18 
BULLETIN" 683, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
ninth place in 1911. Hoop factories of Ohio and Indiana have been 
forced to go elsewhere for a supply of elm. Hoop makers in Michigan 
have in many cases moved to the lower Mississippi Valley on account 
of the growing shortage in the Great Lakes region. Memphis has 
of late years become the principal center of elm-hoop manufacture, 
a large number of factories being located within a radius of 100 miles 
of that city. Recently, many factories have gone farther south 
for fresh supplies, since the hoop maker demands a large supply of 
the best timber. The hoop industry will doubtless be located for 
some time to come chiefly in Mississippi and Louisiana. 
Over one-fourth of the total amount of elm staves reported for 
1911 were from Michigan. Missouri and Arkansas came next in 
importance. These three 
States produced over 60 
per cent of the total 
amount. 
Arkansas and Michigan 
led in the production of 
heading in 1911, including 
all woods. Woods other 
than elm, however, were 
chiefly instrumental in giv- 
ing these States first place 
in the manufacture of this 
product. 
BOXES, BASKETS, AND CRATES. 
Fig. 5.— Market baskets with elm rims and handles, a, Elm One of the most lmpor- 
handle; b, elm rims — one outside, one inside; c, splints; d, tant Uses of elm is in the 
metal washer. „ „ , , 
manufacture of baskets, in- 
cluding fruit and vegetable packages of various kinds. Elm is used 
principally for the outside and inside bands or rims, on account of 
its strength and good bending properties. In the ordinary market 
basket (fig. 5) the outside and inside bands at the top and also 
the bent handles are preferably of elm. Two straps of elm on the 
bottom outside the basket make it much stronger and protect the 
bottom. Elm is in great demand for the bushel and half-bushel 
baskets (fig. 6), for the outside and inside bands and for the bale, if 
they have one. Enormous quantities of these baskets, used prin- 
cipally for shipping fruit and vegetables, are made by special ma- 
chines. A special form of this type is the grain basket (PL IV, fig. 1), 
which has a wide band of elm on the inside at the top and is a strong, 
tight basket. Its serviceability is further increased by a round bottom 
of elm often both outside and inside; or a circular rim of elm may 
