(pine 



living and dead, and the roots too were burned 

 far into the ground. 



Several beetles prey upon the lodge-pole, and 

 in some localities the porcupine feeds off its inner 

 bark. It is also made use of by man. The wood is 

 light, not strong, with a straight, rather coarse 

 grain. It is of a light yellow to nearly white, 

 or pinkish white, soft, and easily worked. In the 

 West it is extensively used for lumber, fencing, 

 fuel, and log houses, and millions of lodge-pole 

 railroad-ties are annually put to use. 



Most lodge-poles grow in crowded ranks, and 

 slow growth is the result, but it is naturally a com- 

 paratively rapid grower. In good, moist soil, un- 

 crowded, it rapidly builds upward and outward. I 

 have more than a score of records that show that it 

 has made a quarter of an inch diameter growth an- 

 nually, together with an upright growth of more 

 than twelve inches, and also several notes which 

 show where trees standing in favorable conditions 

 have made half an inch diameter growth annu- 

 ally. This fact of its rapid growth, together with 

 other valuable characteristics and qualities of the 

 tree, may lead it to be selected by the government 



193 



