Four Men Cutting Wood

In the old days, there was a children’s rhyme common in Taiwan: “One, two, three. Arrive in Taiwan will we. Taiwan has Alishan. On Alishan is a divine tree.” Foreigners have been aware of Taiwan’s forest resources as early as the Dutch settlements in Taiwan. During the period of 1895-1945, the Japanese colonial government made use of the abundant and inexpensive manual labor in Taiwan to start large-scale logging of its forests. This created a boom for Taiwan’s three main logging companies.
During this time the Japanese continued to refine their techniques and reduce costs. During the middle period, they were already using machines to cut trees. This image of men cutting wood shows clothing and hairstyles characteristic of the Qing dynasty. However, this should be during the beginning part of the colonial period. After the wood was cut into standard lumbar, it was transported out of the mountains by trucks and trains.