POSTS 



327 



rail fence which did not require the use of ordinary posts is also fast dis- 

 appearing on account of the labor involved in splitting out the rails, 

 the disappearance of native forests, the economy in using the wire type 

 of fence and the saving in ground space with the latter form. In many 

 regions fence posts are pointed at the lower end and driven into the ground 

 with a maul after preparing the hole with a crowbar or other similar tool. 

 The requirements for desirable fence post woods are practically the 

 same as those described in connection with poles.^ Briefly the principal 



Photagravh by V. S. Forest Service. 

 Fig. 89. — Over 500,000,000 posts are used annually on the farms and along the railways 



of this country. 



qualifications are durability, lightness in weight, straightness and ability 

 to hold the nail well. The paramount qualification, however, is dura- 

 bility. 



The business of getting out posts assumes the character of an industry 

 only in regions where pole production is carried on as a regular business. 

 At many pole operations, all poles 20 ft. and less in length are some- 

 times classified as posts and sold as such. The principal regions where 

 posts are produced on a large scale are in the swampy sections of the 

 ' See Chapter on Poles and Piling. 



