114 
A Stump That Has Been Burning 
The Clay Covering Has Reached 
Half Way Round the Stump. 
Fig. 16. A Stump Around Which the Banking 
Has Been Completed. The Stump Is Burning 
Near a Barn During the Dryest Season of the 
Year with Very Little Danger to the Building. 
Fig. 15. 
Five Days. 
summer fill this hole with dry kindling 
and after firing cover with clay, extending 
the cover around the stump as the fire 
progresses until it is completely burned 
out. 
Both methods are efficient and cheap. 
The method does not succeed in sandy 
soils as the falling sand prevents the 
burning to sufficient depth to permit plow- 
ing. It is useless to attempt the method 
during the wet season. 
Cost 
The cost of this method is somewhat 
below that of the others enumerated, be- 
ing from $50 to $75 per acre, or if charged 
‘to the stumps, running from 30 cents to 
$1.00 per stump. One advantage of the 
method is the fact that no expensive 
equipment is required and the work can 
be done by the owner. 
Conclusion 
It will be seen from the foregoing data 
that a man without capital can not hope 
to clear in a short time a large enough 
tract of land upon which to support a 
family. Under the most favorable con- 
ditions and with the lightest clearing 
ground the cheapest rate at which logged- 
off land can be prepared for the plow is 
$50 per acre. The maximum should not 
ordinarily exceed $150 per acre, although 
there are exceptional tracts that will cost 
$200 per acre to clear. This shows that 
it is no small undertaking to make a farm 
out of this land and that it is not feasible 
for the poor man unless he has other em- 
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL HORTICULTURE 
ployment to provide sustenance for him- 
self and family while the clearing is in 
progress. It is the opinion of all who 
have carefully studied this problem that 
work of this kind ought to be done on a 
large scale, at a small profit, for the public 
good. Possibly the aid of the state will 
be required before these wastes are made 
into agricultural land. 
The donkey engine method of clearing 
is a very efficient and serviceable one. 
Where it is well equipped and properly 
managed the expense need not be _ pro- 
hibitive. Extra expense in most instances 
is due to poor equipment, lack of experi- 
ence, and bad management. Most of the 
clearing that is being done at this time 
is by the donkey engine method. 
Donkey engine outfits could be pur- 
chased by the county or community. By 
employing one or two experienced men 
the other work could be done by the 
owners of the land to be cleared. In this 
manner the expense could be kept down 
to a minimum. A donkey engine outfit 
could be used to advantage in connection 
with the char pitting method to pile the 
burned-off tops of the stumps, logs, and 
debris when the work is done on a large 
scale. 
Powder plays an important part in the 
clearing of logged-off land, as a powerful 
agent is required to dislodge large stumps. 
All of the devices for pulling large stumps 
are dependent on powder to split and 
loosen the stump before it is pulled. A 
cheap explosive would be an incentive to- 
ward clearing land. 
The blowing machine and other devices 
for the destruction of stumps, while yet 
in the experimental stage and by no means 
perfect, may develop into cheap and 
efficient methods of clearing land. 
Wherever the char pitting method can 
be used successfully it should be employed 
as it is the simplest, cheapest, and most 
efficient of all methods of clearing land 
where the conditions are favorable. In 
unfavorable soil it is liable to leave too 
many unburned roots in the ground. Sur- 
face clearing, as the method which leaves 
the roots under the surface is called, is 
the worst form of clearing possible. 
