LONGLEAF PINE. 11 



rately, and it is not practicable to determine what part of the total 

 lumber exports they supply. It is believed, however, that a billion 

 and a half feet of these pines go yearly to foreign countries, the 

 most of it longleaf . This places it above Douglas fir, its next nearest 

 competitor, as an export wood. The pine is sent in large quantities 

 to Mexico, the West Indies, Central America, the Panama Canal 

 Zone, South America, and to Great Britain and the Continent of 

 Europe, as well as to many other parts of the world. 



SHIPBUILDING. 



From the earliest times the southern shipyards drew supplies from 

 longleaf-pine forests. The timber was sent to northern yards also, 

 and its value for masts was quickly recognized after the southern 

 forests became known. It is heavier than white pine, and to some 

 extent its weight was objectionable, but its other qualities were so 

 much in its favor that it speedily won its way. Before supplies 

 began to be drawn from the South the Riga and Danzig pines from 

 northern Europe furnished masts for a majority of European ves- 

 sels, but in a few decades after commerce with the South began 

 the longleaf pine had distanced its competitors in that trade. For 

 the largest masts, however, it could not compete with the New Eng- 

 land white pine. Spars, yards, and other timbers employed in ship 

 rigging were bountifully supplied by longleaf pine, and large quan- 

 tities of sawed planks were used. 



The first war vessels built by the United States Government, be- 

 ginning about 1797, used longleaf pine to some extent, though the 

 frames and other parts subjected to shock and strain were of live 

 oak. The six vessels forming the first Federal Navy had the south- 

 ern pine in them. The Constitution, launched at Boston in 1797, 

 and which in its long and eventful history captured 16 ships, still 

 rides at anchor at Boston, but it can scarcely be called the same ves- 

 sel that won the victories nearlv a century ago, for piece by piece it 

 has been rebuilt until practically all the old wood has been replaced 

 by new. However, the figurehead that ornamented the prow of the 

 ship when it first sailed remains, though it shows the weathering 

 effect of over 100 years of sunshine and storm. It is of longleaf 

 pine a wood which in this instance has outlasted all that were asso- 

 ciated with it in the building of the ship. 



Boat builders in all eastern and southern yards of the United 

 States use longleaf pine. It serves in nearly every part of boat 

 frames and planking, in large craft as well as in small. 



HEAVY CONSTRUCTION. 



Only one other timber in the United States at present stands on an 

 equal footing with longleaf pine in heavy construction, such as 



