CONSERVATIVE LUMBERING. 



43 



The amount of harm done to the forest by the cut- 

 ting depends considerably upon the season of the year 

 when the work in the woods is carried on. Less 

 damage results to the young growth and the trees left 

 standing if the lumbering is done after the growing 

 season is over than if it goes on in the spring and sum- 

 mer, while the bark is loose and the leaves and twigs 

 are tender. 



FIG. 25. Low stumps in logging. 



A tree may be felled either with the ax or with the 

 saw. In either case the first thing to consider is the 

 height above the ground at which the cut is to be 

 made. High stumps needlessly waste the best timber 

 in a sound tree. Low stumps are slightly more diffi- 

 cult to cut, and therefore a little more expensive, but 

 the additional cost is more than balanced by the gain. 



