Among the most desirable qualities in boxmaking woods are lightness, strength, nail-holding power, and a surface upon which names and descriptions can be easily printed. For this reason the softwoods and the softer hardwoods have always been in demand for box making. The lower grades of lumber are mostly used, since they are cheap and their defects can be cut out in the process of manufacture.
Virginia is the leading box-making State, with a consumption of more than 400 million feet of lumber annually for this purpose. Illinois, New York, Massachusetts, and California are rather close competitors in the quantity of material used for box making. Next in order come Michigan, New Hampshire, and Ohio; and other States also are large producers of boxes.
The percentage of the total quantity of lumber used in the manufacture of boxes and crates, supplied by the leading species, is indicated in Table 17.
Table 17 Boxes and Crates (Annual lumber consumption, 4,600 million board feet) Woods Used Per Cent White Pine 25 Yellow Pine 25 Red Gum 9 Spruce 7 Western Pine 6 Cottonwood 5 Hemlock 4 Yellow Poplar 4 Maple 2 Birch 2 Basswood 2 Beech 2 Tupelo 2 Elm 1 Oak 1 Balsam Fir 1 Cypress 1 Other Woods 1 Total 100 4. Furniture and Fixtures. Next to box making, the manufacture of furniture and fixtures requires more lumber than any other industry, although less than one-third as much as for boxes. The percentage of the total supplied by the more important woods is shown in Table 18.
Table 18 Furniture and Fixtures (Annual lumber consumption, 1,400 million board feet) Woods Used Per Cent Oak 38 Maple 11 Red Gum Birch Yellow Poplar 6 Chestnut 4 Beech 4 Elm 3 Basswood 3 Yellow Pine 2 Mahogany 2 Others 13 Total 100 Because of its beautiful figure, hardness, wearing qualities, and susceptibility to finishes and polish, oak has always been a leading furniture wood. The strength and hardness of maple likewise place it high as a furniture wood; while the figure, color, and receptivity to stains give red gum and birch a large field of usefulness in furniture making. Many beauti
ful and rare imported woods from all quarters of the earth are also used to secure especially rich and decorative effects.
A large number of woods are used in furniture making which do not appear in the finished article. These are for backing, lining, and interior reinforcement to give strength and to furnish the foundation for the more expensive woods, which are generally used as veneer in order to reduce cost or to get better effects than are possible with solid stock.
At present, North Carolina is the largest furniture and fixture producing State in the Union. Next in importance ranks Illinois, closely followed by New York, Michigan, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Pennsylvania.
There is such a wide variety of steam and electric cars for both freight and passenger purposes that the car-building ships furnish one of the best markets for many kinds of lumber. Illinois is far in the lead in car construction; Pennsylvania and Virginia are nearly equal; while much car-building is done in New York, Ohio, Indiana, and Missouri.
Table 19 Car Construction (Annual lumber consumption, 1,260 million board feet) Woods Used Per Cent Yellow Pine 64 Oak 24 Douglas Fir White Pine 6 Yellow Poplar 3 Ash 1 Hemlock 1 Other Woods 4 Total 100 6. Vehicles.The making of vehicles and vehicle parts is an important industry in many of the Central and Eastern States. The more southerly States of the group, particularly Arkansas, Kentucky, and Tennessee, furnish the bulk of the raw material; while in Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, New York, and Michigan, are located many large vehicle factories.