78 Forest Club Annual 



tacked by insects; whether low and limby, or tall, clean, and 

 sound, (b) Topography, giving average degree of slopes. 

 (c) Aspect, (d) Rock, amount present, kind and form. 

 (e) Soil, kind and depth. (f) Ground cover, and litter, 

 kind and amount, (g) Underbrush, species and density. 

 (h) Ease of logging, (i) Possible saw-mill locations and 

 power sites, (j) Grazing, (k) Recommendations for fu- 

 ture use. 



In three-man parties the duties of the compassman were 

 the same except that since chaining was more frequent, he 

 acted as head chainman. A tallyman acted as rear chain- 

 man and wrote the forest description as well as tallying trees 

 and chains. The third man would caliper and call out di- 

 ameters. In case of four men in a party the extra man cali- 

 pered ; otherwise the party was the same as with three. 



The sample plot method, as the table below shows, was 

 used on several of the P'orests. This method consists of run- 

 ning the usual lines, but estimating only at certain points 

 where a circle with an area usually of one-quarter acre, is 

 estimated. Sometimes only one of these plots was taken in a 

 forty but more frequently there were two or three, especially 

 if there was a change of type, in which case there was always 

 a separate plot for each type. The area of each type in a 

 forty was estimated, the volumes of the plots were reduced to 

 acre units; from these the total volume was computed. 



In using this method it was the custom for one man to 

 work alone in the field, procuring the data described in the 

 strip method. This is an effective factor in reducing the cost 

 of operation, but a much smaller percent of the entire area is 

 actually estimated. However, on one forest using the sample 

 plot method an estimate of five per cent of the entire area 

 was obtained. This was done by estimating half-acre plots 

 every five chains, making two acres for each forty. 



On two forests even sample plots were dispensed with. 

 The cruiser passed through the forty making a lump estimate 

 in board measure for the various species on the entire area. 

 This method is uncommon and demands considerable exper- 

 ience for its safe use. In this case as in the foregoing, one 

 man could work alone in the field, thus increasing the amount 

 of land covered each day per man. 



