20 



HARDWOOD RE CORD 



within the forest; the posting of fire notices, 

 containing the local fire law and offering re- 

 wards for evidence leading to the convic- 

 tion of violators; the cooperation uf owiuts 

 with tenants. Tenants should l)i' iiiailc tire 

 wardens, given a nominal and fixed pay. witli 

 limited pasturage rights, for preventing fires. 

 their services being required without addi- 

 tional compensation for fighting fires when- 

 ever they occur; tlie eni]doyinent of a guard 

 iiu largo tracts, especially while logging is 

 ill progress, and for several years after- 

 w'ards. One man should patrol ] 5,001) acres; 

 the requirement, when logging is done liy con- 

 tract, that the contractor burn slash when it 

 would become dangerous, orgauize logging 

 crews into a fire-fighting service which can lie 

 used whenever a fire occurs, and, when a rail- 

 road is used, luaiiitaiii a liurned stri|p on both 

 sides of the track. 



It is not advisable to cut mature white oak 

 until there is a profitalile market for tops 

 and eull trees. Holding stumpage until the 

 timber can be used with little waste insures 

 the owner a return from the low-g)'ade trees 

 and upper cuts, and at the same time a higher 

 price for the best cuts. It likewise enables 

 the buyer to reduce the cost of logging bv 

 the larger stuiiqiage cut. Contracts for the 

 sale of stumpage should require the utiliza- 

 tion of all .souiiil timber over twelve 

 inches in diameter in felled trees. The re- 

 cent rapid advances in the price of car stock, 

 ties and bridge timber should justify holding 

 white oak stumpage until utilization (,f such 

 timber is possible. Xor is it advisable to cut 

 white oak when it forms only a small pro- 

 portion of the mixture unless some of the 

 species of less value with which it is asso- 

 ciated — as beech, black oak, maple, and hem- 

 lock — can be simultaneously cut. 



Because of tlie relatively small amount of 

 virgin white oak, the use of high-grade tim- 

 ber .should be restricted. Frequently very little 

 discretion is displayed in making selection fin- 

 specific uses, and liigli-grade logs, suitable for 

 ]ilain uppers or quartered stock are converted 

 into bill stock, liridge lioards. or even ties 

 or car stock. There is a large amount of low- 

 grade timber and second growth available for 

 tlie.se uses, while the amount suitable for high- 

 grade lumber is ajijireciably lessening each 

 year. 



The stumpage value of large trees suitable 

 for high-grade lumber is so much greater than 

 that of small trees that in .situations favorable 

 for the best growth of white oak it would be 

 jirofitable to cut tn ;i high diameter limit — 

 twenty or tweiity-tuo inches breasthigh — and 

 leave the trees below that limit to grow. In 

 situations where the large timber is defective 

 and is adapted only to common uses, its 

 stumpage does not acquire with increased 

 size a sufficiently high value to justify the 

 jiroduction of large diameters. In localities 

 where the transportation facilities are poor, 

 ' where the total stand is not heavy, and lum- 

 bering is expensive, the diameter limit might 

 be lowered to sixteen or eighteen inches. 

 When beech, sugar majile. red maple, buck- 



eye, hemlock, black oak, liickory, and black 

 gum occur with white oak on the best sites, 

 they should be cut to the smallest possible 

 diameter. Yellow poj^lar, basswood, ash, 

 chestnut, and walnut, like white oak, should 

 be cut to a high limit, and their young 

 growth should be protected. The fact that 

 white oak often grows naturally in large, 

 jiure groups, indicates that, in many situa- 

 tions, its proportion of the mixture could 

 be largely increased. Because of its heavy 

 seed it tends to reproduce in groups and 

 clumps near the seed trees. Two trees to 

 the acre above fourteen inches in diameter 

 should always be left for seed trees. Where 

 there is a deficiency in the number of seed 

 trees below the diameter cutting limit, trees 

 should be left above that limit. 



The intervals between cuttings should not 

 be less than fifteen years, and preferalily 

 should be longer. While cutting at regular 

 intervals is advantageous in keeping the cover 

 somewhat open and stimulating growth, cut- 

 ting at too close intervals does not give clumps 

 of seedlings sufficient time to become large 

 enough to prevent their being badly broken 

 down in logging. Such clumps should al- 

 ways be protected as far as possible in felling, 

 swamping, and snaking, and neither thrifty 

 young white oak nor young trees of the other 

 desirable species should be used in any of 

 the construction work required in logging 

 when timber of less desirable species is avail- 

 able. 



Second-growth white oak is partly of seed- 

 ling and partl.y of sprout origin. In favorable 

 situations seedlings and many of the seedling 

 sprouts are capable of producing laj'ge tim- 

 ber, but sprouts in general, espjcially those 

 from large-sized stumps, will not grow to 

 large sizes. Inferior sprouts can nsuall.y be 

 told liv their short stems and extreme taper, 

 and a common characteristic is a swollen butt 

 with a small exposeil hollow. 



