130 TIMBER 
of wood turned up at the front and shod with iron 
throughout their length, cross-pieces connecting the two 
shafts. On this frame the logs are placed crossways, 
and with an efficient brake to control the speed the man 
in front can bring down, it is said, a load of 55 to 70 
cubic feet, the gradients of the track being from 1 in 
14 to 1 in 4, Short lengths of timber, suitable for pit- 
props and other work, are generally transported by 
this manual labour, but longer lengths are moved by 
horse-power on more gradual slopes. 
A high development in the use of the waterways has 
taken place in these latitudes, principally extending 
from the Black Forest eastward to the Bavarian Alps 
in Austria. Extensive schemes for rendering the small 
tributaries adaptable for floating the logs have been 
undertaken, so that it may be possible for the timber 
to pass down these mountain streams to the broader 
rivers. Here they are formed into huge rafts, some of 
those to be seen on the Rhine being frequently 600 ft. 
in length, and with a breadth of 100 to 150 ft. Steered 
with long sweeps, similar to those in use on the Thames 
lighters, or by rudders when they are towed on slow- 
moving currents, these rafts convey the timber in an 
economical way to many markets along the course of 
the rivers. Huts erected on the logs accommodate 
the small crew, the raft being also used for the transport 
of bulky and raw produce of all descriptions. In the 
Hungarian portion of the Austrian Empire very 
modern means of exploiting the forests are used, most 
of the coniferous wood shipped from Galatz having been 
transported from the mountainous forest slopes before 
conversion, by cable lines, funicular railways and other 
up-to-date means of transportation. 
The subject of the extraction of hardwoods from 
tropical countries is perhaps as interesting as that 
