MARTLAXD GEOLOGICAL SUKVET 193 



Sawmills and theie Pkodccts. — There are about twenty-two saw- 

 mills cutting timber in St. Mary's County. The amount cut by each 

 mill ranges from 25,000 to 1,500,000 board feet annually. These mills 

 are scattered throughout the county, and have a combined annual cut 

 of 7^075,000 board feet. The bulk of the timber cut in these mills is 

 pine, oaks, yellow poplar, and red gum. Of these only the best grades 

 are shipped out of the county. 



In the southern part of the county about two-thirds of the timber cut 

 is pine and one-third hardwood, while in the northern part this propor- 

 tion is about one-third of pine to two-thirds of hardwood. On an 

 average for the whole county, about one-half is pine and one-half hard- 

 woods. A good deal of the best grades of pine and white oaks are sawn 

 into construction timber and shipped out of the county, while the 

 remainder is cut into boards, planks, and dimension stuffs for local use. 

 Occasionally red gum is sawn for outside shipments, but until recently 

 the market price of this timber has been so low that the mill men could 

 not cut it profitably. Eed gum is now bought largely for the manu- 

 facture of fruit baskets. It is also used locally for construction timber 

 and for such less important purposes as staves for tobacco hogsheads, 

 boards for fencing, and for shingles. 



Of the entire amount of timber cut into lumber, only about 1,500,000 

 board feet are shipped out of the county. This leaves approximately 

 6,000,000 board feet for local consumption. With a population of nearly 

 16,000, this allows a consumption of 370 board feet per capita. The 

 average consumption per capita in the United States is being placed at 

 510 * board feet. 



COEDWOOD. — The supply of firewood in St. Mary's County is a simple 

 problem. Firewood is abundant and the cost per cord on the market 

 is determined largely by the cost of cutting and hauling. The best 

 quality of hardwood can be bought on the stump for less than 50 cents 

 per cord in almost any locality, while scrub pine sells for 25 cents or 

 less. It is estimated that approximately 2000 cords of firewood are 



• Forest Economies, B. E. Fernow. 



