THE USES OF WOOD 



337 



nation is that much of the lumber was shipped twice 15,000 feet for ten horses; but no team of horses now 



and was counted both times once, probably, when it takes a modern carload of lumber at a trip, 



was carried from the sawmill to the wholesaler, and The man whose factory turns out commodities 



again when reshipped to the retailer or user. made of wood, wants his 

 Many regions which 



once produced lumber 

 and shipped it, have 

 been cut out, and they 

 are now buyers. As 

 an illustration, Michi- 

 gan now purchases 

 outside of its borders 

 one-fourth of all the 

 lumber used by its 

 factories. Other reg- 

 ions have had similar 

 history. A century 

 ago New York shipped 

 pine to Louisiana ; 

 now Louisiana ships 

 pine to New York. 

 The laws of supply 

 and demand are beau- 

 tifully balanced in the 

 lumber business. California receives oak from Indiana : 

 Indiana uses California redwood. Lumber centers have 

 been changing during two hundred years, old going out, 

 new coming in ; and further changes in source of sup- 

 ply, and likewise in demand, will come. 



Thirty-five years ago a carload of lumber was from 



A PRIMITIVE PITSAWING OUTFIT 



The illustration shows the tools and method formerly used in sawing lumber by 

 man power. One sawyer stood on the log, one below, and the cutting was done by 

 the downward stroke of the saw. About 100 feet of boards constituted a day's 

 work. The process was sometimes known as whipsawing. 



lumber in dimensions 

 which will work into 

 his products with the 

 minimum of waste, and 

 the sawmill undertakes 

 to give him what he 

 wants. The tendency 

 in sawing lumber has 

 been toward an in- 

 crease in the number 

 of sizes to meet the 

 requirements of differ- 

 ent users. When most 

 lumber was employed 

 in making fences or 

 in the construction of 

 rough buildings, as 

 once was the case, a few 

 sizes sufficed and there 

 was little call for any- 

 thing outside of those 

 sizes, in length, breadth, or thickness ; or, if there was a 

 call for something out of the usual, the mill cut what the 

 customer wanted and considered it a special job. The 

 number of sizes has increased to such an extent that it 

 is no exaggeration to say that they are numbered by 

 hundreds, if each length, thickness, and width be under- 



S.F. MAAWtLL 



HAULING LUMBER IN CALIFORNIA IN 1914 . 



The above drawing was made from life and represents a "Big Sandy" Indian pursuing the path of civilization. He is hauling lumber down 

 the Sierra Nevada Mountains with his own horse and sled to build a barn for his own use on his own ranch in the canyon three miles below. 



10,000 to 25,000 feet. It is twice that now, and single 

 cars have been loaded with more than 50,000 feet. Cali- 

 fornia lumbermen used to boast that their teams could 

 take more than a carload at a trip, meaning, perhaps, 



stood as a separate size. It depends, too, upon the kind 

 of wood, for dimensions are not the same for all kinds. 

 The user's needs are studied. It was once the general 

 custom of the mills to ship similar dimensions to various 



