28 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



LOADING LOGS DELIVERED BY SLIDES TO CARS 



peets early next spring to build a comfortable lodge at this point to 

 supplement his tent equipment. 



All the cut-over lands of the Little Kiver Lumber Company, and a 

 considerable area of undepredated laud, involving spruce and balsam 

 tops of the mountains, something like 55,000 acres, is under contract 

 to the United States government as a part of its Appalachian Na- 

 tional Forest. It is more than likely that the remainder of the 

 property also will be taken over by the government as soon as the 

 company takes out its large merchantable timber. Under the terms 

 of this sale, present owners of small tracts within the boundary are 

 left in undisputed possession of their holdings. The plans of the 

 Forest Service involve a regrowing of the forest and the protection 

 of the entire area from fire, thus making provision for the mainte- 

 nance of an equitable stream flow of rivers which have, their sources 

 in this region. 



While primarily this national forest is not intended as a play- 

 ground for the public, beyond question certain sections will be set 

 aside for this purpose, and any American citizen who so desires will 

 have an opportunity of camping in this delightful region of pure air, 

 sparkling springs, rushing waters, splendid trees, beautiful tlowers 

 and singing birds. It is expected that, with the eventual conclusion 

 of the logging operations of the Little Biver Lumber Company, which 

 will probably consume twenty years or more, the main line of the 

 Little Eiver railroad will be taken over by the government or some 

 private corporation, electrified and be continuously employed as a 

 means of ingress and egress to this picturesque and alluring section 

 of tlie country. 



It is a singular fact that this most charming region of the United 

 States and its delights as a summer resort are almost unknown to 

 even the inhabitants of the nearby cities, many of the residents of 

 which travel long distances seeking places for rest and recreation. 

 At the four thousand feet level, which has already been attained by 

 the terminus of the Little River railroad, the summer temperature 

 ranges from a minimum of forty-five degrees to a maximum of sev- 

 enty-five. The air during every hour of both day and night is invig- 

 orating and refreshing, without being either too chilly or too warm 

 for perfect comfort. Again, the region is free from all insect pests. 

 Hence, it is that the writer, after traversing practically every wooded 

 area of the United States, has chosen a sylvan retreat in Sevier 

 county, east Tennessee, as the most charming and alluring spot in 

 the country that could be selected for a summer home. 



Food products of surpassing character are readily obtainable, and 

 while small game is well nigh exhausted, this fact is compensated for 

 by the plentitude of both speckled trout in the upper streams and 

 rainbows in the lower reaches of the river. Qn the mountain tops, 

 from five to fifteen miles from the present end of the railroad, a 

 considerable number of bear and some deer and wild turkey still 

 abound. For the hunting sportsman the region offers but small 

 attraction, but for the flj' fisherman it is exceedingly alluring. 



APPAL.iCHI.VN (JLLH STATION AND PARK 



Many pictures depicting the features of this region have appeared 

 in Hardwood Eecord during several years, and the few that are pub- 

 lished in connection with this article are used simply to illustrate 

 the features of the Little River railroad and the scenic beauty alon^ 

 its route. 



To the skill and hard work of Superintendent J. P. Murphy of 

 the Little Eiver Railroad its owners are largely indebted for its 

 admirable construction and faultless operation. H. H. 6. 



To Prevent Water-Logging 



Practically every stream in the country, wliich luis been extensively 

 used for floating logs, has claimed a heavy toll in sunken timber. 

 Deep holes, lakes, ponds and harbors in many regions have their 

 bottoms strewn with saw-logs which became water-logged. 



A recent article in the Trade Journal of Calcutta, India, describes 

 a method by which it is claimed timbers may be prevented from be- 

 coming water-logged. As it is not expensive, it might be worth try- 

 ing in this country. The article says that the hill forests of the 

 United Provinces and the Punjab hold very extensive stores of spruce 

 with which is associated the well-known silver fir. The trees grow to 

 a very large size, with a girth of 20 feet, and a height of 200 feet is 

 by no means uncommon. 



The vast forests in which these trees are found are generally situ- 

 ated far from the plains at a high altitude. They are thus very in- 

 accessible, and the only possible means of getting the timber out to 

 the markets is by floating it down the rivers. Unfortunately this 

 has hitherto not been found possible as the wood, though light and 

 weighing only thirty or thirty-two pounds to the cubic foot and float- 

 ing easily even in a green state, is porous and in water quickly 

 becomes water-logged and is lost. During the last few years many 

 experiments have Ijeen made in the Punjab and Northwest Frontier 

 Province with a view to ascertaining how the timber can be prevented 

 from becoming water-logged. 



Mr. Bartcer, deputy conservator of forests, found that by dipping 

 the ends of sleepers (which had been cut and allowed to season for 

 twelve months) in hot coal tar, the loss from water-logging can be 

 practically prevented. Of 223 broad-gauge sleepers treated in this 

 way, launched into the Kaghan river and floated to the Jhelum 

 depot, only four were lost, whereas out of 331 untreated sleeiiers 132 

 were lost. The treatment is very cheap, and this discovery should 

 prove of the greatest importance and may render it possible to work 

 out the timber from the high hills of the western Himalayas. Further 

 experiments are in progress, but there seems no reason to doubt that, 

 given a period of seasoning, the treatment by hot coal tar will pre- 

 vent the loss by water -logging of spruce and silver fir wliether in 

 scantling or in the log. 



