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Jumbo Is Still Superior To The Tractor In The Siamese Teak Forest But The Dog Raftsmen Have To Beware of The Frogman Thief Twentieth century science still hasn't provided a better aid to Thailand's teak industry then Jumbo'. Ne modern tractor can weave so delicately between the trees and push or pull the heavy teak logs to the river where they are tied into huge rafts of up to 300 logs, each worth £3-400. But so valuable are the logs (a raft totals wood worth £40, 000) that today the danger is from thieves working in frogmen's suits who cut out a log underwater ad float it away by night to cut-throat saw mills. Scores of logs are lost each season in this way from under the eyes of the rafts-men who live afloat in huts built on the floating logs. Each log when put into the river is marked in waterproof paint and stamped by the log man for identification. Thus a raft has a known content and thefts are ultimately discovered.To sail a huge raft down the river to Bangkok from the far north of Siam has taken as long as 5 years because of the rapids. But more normal shorter journeys from the area where most wood comes take a few months, during the rainy season when the floods make the rivers high.In 1957, 50, 000 logs went to Bangkok by water, each averaging 150 years in age. 60% go to Hong Kong, Scandinavia takes 30% and Japan 10%. Main uses are for yacht decking, furniture etc.The Borneo Trading Company is the oldest company in the area, being more than 100 years old. The company sees no prospect of mechanisation, preferring its elephants for the work. Each beast has its own life history book revealing interesting statistics of age and size. Some animals have been on the cards for 60 years. They work a 5 day week and have a few weeks off during rainy periods. With experience the intah or rider scarcely needs to give any orders. The lumbering elephant instinctively knows what to do.Making Up A £40, 000 Teakwood RaftEach raft contains up to 300 logs, varying in value from 3 to 5 hundred pounds each. Its journey downstream to Bangkok takes several months. The raftsman and his family live afloat, anchoring only at night

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3-400 Afloat Anchoring And Pound Averaging Bangkok Beware Borneo Contains Cut-throat Decking Delicately Downstream Elephants Experience Float Floods Frogman Frogmens Hasnt Huts Identification Instinctively Intah Interesting Jumbo Knows Logs Lumbering Mechanisation Needs Normal Oldest Periods Pounds Preferring Prospect Provided Pull Push Raft Rafts Raftsman Raftsmen Rainy Rapids Revealing Scarcely Scores Sees Shorter Siam Siamese Statistics Superior Teak Thailands Thefts Thieves Thus Tractor Trading Ultimately Uses Valuable Value Varying Waterproof Weave Worth

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