140 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



lightly to be undertaken. In felling these big trees, the 

 axmen do not stand on the ground nor lay the ax at the 

 root of the tree. The first thing to be done is to cut four 

 light poles and .set them uj) for support of a scaffold 

 made of four horizontal sticks lashed at the required 

 height to the unrights, with more sticks laid across. On 

 this precarious footing the axmen stand and chop all 

 around the tree, which at last falls as it will, selecting 

 its own bed ground, the natives climbing down and slip- 

 ping aw5iy to safe cpiartcrs. 



In cross-cutting, a ladder must be set up for the 

 sawyers to stand on in starting the cut. Cross-cutting 

 of big timber takes a lot of knowing how, else it is 



of bushmen taught the fine points of intelligent labor ; 

 how to prepare and lay the foundations for successful 

 results ; to rely on their own efforts rather than upon 

 unusual and occasional manifestations of nature or, to 

 use a favorite expression, "by God's power;" in short, 

 to put them in the way of earning real money with which 

 to buy the things they are at the same time "learning t" 

 want" a long step toward becoming "civilized." These 

 items of progress may not entitle the claimant to any of 

 the medals or prizes, rewards for meritorious deeds, yet 

 it all seems like having done a vast amount of good to a 

 large number of heathen, paying each individual wages 

 with board and lodging, for the privilege of educating 



THE MILL CAN NEVER GRIND WITH THE W.-^TER TH.AT H.\S P.-\SSED 



Unless the logs are ready for floating when the small streams rise suddenly it may be a long time before there is enough water 

 to carry them out, so night and day the camp foreman must be ready to rush his crew to the stream when water comes. 



backbreaking work. The native is slow in getting into 

 the right swing, is inclined to ride the saw, pull at an 

 angle, push so as to buckle and bind, can not file or set 

 so as to run free, does not properly block to prevent 

 top binding, nor support the ijearly severed log to pre- 

 vent splitting, and it becomes necessary to instruct him 

 on all these points. The same is true of the u.se of all 

 loRg'ng tools and of the devices for taking advantage 

 of the work in all its branches, and I am strongly im- 

 pres.sed with the thought that from my endeavors along 

 this line and the results accomplished by my coadjutors. 

 I may rightfully lay claim to favorable recognition as 

 having done real missionary work. Several thousands 



him in a real, practical industrial school than which 

 nothing will better serve to civilize or modernize the 

 West African. If this educational work has been sup- 

 plemented by examples of clean and decent living, the 

 care of the sick and wounded, burial of the dead ; prompt 

 payment of obligations ; ])atience with the ignorant and 

 stupid ; justice and kindly treatment for all, then it can 

 not successfully be denied that some fairly good mis- 

 sionary labor has here been accomplished. 



Quite naturally the question arises why continue in 

 the twentieth century to haul logs with man power? 

 Since neither horses, mules nor oxen can be used, why 

 not try the various kinds of steam power; cable ways, 



