30 USES OF COMMERCIAL WOODS OF THE UNITED STATES. 



value and importance does not do it justice. In 1909, in the State of 

 Maryland alone, 17,000,000 feet of this lumber were put to use, and 

 its value at the box factories where it was manufactured was $173,000. 

 In quantity it stood fifth in the State, being surpassed by loblolly 

 pine, longleaf pine, white oak, and cypress, while 48 woods were below 

 it in quantity. No statistics have been compiled to show how much of 

 this wood is cut and used in other States, but there is no reason to 

 suppose that Maryland uses more than New Jersey or Virginia, and 

 it is well known that considerable quantities are cut in many parts of 

 its range. Though the annual cut of all woods in Maryland amounts 

 to about 450,000,000 board feet, only one species, loblolly pine, ex- 

 ceeds scrub pine in quantity. It has not sprung into use in recent 

 years, but has been of value for generations and for many purposes. 

 It is known that the stand w r as considerable in New Jersey long be- 

 fore the Revolution, and that tar makers cut large amounts of it in 

 that State, as well as in Delaware, along the eastern shore of Mary- 

 land, and in the southeastern corner of Pennsylvania. At the begin- 

 ning of the nineteenth century scrub pine seemed to .be gaining in 

 area in New Jersey, and was spreading into the open ground. The 

 species is best developed west of the Allegheny Mountains. Its 

 growth is rapid, and it quickly takes possession of abandoned farm 

 land, forming dense stands. These reach early maturity, and then 

 give way to hardwoods, unless the entire stand is cut down, since it 

 can not reproduce in the shade. 



USES. 



The earliest use reported for scrub pine was in tar making in New 

 Jersey prior to 1750. In certain parts of its range, particularly in 

 Kentucky, it is still employed to a small extent by tar makers. In 

 Indiana it is manufactured into pump legs and water pipes. It is 

 widely used for fencing, though not in large quantities. So far as 

 available statistics indicate, the two most important demands upon 

 scrub pine come from box makers and cordwood cutters. The box 

 and crate industry in Maryland in 1909 took the whole cut in that 

 State, besides several million feet shipped from Virginia. The boxes 

 were of many kinds, including those for fruit, vegetables, fish, oysters, 

 and canned goods of many kinds. The logs that go to the mills are 

 small and generally knotty. They are ripped through and through 

 and the boards are afterwards run through edgers. This tree is also 

 cut to a considerable extent for pulp. The pulp mills of southern 

 Pennsylvania and West Virginia employ rather large quantities, 

 obtaining the supply mainly from Virginia and Maryland. 



A large demand for cordwood is met by this pine. In fuel value 

 it ranks below longleaf, shortleaf, Cuban, and loblolly pines, but it 

 finds ready market in all the cities and towns to which it is shipped. 



