18 FOREST RESOURCES OF TEXAS. 



COMPOSITION OF THE FOREST. 



Associated in this forest are nearly all the well-known valuable hard 

 woods of the Atlantic States, many of them in great abundance and 

 perfection. First in quantity, variety, and value stand the oaks. 

 Among the white oaks are the cow oak, bur oak, overcup oak, and the 

 common white oak; of the black oaks, red oak, Texas oak, willow oak, 

 and water oak. Next in importance comes ash, with white ash prob- 

 ably first and green ash second. The hickories are represented by the 

 sweet and bitter pecan, shagbark, and white hickory. There is an 

 endless quantity of gum, comprising sweet and black gum and tupelo, 

 and much cottonwood, sycamore, and elm, with a fair amount of linn, 

 white maple, holly, magnolia, ironwood, hornbeam, and, on some of the 

 north Texas streams, boisd'arc (Osage orange). Black walnut, which 

 was formerly common, has been largely cut out. 



On the rich, loose bottom soil the timber grows very large. Oaks 

 reach a diameter of from 3 to 6 feet, ashes of 2 to 4 feet, and hickories 

 of 2 to 3 feet. The undergrowth is generally very dense, so that the 

 forest covering is close and heavy. The intermixture of species is 

 ordinarily very complete, though of course unequal; but not infre- 

 quently some one species has become predominant. An example of 

 this is bur oak on certain tracts in the Red River Valley, near Tex- 

 arkana, which on one tract pointed out to the writer stands so thick 

 as to resemble in exclusiveness a pure pine forest. On the lower 

 Trinity, the San Jacinto, and elsewhere, two of the white oaks are 

 especially abundant. On the Red River cottonwood is very heavy; 

 the largest of this, however, occurs more sparingly mixed with other 

 heavy timber. On the Sulphur Fork black gum in places forms 

 almost pure forest; in other places ash and hickory do the same. Thus 

 particular localities become known as the sources of supply in quanti- 

 tity of particular trees. Other examples are the occasional areas of 

 red cedar in the forests of this type, and the bois d'arc bottoms of a 

 few counties along the Red River. 



PRESENT CONDITION OF THE FOREST. 



Much of this hardwood forest has already been cut. Along the 

 older lines of railway it has generally been culled for 6 or 8 miles 

 back, especially of the best oak arid ash. Much of the ash along the 

 Trinity has been rafted out, and the same thing is now taking place 

 with the cottonwood of the Red River, at present much in demand for 

 certain lines of finishing. The ordinary grades of oak have gone for 

 ties, the better for staves, of which great quantities have been pro- 

 duced in recent years. Other hardwoods have until latety either been 

 used for ties and other purposes of railway construction, or have been 

 shipped out of the forest as logs. Now several mills are filling orders 



