11. THE LIME HILLS. 



state. The long-leaf pine is not abundant enough or ac- 

 cessible enough to invite extensive lumbering operations, 

 but some turpentine was made from it in Choctaw 

 County as long ago as before the war, it is said. The 

 magnolia, poplar, spruce pine, and a few other species 

 are being made into baskets and crates at Evergreen, 

 and considerable quantities of short-leaf pine lumber and 

 white oak staves are gotten out in many places. Cedar 

 is cut for posts and doubtless also for pencil wood. 



Excluding the large mill at Jackson, which must get 

 most of its timber from other regions farther up the 

 Tombigbee River, the Southern Lumberman lists nine 

 mills from this region, with an average capacity of 9,555 

 feet a day, and no tram-roads. Eight of them cut long- 

 leaf pine, 8 short-leaf, 2 cypress, 2 hickory, 5 white oak, 

 3 red oak, 7 poplar, 2 sweet gum, and 2 ash. 



The evergreen decoration industry deserves special 

 mention. Although the proportion of evergreen trees is 

 not as large here as in adjacent regions, if the pines are 

 left out and shrubs and vines taken into consideration 

 there are few regions which surpass this in number of 

 evergreens. Mr. G. W. Caldwell* began shipping ever- 

 greens, principally wild smilax, for decorative purposes 

 from Evergreen about 25 years ago, and since then the 

 industry has grown to large proportions, and spread to 

 several other counties. Most of the plants utilized in this 

 way are shrubs and vines, but branches of such trees as 

 long-leaf pine, magnolia and holly also make up a consid- 

 erable proportion of the shipments. 



•^See bibliography. 



