WESTERN YELLOW PINE IN OREGON. 33 
pine falls heavily in open woods and is rather brittle, so that the 
breakage is bad unless the ground is smooth and care is taken by 
the felling crew to prevent crossing. The felling and bucking are 
done very commonly by contract, 70 cents per tree being now (1915) 
the usual price for these operations. 
Usually the logs are first " bunched" or " skidded" with a team of 
horses and a pair of tongs, or with a team and a spool cart or a sled 
"go-devil," these methods being used for distances less than one-eighth 
of a mile except on a downhill pull, where they may be practicable for a 
quarter-mile haul. In case the distance is short the logs are brought 
directly to the railroad " landings" by one of these methods. Other- 
wise they are transported from the ' ' bunches ' ' to the mill or pond, or to 
the railroad, on four-wheeled trucks, or with "high " wheels. (See PL 
VI.) In practically every large yellow-pine operation in the State log- 
ging railroads are being used for carrying the logs from the points that 
can be reached economically by horses to their final destination at the 
mill. In some small operations the logs are hauled on trucks 2 
miles or so, but where railroads are used the spurs are usually con- 
structed so frequently that a haul with horses of over one-quarter 
mile will not be necessary for any considerable body of timber. In 
a few operations, where railroad construction is not feasible, a traction 
engine is being used to haul great wagonloads of logs for considerable 
distances along country roads from the woods to the mill. 
Most of the yellow-pine timber in Oregon which is now being 
exploited and in which logging is likely to be carried on in the next 
few years is ideal for horse and railroad logging. The timber is of a 
size convenient for handling, the topography is ordinarily not too 
rugged nor the ground too rough, and the forest is open and fairly 
free of underbrush, so that little swamping is necessary. The 
climate and snow conditions are such that horse logging may be 
conducted nearly throughout the year in most parts of the yellow- 
pine region, though fewer operations are in progress during the winter. 
In a few instances logging yellow pine with steam skidders or with 
steam donkeys has been tried, but these methods have in some 
instances been unprofitable and do not seem to be coming into 
general use except on ground too steep for horses. In certain kinds 
of topography steam donkey logging is practicable where horse 
logging would be out of the question. River driving of yellow pine 
is practically not done at all in this State, and probably never will 
be to any large extent because of the scarcity of suitable streams. 
Klamath Lake is used as a waterway across which logs are towed 
from the woods to the mills. 
The cost of logging yellow pine varies greatly with the local con- 
ditions — length of haul, lay of the ground, character and density of 
the timber, wage scale, efficiency of labor, etc. The following figures 
