Utilisation at Menominee Indian Mills. 479 



about 8,000 board feet per acre. The approximate composition is 

 as follows: 40 per cent. Hemlock, 15 per cent. Basswood, 15 per 

 cent. Hard Maple, 10 per cent. White Pine, 6 per cent. White 

 elm, 5 per cent. Yellow Birch, 3 per cent. Soft Elm, 2 per cent. 

 Norway Pine, and the remaining 4 per cent, is composed of White 

 and Red Oak, White Cedar, White Ash, White Spruce, Balsam 

 Fir, Tamarack, Beech, Butternut, Hickory, and Popple. An idea 

 of the size of this timber is best gained from the log run which 

 averages about 10 logs per thousand board feet. The conifers are 

 much larger than the hardwoods and the log run varies from 6 to 

 33 per thousand. Only the mature timber or that which has been 

 fire damaged is logged. All cutting is done under approved 

 methods of forestry practice which insure the reproduction of the 

 forest and up to the present date a rough adaptation of the selec- 

 tion system has been used. Although no careful measurements 

 have been made of the annual growth on the Reservation, yet, 

 care is taken, based upon conservative estimates, that the annual 

 cut does not exceed the annual growth so that the mill which has 

 a daily capacity of 120,000 board feet in a single shift will not 

 exhaust the available timber supply. 



Besides all of the ordinary grades of lumber which are sold by 

 competitive bids, a great number of different lines of utilization 

 of wood products have been developed at this operation. Only 

 the utilization of the minor products will be discussed in this 

 article, including the following: hemlock bark, cordwood, lath, 

 shingles, crating material, basswood and popple bolts for excelsior, 

 pine bolts for pail stock, ties, cedar poles and posts, and picket 

 stock. 



Hemlock Bark. This is peeled during the spring and early 

 summer when the bark slips most easily, and is done in one ope- 

 ration, that is, the peelers fell the tree, saw it up into logs, and 

 then peel the bark. The bark is sold by the cord and after drying 

 brings $7.50 per cord f. o. b. at Neopit. It costs $2.96 to peel and 

 pile into cords and $2.40 to haul and load, including overhead 

 charges which amount to 70 cents. These charges embrace de- 

 preciation on tools, machinery, equipment, horses, camps, and 

 general expenses. Thus the profit on this operation is $2.14 per 

 cord. Last year 12,118 cords were sold. The market price how- 

 ever on Hemlock bark fluctuates between $6.00 and $8.00 per 

 cord. 



