18 
the other hand, is used locally in large quantities and in all 
sizes. In the chair industry where most of the red oak is con- 
sumed the logs are sawn into plank 2” to 4” thick, round edge. 
For first quality, the timber must be practically clear, free 
from defects and straight in grain. Width of ring, or, in other 
words, whether the timber be fast or slow grown, is of no im- 
portance and does not affect price. In an examination of 
lumber piles, the widest rings seen in oak were half an inch. 
The source of this lumber was not known, except that it was 
not obtained in New England. In the various operations in 
the factories, such as turning, bending or polishing, width of 
ring was of no importance. This is not the case with ash, for 
width of ring is an important factor in certain industries. 
These, however, were not investigated. The highest price 
paid for oak is for plank averaging about 10” and upwards in 
width. Wide planks are not favored owing to the greater 
difficulty of handling them. The smallest average width for 
which a price was quoted was six inches, and the price paid 
for this ranges from about fifty-three per cent to sixty-three 
per cent of the price of the 10” lumber. There is an abrupt 
rise to the price of 7”, and each succeeding rise is less as the 
limiting value is reached. If we consider the highest price 
paid as one hundred per cent, the prices of the various sizes 
would be as in the following table: 
Average Percentage of Approximate 
Width Highest Price Fraction Value 
10 100 1 
9 97-95 1 
8 92-89 9/10 
7 82-77 8/10 
6.5 68-60 7/10-6/10 
6.0 62-53 6/10-5/10 
5.5 34-18 3/10-2/10 
5.0 22-5 2/10-1/20 
The percentage values of 5 and 5.5 inch lumber have been 
calculated from the prices obtained. It would appear from 
this that timber averaging five inches in width, if used in the 
same industry as the wider material, has very little value. 
