 

 ful and labor is cheap. The system in Porto Rico is slightly 

 different from that generally followed, in that the log is first 

 squared and then the boards are cut, but not completely severed. 

 The log is then .hauled down slippery paths and through much 

 mud until a road is reached. The hauling is accomplished by 

 oxen, yoked by their horns, to which yoke the timber is chained. 

 Stakes driven along the paths prevent the stick from sliding down 

 hill in turning sharp curves. The big-horned oxen, with heads 

 to the ground, groaning and often bleeding from the goads, 

 plunge recklessly down the narrow paths. A man behind yells 

 in warning and the traveler must often turn back until he finds 

 a place wide enough for them to pass. Sometimes the timber 

 is cut into boards and carried on the backs of men. 



In the manufacture of fine cabinet work the native carpenter 

 is an adept. It is only for this purpose that these timbers can 

 be profitably used, since for ordinary construction impoited lunv 

 ber can be sold more cheaply in the local market. A trade in wood 

 carving similar to that of Sorreto in Italy could be easily de- 

 veloped in Porto Rico and would furnish remunerative labor to 

 the poor natives. 



The sugar and fruit industries of the reserve are extending, 

 but coffee lands are neglected, unprofitable and rapidly deteriorat- 

 ing. Much of it is going back to forest, much is being sold for 

 taxes and probably much more will be sold before conditions im- 

 prove. Coffee was at one time the principal product of the 

 island. Today it hardly pays the picking. , 



Cacao is growing w^ell in the Luquillo region. It requires con- 

 ditions similar to coffee and is also a semi-forest crop. Coco- 

 nuts are shipped in considerable quantities in sailing vessels and 

 there is also a small copra factory. 



One grower near Orlando picked 750 boxes of grapefruit from 

 250 trees last season and sold them for $3,000. — The Forida 



Agriculturist. 



