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Big Tree and the Redwood — Part 3

Curly grain is common in Sequoia lumber, and this, as in other species, is eagerly sought after by the makers of fancy furniture and bric-a-brac. People want redwood, so the lumberman is stripping the redwood forests as fast as possible. "They'll come on again!" And it is true to some extent. The trees send up suckers from the stumps, which the Big Trees cannot do. But lumbering is wasteful and greedy in its methods, and more is wasted than saved. Forest fires lick up the kindling the lumberman leaves, and young trees and old fall victims to this disaster.

Redwoods are more easily accessible than Big Trees. They come down to the coast and thus tempt the avarice of lumbermen. The extent of these woods seemed great, at first. But on the map the region is very small indeed, and immediate protective measures are demanded if any groves of big redwoods are to be saved from the sawmill.

In cultivation the redwood has followed the Big Tree into European gardens, and at length it has shown itself hardy and fairly content in the Southeastern States. Near Charleston, South Carolina, it is growing successfully.