STUDIES OF OCCUPATIONS IN AGRICULTURE 



17. THE WOODCHOPPER 



In earlier times, from the pioneer days on, the woodchopper did a 

 very important service in clearing the country for cultivation and 

 in providing wood and lumber for the settlers. There are still ex- 

 tensive forest regions in various parts of the country which are 

 now preserved by the careful cutting out of wood and lumber. The 

 chopper may work on the farm, cutting and preparing wood for 

 home use or cord wood for the market; he may be employed in 

 lumbering to fell trees and to clear away trees and brush or as a 

 helper; or he may cut ties for railroad building. He may also be 

 employed to hew railroad ties and rough timbers for building pur- 

 poses, and in many cases the use of the " cross-cut " or two- 

 handled saw is necessary. The chopper usually has to handle 

 wood and lumber. 



The occupation has the advantages of life in the country and in 

 the forest. The work is hard, since it means the wielding of an axe 

 steadily hour by hour, with considerable heavy lifting. It cannot 

 be done well in summer weather, so it usually becomes a seasonal 

 occupation, extending from early fall to late spring. It is fre- 

 quently necessary for woodchoppers to camp in the woods through 

 the winter, and to undergo the disadvantages of isolation, severe 

 weather, and privation. There is danger of getting cut by an axe 

 or of receiving injury from a saw or other tool or in felling timber 

 and piling logs. The vigorous, skillful chopper earns good wages, 

 working by the day, by the cord, or by the job. The farmer and 

 the farm laborer, of course, often do wood and timber cutting. 



The woodchopper should have vigorous health and strength, 

 and hardihood to undergo the privations of life in the woods and 

 of camping. He should have skill in using tools, and frequently 

 the ability to cook and to care for a camp. 



18. THE HOMEMAKER ON THE FARM 



It seems well to add here a brief study of the homemaker, to 

 show something of the actual nature of domestic work on the farm. 

 The homemaker may be the farmer's wife, daughter, other relative, 

 or an employed housekeeper. Students may easily secure informa- 

 tion to supplement this treatment of the occupation. 



