90 TOOLS FOR FELLING AKD CONVERSION. 



In felling also a curved edge is to be preferred, as it causes 

 very much less fatigue. 



In longitudinal cutting, a curved saw, besides suiting the natural 

 motion of the hands and arms, is easier to pull, cuts deeper at 

 each stroke, enables the bottom sawyer to stand or kneel well 

 away from the falling sawdust, and can be used to cut with right 

 down to the ground. 



In the use of both the curved and the frame saws for longi- 

 tudinal cutting the logs have to be raised off the ground only at 

 one end, whereas, when the pit saw is employed, owing to its great 

 length, the logs have either to be entirely lifted off the ground 

 on two high supports or placed on supports resting across a long 

 deep pit. The curved Indian saw, owing, no doubt, to its very 

 rough manufacture, offers the very serious drawback of leaving a 

 very uneven surface. 



How TO SELECT SAWS. — A few general directions will prove 

 useful. First of all try the blade by springing it ; it should be 

 elastic, and stiff enough without being too thick. The thinner you 

 can get a stiff saw the better ; also the narrower the better. Next 

 see that it bends regularly and evenly from point to heel in propor- 

 tion to its width at each place. In the third place, ascertain that 

 the blade is ground smooth by examining it in different lights ; 

 the appearance of the surface should remain the same under chang- 

 ing lights. Then test the temper by bending one of the teeth with 

 a sharp blow ; if the tooth does not break, there is ample proof that 

 the teeth will not break in use. Lastly, examine the colour and 

 ring. The blade should by preference be of a dark colour, and 

 when struck, should give a clear bell-like sound. 



If the saw is a one-hand one, it should be well balanced when 

 held in the position for cutting. Moreover, the handle should be 

 made of strong, well-seasoned wood, should fit the hand properly, 

 and should be firmly attached to the blade. 



How TO MEASUKE UP SAWING WOKK. — A few words on this point 

 are necessary, as it is not uncommon to read, even in printed 

 oificial reports, of the amount of sawing done estimated in so many 

 cubic feet ! The work done by a saw is evidently the area of 

 surface it has cut through — not the sum of the two surfaces, one on 

 each side of the kerf, but the single surface, supposing the kerf 

 to be a mathematical plane. 



Nevertheless, in paying up sawyers, since slabs and other pieces 

 flitched off, although they are taken off by the saw, are not deemed 

 to be sawn goods, it is customary to measure up the total surface 



