THE SOUTHERN CYPRESS. 45 
tables showing cubic volume based upon the diameter of the tree 
measured outside the bark at the middle point of the trunk (‘Schif- 
fel’s’”’ method) are being increasingly used. Strangely, this middle- 
point method when applied to cypress gives very accurate results 
compared with the actual log volume.' Forty trees from 11 to 56 
inches in diameter showed an error of only 0.2 per cent. 
TAPER. 
The taper of cypress above the basal swell is considerable in very 
young and in isolated trees, moderate later in life, and, in forest 
stands, very slight at maturity. The amount and variation in the 
basal swell have been discussed on page 24. One tree on the Santee 
River, South Carolina, tapered 5 inches, or from 54 to 49 inches, in a 
cut of four 16-foot logs. A taper of 2 inches to each 16-foot log pre- 
vails with singular uniformity in middle life, and may be accepted 
as an approximate rule. Table 22 in the Appendix shows the diame- 
ters at various heights above the ground up to 5 feet. The actual 
taper of cypress is usually greatly overestimated because of the 
striking comparison with the enlarged base. Judging from all 
measurements, the stem of cypress above the basal swell does not 
differ greatly in its taper from that of the southern pines. 
EFFECT OF DRAINAGE UPON CYPRESS GROWTH. 
Although essentially a silvical question, the effect of draining upon 
the growth of cypress is of interest in a general discussion of swamp- 
land reclamation. While there is insufficient direct evidence and no 
experimental data in regard to the effect of heavy draining upon the 
erowth of cypress, certain conclusions may be stated tentatively. 
A sudden and decided lowering in the permanent water level is 
very likely to produce injurious results to tree growth by the dis- 
turbance in the former equilibrium between the root system and 
water supply. Cypress is believed to possess to a large degree the 
power of adjusting its root system to meet its requirements for 
erowth under a gradual reduction in the soil water. A mature 
cypress stand at Walls, Miss., was in a healthy condition when cut 
in 1913, 15 years after the deep but gradual draining of the 
slough in which it grew.2. Mr. H. B. Hewes,? Jeanerette, La., how- 
ever, states that cypress on lands in Avoyelles Parish, La., previously 
reclaimed by levees along the Atchafalaya River, when examined 
showed considerable decay at the bases of the trees. A moderate 
amount of drainage will undoubtedly be as beneficial to cypress as 
1 Tables 18 to 21 in the Appendix show the volumes of cypress in Maryland, South Carolina, and Louis- 
we Wallis, W. R., Civil Engineer, Walls, Miss. 
’Chairman of a special committee of the Southern Cypress Manufacturers’ Association, New Orleans, 
La., for studying the utilization of cut-over lands, 
