14 THE WOODSMAN’S HANDBOOK. 
formule; some by preparing diagrams that represent the top of 
a log and then determining the amount of waste in sawdust and 
slabs; some are based on actual averages of logs cut at the mill; 
while still others are the result of making corrections in an existing 
rule to meet special local conditions. 
The large number of log rules, the differences in their values, 
and the variation in the methods of their application have led 
to much confusion and inconvenience. Efforts to reach an agree- 
ment among lumbermen on a single standard log rule have failed 
so far. A number of States have given official sanction to specific 
rules, but this has only added to the confusion, because the States 
have not chosen the same rule, so there are six different state log 
rules, and, in addition, three different official log rules in Canada. 
It is probable that a standard method of measuring logs will not 
be worked out satisfactorily until a single unit of volume, like 
the cubic foot, is adopted for the measurement of logs. 
THE VARIOUS LOG RULES. 
The most important log rules in common use are the Scribner 
Rule, the Doyle Rule, the Maine Rule, and the Spaulding Rule. 
These are rated important because of their wide use; though the 
best rules, from a theoretical standpoint, are the Champlain Rule 
and the International Rule; in practice, however, these are not 
used to any extent. 
The tables which follow show a comparison of the different rules 
for 16-foot logs of representative diameters. 
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