98 A STUDY OF FOREST CONDITIONS 



roads, the greater part of the timber is still standing. Long- 

 leaf is the predominant species, and forms from 50 to 70 

 per cent of the stand over large areas. The timber is 

 sound and healthy, but it is not as tall as the longieaf far- 

 ther east. It is for the most part confined to the top and 

 upper slopes of the hills. Shortleaf and loblolly pine in 

 varying proportions make up about 30 per cent of the forest. 

 On the average about 10 per cent of the stand is hardwood, 

 such as white oak, yellow poplar, sweet gum and hickory, 

 which occur mostly in the hollows and lower slopes of the 

 hills. On some areas, however, more than half the timber 

 is hardwood. Lumbering, except for local use, has been 

 confined to the pure longieaf type and to several places 

 along the Yazoo & Mississippi Valley Railroad in the 

 hardwood hills type, reaching into the longieaf hills in 

 only one or two places. But with the construction of the 

 Mississippi Central Railroad and with the gradual ex- 

 haustion of longieaf in other sections, a good many mills 

 are starting up, while several large companies are buying 

 all the timberland available. Franklin will in a short time 

 be one of the largest lumber-producing counties in the 

 region. The greater part of the longieaf hills type is pos- 

 sibly better fitted for the growth of forest than for field 

 crops, and so in all logging operations care should be taken 

 to perpetuate the forest by leaving seed trees, by preventing 

 injury to young growth, and by fire protection. 



The hardwood hills type lies along the western and 

 northwestern borders of the county and covers barely 

 one-third of its total area. This part of the county has' 

 furnished most of the stave timber which has been, in the 

 past, one of its chief timber outputs. A large portion of 

 this section has been cleared for agriculture, but much 

 land has been allowed to revert to forest. These areas, 

 now grown up in loblolly pine, are furnishing practically 

 all the railroad ties of the county. In the past year this 

 industry has more than doubled its output, and now there 

 are five or six mills for cutting ties in this part of the county. 



The Homochitto River runs through the county, and 

 there are considerable areas of bottom-lands along this 



