THE PINES 233 



the trunk. The leaves are from twelve to eighteen inches 

 long, forming dense tufts at the ends of the branches. 

 Being flexible they droop and sway on the ends of erect 

 branches like shining fountains, their emerald lightened 

 by the silvery sheaths that invest each group of three. 



Sapling longleaf pines have recently entered the market 

 for Christmas greens in Northern cities. This threatens 

 the renewal of longleaf forests that have fallen to the axe of 

 the lumberman. Unless Federal restriction comes to the 

 rescue, there is little hope of saving this young growth, for 

 nothing can exceed in beauty a three-foot sapling of long- 

 leaf pine as a Christmas decoration. 



The lumber of this species is the "Southern pine" of the 

 builder. Heavy, strong, yellowish brown, durable, it has 

 a tremendous vogue for flooring and the interior finish of 

 buildings. It is used in the construction of railway cars. 

 Its durability in contact with water accounts for its use i\ 

 bridge-building, and for masts and spars of vessels. A 

 great deal of this lumber is exported for use in European 

 shipyards. It has replaced the dwindling supply of white 

 pine for building purposes throughout the North, and the 

 strong demand for it has been followed by lumbering of the 

 most destruciive and w^asteful type, because the forests are 

 owned privately. 



In the early days the American colonists in Virginia 

 tapped the longleaf pine, collected the resin from the 

 bleeding wounds, and boiled it down for pitch and tar. 

 These crude beginnings established an industry nowknowTi 

 as the "orcharding" of the longleaf pine. After a century 

 of wastefulness and wanton destruction of the trees, it has 

 become patent to all that scientific methods must be re- 

 sorted to in the production of turpentine and other pro- 



