36 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



That -n-as doubtless apparent only, and -was due to the fact that 

 hardwood mills average smaller than those which cut softwoods, and 



consequently more of them were omitted when the 1910 census was 

 taken. 



rollowing are the leading hardwood states in which fewer mills 

 reported in 1910 than in 1909: 



Mills Reporting Mills Reporting 



1909. 1910. 



Mississippi 3 ,795 1,061 



Arkansns 2.060 1,260 



Missouri li,076 1,325 



Illinois 827 452 



Indiana 1.604 1,044 



Kentuck.v 2,372 1,660 



Tennessee 2,643 1,774 



Ohio 1.632 1,148 



West Virginia 1.524 1,069 



renns.vlvania 3,054 1,847 



Michigan 1,323 898 



Wisconsin 1,241 872 



New York 2,308 1,468 



Maryland ^29 



Virginia 3,511 



North Carolina 3,307 



431 



2,286 

 2,368 



Total 32,006 20,963 



In the sixteen hardwood states named the decrease in the nimiber 

 of reporting mills was 11,043. It is not claimed that there was 

 actually a decrease in the number of mills, but simply in the number 

 reporting, as many of the small mills were not asked to make reports. 



Because of the less complete returns for 1910, the basis of com- 

 parison of certain species with figures for the preceding year is 

 destroyed. Maple is the only hardwood which shows as large a cut 

 in 1910 as in 1909, and it shows an increase so small as fo be prac- 

 tically nothing. The softwoods make a better showing and there was 

 an increase on the face of the returns for Douglas fir, western pine, 

 redwood, cedar, white fir, sugar pine, and lodgepole pine. 



A comparison of average mill values for 1909 and 1910 for soma of 

 the principal woods are given: 



Average Mill Average Mill 



Values, 1909. Values, 1910. 



Yellow Pine .$12.69 $13.29 



Douglas Fir 12.44 13.09 



White Pine 18.16 18.93 



Hemlock 13.95 13.85 



Western Pine 15.39 14.26 



Cvpress 20.46 20.51 



Spruce 16.91 16.62 



Oak 20.50 18.76 



Maple 15.77 16.16 



Yellow Poplar 25.39 24.71 



Red Gum 1.3.20 12.26 



Chestnut 16.12 16.23 



Beech 13.25 14.34 



Birch 16.95 17.9T 



Basswood 19.50 20.94 



Elm 17.52 18.67 



No important differences in values occur. The general average 

 mill value of all lumber cut in the United States in 1909 was $15.38, 

 and in 1910 was $15.30, showing a very slight downward tendency. 



' ^^J;^^^Hj^;v;s^v^^^;A^^a;;iTOaiTOi*t^^^ 



Profit-Paying Sawing Wrinkles 



For stock well manufactured the discriminating buyer of lumber 

 ■will readily pay a better price than for the same grade of stock 

 poorly or indifferently manufactured. He may well do so, too, for 

 it is worth more; it will dress out and come smooth to the thickness 

 expected of it, and not leave the marks of long saw teeth, and rough 

 spots where the' board was too thin. This is the best kind of argu- 

 ment in favor of the millman taking some pains to see that his 

 stock is well manufactured, and it is also splendid selling argument 

 for the man on the road selling the output of a mUl. 



The common interpretation of the term well manufactured, is to 

 have the sa\v cutting smooth, and in a straight line, so that the 

 liunber not only looks smooth, but also runs even in thickness, thus 

 making it easy to dress and comparatively light on the planer. Also, 

 we may add as a trimming to this interpretation, the careful edging 

 and trimming of boards that there may be no ugly wane nor ragged 

 ends. This latter interpretation is pretty well understood by the mill- 

 men, and is pretty generally followed by the progressive ones, so 

 there does not seem to be much cause for complaint, except the 

 occasional lapses on the part of some, and the failure on the part 

 of others, the less progressive, to attach enough importance to proper 

 manufacturing. But there is a much broader interpretation of this 

 term than the commonly accepted one. We can go further with the 

 matter and fare still better, make the term "well done" cover 

 every step of the process from the cutting of the logs in the woods 

 to the final delivery of the product to the consumer. 



Well manufactured, in the broad sense, means getting the most 

 out of the timber of the stock for which it is best fitted, as well 

 as smooth, straight sawing, careful edging and trimming. That is 

 why it begins in the woods where the logs are cut. The man mark- 

 ing off the logs for length should not only know timber, but he 

 should also be well informed as to what the mill intends to cut, so 

 that to quite an extent he can fit the length and character of the logs 

 to the mill requirements. 



The really competent mill sawyer knows how to place his logs, 

 slab and box hearts, and what particular stuff any given log should 

 best work into. Also, he knows the wrinkle of getting some clear 

 stock here and there out of rough logs, so these points need no 



elaboration. There are certain incidental things, though, that, may 

 be overlooked or not thought of. Striving to keep straight with 

 the grain, or to keep the grain straight with the cuttings, is one 

 of them. 



There is a certain mill where the edging strips from inch oak 

 are reduced to about %" by 1" and wound into a coil for a certain 

 hoop-like use that will serve to illustrate the meaning here. It is 

 evident that the grain in these must run pretty nearly straight for 

 the strips to stand coiling even after steaming or boiling. It means 

 that the sawyer is particular about his slabbing, and that the man 

 at the edger is also careful at his work. 



At another mill where wagon stock is quite a feature at times 

 another detail comes out. Hickory, for example, is not only cut to 

 single axle length before sawing, but the sawyer is duly m'indful 

 of the disposition to spring in even these short lengths. He knows, 

 too, that it will not be as harmful for an axle to be sprung edge- 

 wise as for it to be sprung sidewise. So in flitching, say for Si/i 

 by 41/4, he makes his flitch for the thick way wherever it is prac- 

 tical in flitching from the side of the log, for he knows the flitch 

 is likely to do more springing in this original flitching off than it 

 will in the final ripping up. It is not always that he can do just 

 as he wants to in this, Imt he keeps it in mind, and it helps him turn 

 out what is well manufactured stock in even a broader sense than 

 the usual interpretation of the term. 



In flitching oak or cutting thick stock, springing oftentimes is an 

 aggravating factor. It is possible by a little study and experiment 

 to find not only what kind of logs do the most springing, but also 

 how to saw them to reduce this trouble to a minimum. There are 

 often hard sides and soft sides to logs, sides with growing strains 

 set up in them and other sides comparatively free from these, and 

 it helps to find out about these things and take advantage of this 

 knowledge. 



Then, beyond all this, in edging and trimming out, there is a 

 chance to redeem lumber that might otherwise be classed as poorly 

 manufactured — boards that are thin and thick in spots, or thin on 

 (uie edge and thick on the other. Some of this will happen in the 

 best of sawmills, and especially is it likely with the last board on 



