18 CONNECTICUT EXPERIMENT STATION, BULLETIN NO. 178. 
tooth saws which cut out a 9-32 inch kerf, which means a loss 
of one board in four. This is probably unavoidable as the 
stands of timber are so small that any other form of mill is 
out of the question, but the unnecessary loss due to the saw 
not lining up or the teeth not being in good shape is avoidable. 
Where the stand is being cut for ties the felling crews cut the 
logs into tie lengths, and the sawyer does not save the boards 
that the cut may contain above the tie contents, as there is little 
demand for eight-foot boards. If the logs were cut in two 
tie lengths, this question of the short board would be avoided 
and a merchantable product obtained in place of a thick slab. 
The sale of a stand by the thousand feet is undesirable since 
there is then a tendency on the part of the operator to cut as 
rapidly as possible, and not to get the maximum amount out 
of each log. There is a lack of appreciation of the loss from 
the cutting of high stumps and leaving merchantable material 
in the tops. If the stump is six inches too high, the loss in the 
average tree is from one to two per cent. and it is the best timber 
in the tree which is wasted. 
RECOMMENDATIONS. 
Cutting a stand of chestnut simply because there are a few 
diseased trees scattered through it is to be avoided if possible. 
The stand should be watched and when the loss from the disease 
is greater than the increase by growth the stand should be cut. 
The value of the timber is steadily increasing so long as it is 
growing thriftily, and it is good policy to hold’a stand as 
long as possible, to get the greatest possible growth and this 
increase in value. A tree killed by the blight is still merchant- 
able, as the timber is not affected so far as can be determined 
by test. 
The owner of a timber lot should cut out the diseased trees, 
not so much to prevent the spread of the infection as to save 
the material already grown. In cutting a stand it is advisable 
to leave species other than chestnut so that there may be some 
reproduction by seed to take the place of the chestnut if it does 
not recover sufficiently to sprout. 
In a pure chestnut stand where the infection is bad, clearing 
of brush and planting with pine is the best method for keeping 
the area in forest. 
