136 
Modern Business Geography 
are oak, hickory, maple, chestnut, walnut, and tulip, the wood of 
which is hard in contrast to the soft wood of the pine, spruce, and 
hemlock. These hardwoods are used extensively for furniture, in- 
terior finishing, tools, farming implements, and wagons. The central 
forest still yields about one seventh of the total wood supply of the 
country. Grand Rapids, in Michigan, built up a great furniture 
business by using the local hardwood supply. Even now it remains 
our chief furniture center, although it must draw upon distant for- 
ests for much of its wood. 
(8) The southern forest, along the Atlantic coastal plains from the 
Carolinas to Texas, is the home of the yellow or long-leaf pine, the 
short-leaf pine, and the cypress. All these thrive in the mild climate 
of the southland. The southern pine seems to like best the sandy 
soil of the coastal plain, while the cypress prefers the swamps bor- 
dering the rivers. The wood of the yellow pine is often used in our 
houses for floors and inside finishings. It is used also for the frames 
of buildings and ships. This kind of pine supplies the country with 
nearly a third of its lumber. The short-leaf pine is rapidly coming 
into favor for a great variety of uses. Cypress is replacing the white 
pine as a cabinet wood and for many other purposes. Nearly every 
port from Galveston to Norfolk ships quantities of southern pine or 
of cypress. 
The southern pines contain a resinous sap which is collected in 
large amounts. The sap is obtained by tapping the trees near the 
base. It is heated, and the vapors are collected and condensed into 
turpentine. The process is called distillation. The solid which re- 
mains is resin. Pitch and tar are distilled from the roots, trunk, 
and limbs of the pine trees. All four of these materials are used 
on shipboard for such purposes as caulking seams to keep out the 
water and coating the fibers of ropes to prevent them from rotting. 
These supplies as well as some others used on ships are called naval 
stores. Savannah, Georgia, and Fernandina, Florida, because of 
the neighboring pine forests. are the world’s leading markets for 
naval stores. 
At the southern end of Florida and of Texas we find two compara- 
tively small regions of tropical forest. They are of slight commercial 
importance. 
(4) The Rocky Mountain forests grow only where the mountains 
rise high enough to make the winds give up much of their moisture. 
Hence the forests lie in scattered patches, usually difficult of access. 
Because of the low temperature of the high regions. the only trees