ELISHA MITCHELL SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY. 19 



with but little resin, and a strong, durable wood. The 

 high price paid for large stocks for ship material causes its 

 removal where accessible, even in advance of P. aiistralis; 

 but it is still abundant where transportation facilities at pres- 

 ent are not suitable for its removal. Its second growth on 

 dry, sandy land is a smaller tree, sappy, with very coarse 

 grain, and little or no heart, the wood decaying rapidly on 

 exposure; but as it makes a beautiful wood for interior finish 

 it is largely sawn around large towns and kiln-dried for 

 that use. The general character of the trees growing on 

 drv, sandy soils is so different from that of those growing 

 about the wet lands that the two trees are usually (though 

 erroneously) believed by lumbermen to belong to different 

 species. 



P. serotinn Michx. is common over wet lands in the south- 

 east counties and is sometimes sawn with P. Taeda; but 

 the lumber is gummy and of poor quality. 



P. miiis Michx, (Short-leaved or Yellow Pine), formerly 

 common over the whole area of the middle district and 

 extends through the southern part of the mountain district, 

 being mixed with deciduous trees. It has been largely 

 removed for lumber around the larger towns and thick set- 

 tlements, and along the lines of the railways; and through 

 Catawba, Lincoln and Gaston counties large quantities of 

 it have been cut and used for making charcoal. Wilkes, 

 Caldwell, Alexander and Rutherford counties contain the 

 finest bodies of this timber to be found in the middle dis- 

 trict. This tree frequently reaches two to three feet in 

 diameter and seventy to eighty feet high. - 



P. rigida Mill. (Black or Pitch Pine) is a tree slightly 

 smaller than the preceding and making inferior lumber, but 

 largely used along with it. Surry, Wilkes, Caldwell, Burke, 

 McDowell and Polk counties contain the larger part of 

 what is known to occur east of the Blue Ridge; but there 

 is also a great deal in the mountain counties south of the 

 French Broad river. 