Since second-growth seedling trees are ca- 

 jiable of producing large-sized timber the 

 minimum diameter limit for them should be 

 not less than sixteen inches breasthigh for 

 the first cutting, and this should eventually be 

 raised to the limit suggested for virgin 

 growth. Sprout timber may be cut to a 

 diameter of fourteen inches breasthigh. After 

 two or three cuttings, sprout growth will be 

 largel.y eliminated from the forest, and the high 

 diameter limit and liea\-ier cover will event- 

 ually prevent much sprout reproduction on 

 these sites. Otherwise, second-growth timber 

 admits of tne same management .suggested for 

 uiilnuibered forests. 



Change in Handle Company. 



11. ('. ISennelt. furiinTl.v SHereI;ii-,\ ;ijul treas- 

 urer of the Dexter llaudle t'cimpauy of Dexloi-. 

 Mo., lias disposed of tlu' jjjaul there, also of the 

 plant at Boone. Mo. The former was moved to 

 liatesville. Ark., and is now in operation. The 

 latter is known as the Hooue Handle Oompany. 

 located at ]^owe. Mo. It is operating as formerly, 

 Ipiit onl.v turns liandles in the rough, the stoci; 

 lieiug shipped to tlie Clark-Danforth Handle Com- 

 pany of Cairo, III. 



Mr. Bennett has inirohasod, an interest in the 

 ICagle Handle Company of Ciiiuphell. JIo.. and is 

 manufacturing fork. rake. hoe. mop and otliiT 

 liiindles. tent stakes, slides, etc.. out of ash tini- 

 her. 



Delos F. Diggins — An Appreciation. 



The world is poorer tliat a good man has 

 gone from it . 



lii'los V. Iiiggins of (;adillac. Mich., suc- 

 1 iinilied to Itright's disease at the Presbyterian 

 hospital in Chicago on September 7. 



His passing has not only sorely bereft a de- 

 voted wife, a venerable mother, loving brothers, 

 sister and other relatives but it has caused sin- 

 (ire grief among a largo circle of friends and 

 deej) regret to those to whiun the name Delos 

 I". Diggins stood for unseltisli kindnn.ss. unfail- 

 ing consid"ration and houoralilo dealing. 



.Mr. Disgins had "a charity as wide as want" 

 and no deserving individual or benevolent asso- 

 ciation asked of him in vain for help. Yet with 

 peculiar modesty he never spoke of his benefac- 

 tions, and it has onl.v transpired since his 

 death that he recently gave .$;i0.000 to Harvard. 

 111., till' cily of his liirth, for th.^ erection of a 

 library. 



The bi-i]cli,-.;ii donor of bcaiilifnl .Mercy IIos- 

 pit.il ueviT sMw the Hue liuiUliiig. as since its 

 gift to the cit.v (if Cadillac .Mr. Diggins had 

 liei n lighting tlir iJrini I ir'si r.iyer. who at last 

 won the victoi-,\-. 



Dolus I'"ranklin Diggins was ooru at Harvard. 

 HI.. May Hi. is:,2. His latlier, Franklin Dig- 

 gins. died in IS'.n. His mother, whoso maiden 

 name was Kllen C. lilodgett. is yet living, niak-- 

 inji lii-]-»tiome in Cadillac. He was married to 



DEI. IIS I hliiClXS. 

 .Miss ICsilii'i- C. Corrish at Horsey in 1S77. In 

 addition to his wifi' ami motlier, .Mr. Diggins 

 is survived by Mrs. Kdna Hollcnbeck of Cali- 

 fornia and Ceorge H. Diggins of Iowa, a daugh- 

 lor anil son of his fathi'r liy a former mar 

 riage. and b,v .VIb.'rl li. Iiiggins of Harvard. 

 111., and l''red A. Diggins of Cadillac, his lirotli 

 ers. 



He c-anie lu CaililbK in l.ss:; ti, enter the 



lashier for the D. A. 



In 1.S90 he became an 



lunibor firm of BlodgetT. 



tianking business as 

 itlodgoii & C.p. liank 

 aclivo inonibor of tin 

 Cuinnior ..v^ jiiggins. 



lu roioiil years .Mr. Iiiggins has been identi- 

 li.d with \V. \V. Miichi'll in the Mitchell-Diggins 

 Inni Coiiipnny and in the Cadillac Chemical 

 rompany. mid was iirosident of tbi' Cummcr- 

 Higgins Conip.-iiiy. ostonsivi' lumber, flooring and 

 wood choinical prodncers of Cadillac. 



AVhilo the malorial wealth left by Mr. Diggins 

 is not small, tlw value of the memory of his 

 gooil deeds, absolute nnseltishuess and big- 

 hi'arlod ondoavor in all wa.vs that make for the 

 Iposi ciiizensliip cannot be computed. 



Jit' was a C'hristian gentleman in ever.v sense 

 of tlie word, and his loss will be long felt in 

 ilii' coinmuuil.v in which he lived, Kvoryoue will 

 griivi' witli those who loved him best, for. 

 ■'taki' liiin all in all. wo shall not look upon his 

 like again." 



