UTILIZATION OF FOREST PRODUCTS 179 



purpose, while the inferior logs are used for ordinary lumber 

 or pulp. 



Chairs and Furniture. Yellow birch, sugar maple, beech and 

 oak are the chief lumbers used in these industries. Small pieces, 

 especially in chair rungs, make close utilization possible, and 

 small crooked logs are serviceable. Many mills simply make 

 chair stock, which is shipped to a chair factory. 



Boxes and Crates. White pine is the leading box material and 

 the poorer grades are used. Small trees, though often very knotty, 

 make good shipping boxes, and much second growth timber is 

 used. The light weight of pine is an important item in figuring 

 on freight rates. Spruce is second to pine. It is odorless and 

 tasteless and is therefore suitable as a container of food products 

 such as butter, cheese and fruits. Because it is also a stainless 

 wood it is used in large quantities for crating marble. Balsam 

 and hemlock are also used extensively for boxes. Basswood and 

 poplar are finer woods and go into boxes for carrying food prod- 

 ucts, and lock-corner boxes. 



Shuttles, Spools and Bobbins. Paper birch is the wood most 

 preferred for this purpose, especially for spools. Sugar maple, 

 yellow birch and beech are also used for many turned products. 

 One great advantage derived from a market for these purposes is 

 that the poorer grades may be used. There is no trouble any- 

 where in marketing first quality old hardwoods; but it is not 

 everywhere possible to market crooked logs or logs with imper- 

 fections. Wherever this industry exists there should be an 

 opportunity to market these poorer materials, and the industry 

 should, therefore, be a benefit to the community. 



Handles. The factories manufacturing wooden handles of 

 various kinds are one of the very best markets for hardwood. 

 Hickory and ash bring the highest prices, but maple and beech 

 furnish the greatest amount of raw material. Other species such 

 as basswood, cherry, and applewood, are used in small amounts. 

 The form of raw material required by establishments manufac- 

 turing different kinds of handles naturally differs a great deal. 1 



1 "Selling Woodlot Products on Michigan Farms," by E. H. Frothingham. 



