46 BULLETIN 1496, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE | 
diameter limit of about 18 inches. Only the large trees and those 
that were defective, decrepit, and dead were removed. 
At the present rate of growth of 200 board feet per acre per : 
annum on the cut-over land, it is figured that a similar amount may 
be cut from the same area in about 20 years, and with the improve- 
ment resulting from this cutting a larger annual growth may be 
expected. A larger amount will therefore be available for cutting 
for several successive 20-year periods.® (PI. 5, A.) 
Since the soil was well adapted to white pine and white pine is the 
fastest growing tree, the purpose in handling this forest was to 
increase the proportion of white pine. Therefore, no white pines 
were cut, except that where they occurred in groups some were 
thinned out. The only other pine logs taken out were from dead or 
down trees. Besides white pine, the other species favored were Nor- 
way pine, basswood, yellow birch, red oak (Quercus borealis maxima), 
and sugar maple. On the other hand, hemlock, beech, paper birch, 
balsam fir, and ironwood (Ostrya ‘virginiana) were taken out 
regardless of size. 
The most striking thing, however, about this selective logging 
was that the logging costs per thousand board feet were not only 
no higher but actually lower than if the tract had been cut clean in 
a typical hardwood-logging operation. ‘The contract of cutting 
350,000 board feet was let out to people in a neighboring village for 
$10 a thousand, which included felling, skidding, disposing of “slash, 
hauling 21% miles on sleighs to the railroad, and decking by the 
railroad. 
The actual cost of the logging to the contractor was only $7.30 
per thousand, distributed as follows: 
Per M 
board feet 
Metlmne Jand Ducking) 2" ee ae ee Naa eee eg ee $2. 00 
Skidding “and! landings ee) 2th Oe EA a ae 2. 25 
FRO AUG 2 ete Oe pe ks aes ee ee eee 10 
VS Ny Ub a Yea RO an ors 0 BN cle? 6 [ne meme mee Ue Nap tae mene tiny Mes SARL VOI can eure OAS ty Oe 2. 00 
Deckingye 0 wie an A ee eae ie 2 ee ee . 20 
TRAD OL UTES CER COL: Ret Se CET pe ca Pa a Agee cals ee cee ee . 30 
Disposal OF TprusSh 221 PS tis ib Pe ees ed ee ee . 40 
7.30 
The men made good wages, and the job was well done. The slash 
along roads was piled and burned. The rest of it was lopped from 
tops and scattered so that it lay. close to the ground. 
If the lumber company had done the logging itself, it would have 
cost about $2.50 more per thousand to cover the costs of loading on 
the cars, camp, and equipment, construction of railroad, and super- 
vision. Such selective logging, if done as a large railroad job, has 
been estimated by logging operators to cost about $10.25 for the first 
12 years. After orades had been built successive logging costs would 
be reduced to about $9.50 to $9.75 at the present prevailing prices 
of labor and material. These low logging costs, due largely to the 
size of the logs handled, compare favorably with other present log- 
ging costs on operations where all the merchantable timber is 
8 WATSON, RUSSELL. NOTES ON NATURAL REGULATION AND GROWTH OF NORTHERN HEM- 
LOCK AND HARDWOOD FORESTS. Jour. of Forestry 23: 936—940. 
