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Available Foreign Hardwoods 



COMMEHCIAL HARDWOODS FROM TROPICAL AMERICA 



Editor's Note 



Two questions are commanding a great deal of attention among tbe producers and consumers of lumber in this 

 counti-T Probably the most important is the question of available supply of hardwood timber outside of the United 

 States" and the second is the possibility of importing hardwood from foreign countries with the removal of the tariff 

 on lumber This article is written by an authority on foreign trees and can be deemed absolutely authentic. 

 It is the first of a series which will cover the available hardwoods in foreign parts of the world, and is aimed to 

 give accurate information for the benefit of those interested in hardwood timber or lumber importations from for- 

 eign countries. 



A very possible source of a good deal of our future timber 

 supply lies in the vast forests which line the banks of the rivers 

 in Mexico and Central America. From the torrid coast line, where 

 the tropical vegetation is rank, to the green slopes of the Cordilleras, 

 where the forests are dense with valuable woods, Mexico presents 

 a great variety of forest types. 

 Woods answering to every pos- 

 sible description may be found 

 there. From the coast to the 

 City of Mexico, nearly 8,000 feet 

 above the sea level, trees of vari- 

 ous zones and climates abound. 

 At an altitude of from 3,000 to 

 4,000 feet the trees begin to 

 change ami assume the charac- 

 teristics of those of the tem- 

 perate zone; still farther up oaks, 

 pines, cedars, and firs mark tbe 

 complete transition from the hot 

 to the cold climate, until at last 

 scrubby forms are lost in the 

 suow line nearly 11,000 feet above 

 sea level. The same conditions 

 prevail on the western slope, only 

 here the species of important 

 timber trees are almost entirely 

 different from those on the east- 

 ern slope. 



On a whole, Mexico and Cen- 

 tral America are fairly well tim- 

 bered, especially in the southern 

 part of Mexico, and the same 

 general observation applies to the 

 West Indies. Practically all the 

 important timber trees in south- 

 ern Mexico are found throughout 

 tropical America. Mahogany, 

 cedar, logwood, fustic, lignum- 

 vita;. West Indian boxwood, 

 ebonj', etc., now constitute the 

 chief timbers exported from all 

 parts of tropical America north 

 of the Canal zone. The timbers 

 which come from countries south 

 of tlic Canal zone will be treated in a later issue. 



In the early days of the tropical American republics the English 

 timber mercliants largely controlled the lumber industry and for 

 many years conducted an extremely lucrative business, especially 

 in mahogany and cedar. After the forests of West Africa became bet- 

 ter known these merchants turned their attention in that direction, 

 and from that time on (about 18S3), the American capitalists 

 became prominent in the exploitation of the more valuable timber 

 in tropical America. Large concessions have been procured by a 

 good many timber companies during the last two or three decades, 

 and during late years they have all been pushing their business 

 very actively and they now generally obtain a good market for 

 their product. Several large firms are now operating on the West 

 coast, while a number are logging on the Gulf coast as far south 

 as the Canal zone. 



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P.T'II.DINr. 



Although timber consisting very largely of pine and fir may 

 be found on almost every mountain as far south as Guatemala, of 

 sufficient size and quantities for home consumption, and for export, 

 the demand has been largely for fancy woods. Fortunately these- 

 woods are found principally along the coast and along the navigable 



rivers where they are more or 

 less easily accessible. The vast 

 forests of pine, cypress, and fir 

 are confined to the inaccessible 

 j.laces, and for this reason the 

 lumber resources of tropical 

 America have not yet been de- 

 veloped to any appreciable ex- 

 lent. An immense amount of 

 capital is required for the con- 

 struction of the necessary trans- 

 portation facilities. After these 

 vast forests, which will supply 

 the necessary construction timber 

 in the future, have heca opened' 

 up and railroads built to. them, 

 they will not only constitute one- 

 of the chief articles of export 

 to the United States, but wiU 

 supply the timber necessary for 

 home consumption. At the pres- 

 ent time the demand all through 

 tropical America for construction 

 timber far exceeds the supply. 

 The bulk of this material is ob- 

 tained from the United States. 

 It is supplied chiefly by Texas, 

 Mississippi, and Louisiana, and &. 

 large part of the lumber is the 

 long-leaf pine and white oak for 

 construction purposes. 



It is more than likely that 

 many of the enterprises backed 

 by American and European capi- 

 tal throughout Mexico and Cen- 

 tral America, which were sus- 

 pended during the recent troub- 

 lous times, will soon resume very 

 active operation. There is every 

 indication of an increased demand for lumber of all kinds during 

 the next few years, and this may act as an incentive toward 

 the further development of some of Mexican and Central .•\merican 

 timber resources. This exploitation will necessarily be very slow, and 

 vast tracts will still remain untouched after the timber in the 

 United States is exliausted. This critical period has, however, already 

 arrived in respect to some species, for there are a number of 

 manufacturers in the United States who are seeking an alternative- 

 in the tropical American forests. The vast forests of Mexican 

 oaks are now being tapped, especially on the west coast, and every 

 attempt is made to introduce these into the markets here. The 

 total value of the wood exported by Mexico alone during 1911 

 was about $2,000,000. Others are seeking a wood to replace our 

 eastern white pine, whicli they will be able to find, though difficult 

 to profitably transport to market. The turpentine gatherers in the 



RAILROAD rOR HAULlNa MAnOGAXY LOGS IX 

 SOITIIERN MEXICO 



