32 AGRICULTURAL AND MECHANICAL COLLEGE OF TEXAS. 



cutting. Waste characterizes the industry, but cutting may continue for 

 two or three years at the present rate of production. The production of 

 fence posts and fuelwood is governed entirely by the local demand. One 

 small shingle mill operates very irregularly. The output of other forest 

 products, such as staves, poles, etc., is negligible. 



While hardwood reproduction over most of the county is excellent, 

 fires and the practice of stripping timbered areas are responsible for the 

 general lack of pine reproduction. The residents of Marion County should 

 concern themselves with woodlot forestry in connection with the general 

 management of their farms. 



MONTGOMERY COUNTY. 



Montgomery County is located entirely within the loblolly pine region. 

 The land surface, rolling in the north to level in the south, drains to the 

 southeast through the San Jacinto Elver. S.oils range from light sands 

 in the hilly section to heavy alluvial soils in the bottoms. Areas of black 

 waxy soil are found in the southern prairie section. Undeveloped iron ore 

 deposits are also found in the county. Public roads are in good condition 

 and bond issues give assurance of their future maintenance. One hun- 

 dred and twenty-eight miles of mainline and 40 miles of logging railroad 

 traverse the county. 



The land area may be divided as follows : 



Approximate total area 682,240 acres. 



Virgin timber lands 160,000 acres. 



Second growth lands 90,000 acres. 



Culled and cut-over lands 270,000 acres. 



All other lands 162,240 acres. 



Practically all of the virgin timber is* loblolly pine in the northern 

 and western portions of the county. The timber is owned in large tracts 

 by the lumber companies. Some longleaf areas are located in the north- 

 eastern portion of the county. Present logging operations are stripping 

 the land. 



Second growth lands, in scattered tracts over the county, support a 

 growth of shortleaf pine, sweet gum and black jack oak. A small acreage 

 is in longleaf pine. Although a small acreage of this class of timber has 

 now reached a size suitable for ties, but little importance is placed upon the 

 future value of second growth timber as a whole. 



Culled and cut-over lands date from 1881 to the present. Since early 

 logging operations culled the timber lightly a good crop is again being 

 cut from some of these lands. At least half of the cut-over lands are 

 well adapted to agriculture, but the remainder should be reforested. Ee- 

 peated burning kills what reproduction may start on the areas. 



Farming and stock raising are among the principal industries. A 

 small acreage of new land is cleared annually, the timber usually being 

 burned. There is very little labor competition between the millmen and 

 farmers. Farms range in size from 20 to 1,000 acres and are subject to 

 severe washing in the hilly section of the county. A large acreage in 

 the county is prairie land which furnishes excellent grazing for large 

 numbers of cattle and goats. A great deal of Montgomery County is 



