FOREST PRODUCTS 
351 
difficult matter to move to a new locality where there was 
still plenty of timber near at hand. 
299. Why the Forests Are Beneficial to the Soil. — We 
have already seen (page 256) that for the roots of a plant to 
be able to get their food from the soil it must be of such a 
nature that the roots can easily make their way through it, 
and it must be able to hold water between periods of rain. 
Trees help in this way, 
that when their leaves 
decay they form a part 
of the soil called humus, 
its most valuable part so 
far as furnishing the 
plants with food material 
is concerned. The de¬ 
cayed leaves have the 
property of making the 
soil capable of absorbing 
moisture and holding it 
as a sponge does. Inci¬ 
dentally this prevents 
floods and freshets, and 
also prevents the good 
soil from being washed 
away, or eroded. 
300. Forest Products. 
— Enough has been said 
to give some idea of the value of wood and lumber to the 
human race. A little thought will add greatly to our apprecia¬ 
tion of the uses of forests, some of which are incidental, but 
none the less valuable. In some localities, for example, maple 
trees are raised for the sugar and sirup which they produce. 
Chestnuts, hickories, walnuts, and others give us nuts year 
after year, as well as lumber when they are cut down. 
Willow trees give us a superior kind of charcoal used in medi- 
Figure 325. — Diagram Showing How 
Logs Are Quarter-sawn. 
A , slabs removed to square the log; 
B, C, short radial sections ; D, long radial 
sections. Note that at least one end of 
every section is oblique, and that some 
of the sections are very small, entailing- 
waste. Quarter-sawn lumber is used for 
furniture and interior finishing. 
