60 Discussion of Industries 
Birch, while now taking third place in quantity used, con- 
tributes a slightly larger amount than in 1912. New York, 
however, is supplying a much smaller quantity than seven years 
ago. This seems strange because birch is one of the principal 
New York hardwoods. Birch is a splendid wood for furniture 
and is comparatively cheap, as shown in these tables, because 
some plants own their stumpage. Its popularity over some 
other high-grade woods is largely due to the fact that it is used 
in veneers for imitating mahogany. Birch might well be called 
a companion of mahogany in the furniture and fixture trade. 
Beech has risen to a point of greater importance than 
formerly in the furniture industry, contributing a large amount 
at the remarkable price of $29.86. This low figure is due to 
the fact that such a large amount of the material is home-grown 
and owned in part by the manufacturers. 
Hard maple has lost considerable ground in the furniture 
trade. Nearly twice as much is imported as is produced in 
New York. Wisconsin and Michigan supply much maple and 
birch to this trade. The grain of maple is fine and compact, 
sometimes containing curly or speckled pith-flecks giving the 
effect known as birdseye maple. The wood has a satin-like 
luster, and when cut into veneers is one of the most beautiful 
of our native species. It is especially attractive as bedroom 
furniture. 
The demand for mahogany-finished furniture in the larger 
centers, such as the metropolitan district, is exceedingly great. 
Birch, maple, and gum are frequently stained to represent 
mahogany. 
Yellow poplar is used principally for backing and cores. 
Drawer bottoms and sides are made chiefly from basswood, red 
gum, and yellow poplar, while drawer fronts use sugar maple, 
walnut, oak, birch, and cherry. Mahogany, Circassian walnut, 
teak, and English oak are the foreign woods entering this indus- 
try. These are all very beautiful woods and capable of taking 
a high polish. 
The average price of $80.52 per thousand is rather high in 
comparison with the other industries. This fact is accounted 
