HARDWOOD RECORD 



37 



A Visit to the Mahogant; Forests of Mexico 



SOME FINE ^rAHOOANT LOGS AT A MEXICAN T.OGGING CAMP 



Wliile the c-oustantly diminishing supply of 

 timber in this country has been commented on 

 extensively by the daily papers as being a 

 matter of universal interest, references to one 

 of the most important hardwoods now used in 

 cabinet work has been rare, presumably be- 

 cause this wood is not a native of the United 

 States and our citizens have little or no 

 monetary interest in it. This wood is mahog- 

 any, the use of which has become so general 

 for interior woodwork, furniture, etc., that 

 it is no longer regarded as a rare and very 

 costly wood. 



The finest figured mahogany has for the 

 past two centuries been drawn from Mexico. 

 In the days when Spain held sway in Mexico 

 vessels laden with mahogany for use in Spain 

 and England plied between Europe and 

 America. Quite recently a ship, sunk in Vigo 

 Bay, Spain, in the seventeenth century, was 

 raised for the treasure supposed to be in her 

 hold. "While no treasure was found, some 

 beautiful mahogany logs were discovered in a 

 perfect state of preservation, thus showing 

 that the mahogany forests of Mexico have 

 for centuries been exploited. Now scarcely a 

 tree of sufficient size for cutting can be found 

 except in localities where the physical condi- 

 tions make it unprofitable to remove it. 



As is the case with the hardwood growth 

 of our own country, the mahogany forests of 

 Mexico are rapidly becoming a thing of the 

 past, so far as bringing out the timber for 



commercial purposes is concerned. While 

 there are vast tracts of virgin forest in the 

 mountains, these are practically inaccessible 

 and will remain so for many years, as the 

 building of roads to handle this timber would 

 be so expensive as to make logging prohibitive. 

 This country's imports of Mexican mahogany 

 will probably be less next year than for a 

 long period. 



While there are many other points from 

 which mahogany is shipped, notably from the 

 coast of South America, from Africa and the 

 Philippine Islands, none has been found up 

 to the present time which combines aU the 

 desirable qualities which have made the Mexi- 

 can variety the premier of its class. 



On a recent visit to Mexico, Chas. H. 

 Thompson, president and treasurer of Lewis 

 Thompson & Co., Inc., of Philadelphia, Pa., 

 one of the largest mahogany concerns in the 

 country, states that he found many abandoned 

 camps and many old loggers seeking other em- 

 ployment. 



No doubt the situation will be similar to 

 the oak of Indiana, which from a commercial 

 viewpoint was cut out ten years ago, although 

 a small amount is stiU found in remote places 

 previously overlooked; so with Mexican ma- 

 hogany, for many years a few cargoes will 

 come forward, but the day when the forests 

 of Mexico could almost supply the world's 

 demand for mahogany has vanished. 



Primitive methods of logging and cutting 



are still followed in Mexico ; the majority of 

 the logging camps are on the large rivers in 

 the mountain country at a distance of from 

 300 to 400 miles from the loading point, so 

 that the transportation and handling of mod- 

 ern equipment is almost out of the question. 

 The natives by their own simple methods 

 really produce better results under existing 

 conditions than could be obtained by the ap- 

 plication of modern and scientific methods. 



Perhaps 75 per cent of the mahogany logs 

 coming from Mexico are floated down the 

 Usumacinta river, distances varying from 

 three hundred to five hundred mUes. The 

 Usumacinta is a very interesting river. At 

 one point it seems to disappear into the earth, 

 to reappear again about two miles further 

 on. It is said that no man has over been 

 through this portion of the river, although 

 several years ago attempts were made by a 

 party of Indians, who entered in a canoe to 

 which a long rope was fastened. When they 

 disappeared the rope broke, and they were 

 never seen again. Presumably logs which 

 enter this subterranean tunnel never appear 

 again, which has led to the theory that part 

 of the water must continue down into a sub- 

 terranean channel leading to the bowels of 

 the earth. 



It is surprising, says Mr. Thompson, when 

 the difficulties which have to be overcome are 

 considered, how much mahogany has been pro- 

 duced annually from this section. That 



