1

RF P
'

'

f
-

_v

J.R.BATERDEN
ASSOC. M. IN ST.

Ube "Westminster"

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TIMBER

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India-Rubber and

its Manufacture, with Chapters on Gutta-Percha and Balata. By H. L. TERRY, F.I.C., Assoc. Inst.M.M.
By Professor VIVIAN B. F.C.S., Prof, of Chemistry, Royal Naval College, Greenwich.

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TIMBER
BY
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R.

BATERDEN
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837

PREFACE
WHEN the publishers asked me to undertake this work it " was stipulated that it was to he essentially a practical work," and that botany was only incidentally to be touched upon. Only those timbers have been dealt with which
are

most generally used, either

in their native districts or

in the general timber trade,

together with

some others

which are likely before long to come into the market. Those most largely used have been dealt with at greatest
length.

impossible for any one individual to have a close acquaintance with even all the well-known timbers of
It is

those well acquainted even in " the trade with a class of timber in which they deal often know comThe timber trade, like most paratively little about others.

commerce

"

others,

is

supplement

now highly specialised. my own experience, had

I have, in order to recourse for informa-

w hich
7

tion to those well acquainted with particular timbers of I have not equal experience, and I have to thank

many many

professional friends in all parts of the world, and Much useful strangers, for valuable assistance.

information concerning United

States

timber has been

of

drawn from the

States

bulletins

and circulars

the

United

Department
officials

whose
tion

have

of Agriculture, Division of Forestry, been most helpful in placing informa;

at

my

disposal

the

same

applies

to

the

Agents

General and

officials of

our own Colonial Governments.

vi

PREFACE
The botanical

names for some timbers are variously given by different authorities I have taken them from what I considered the most accurate sources, and have always given the spelling as it is given in official or
Government records when these are obtainable. There are few subjects about which there is more difference of opinion than about timber, for one seldom finds that two people describe even the colour of two pieces of timber in
same terms. I have given no information of which I not either certain from my own knowledge, or which I have not gained from authentic sources. Whilst this wor]%%
the

am

cannot within
treated
all

its

the

scope be exhaustive, I trust that I have important matters connected with the

The writing

subject adequately, and that it may serve a useful purpose. of it has been a great pleasure to me.
J.

E.

BATEEDEN.

NEWCASTLE-ON-TYNE.
1908.

CONTENTS
CHAl'.
I.

PAGE

TIMBER

ii.

THE WORLD'S FOREST

USED.

SUPPLY.

QUANTITIES

OF

TIMBER
.
.

TIMBER IMPORTS INTO GREAT BRITAIN

17

III.

EUROPEAN TIMBER
TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

29

IV.

...
.

65

V.

TIMBERS OF SOUTH AMERICA, CENTRAL AMERICA, AND WEST

INDIA ISLANDS

121
.

VI.

TIMBERS OF INDIA, BURMA, AND ANDAMAN ISLANDS

160

VII.

TIMBER OF THE STRAITS SETTLEMENTS, MALAY PENINSULA,

JAPAN, AND SOUTH AND WEST AFRICA

VIII.

AUSTRALIAN TIMBERS

IX.

TIMBERS OF NEW ZEALAND AND TASMANIA

X.

CAUSES OF DECAY AND DESTRUCTION OF TIMBER

XI.

SEASONING AND IMPREGNATION OF TIMBER

XII.

DEFECTS IN TIMBER AND GENERAL NOTES

.... .... .... ....

. .

191

209

238
255

269 288
3Q1

XIII.

STRENGTH AND TESTING OF TIMBER

xiv.

"FIGURE"
APPENDIX

IN TIMBER

320 329
333

BIBLIOGRAPHY

LIST
FIO.

OF ILLUSTRATIONS
P^OE

1.
2.

PINE TIMBER

CROSS SECTION OF 14-INCH PITCH PINE LOG

...
.

8 9
11

3.

BLOCK OF OAK
CROSS SECTION OF HICKORY

4. 5.
6. 7.

12

LONGITUDINAL CELLS AND CELLS OF MEDULLARY RAYS

13

8. 9.

"PINING" OF BOARDS NORTHERN OR SCOTCH PINE LARCH

.14
31

36
38 42
'

COMMON OAK

IN

WINTER

10.
11.

CROSS SECTION OF OAK

CROSS SECTION OF ASH
.

.53
54
57

12.
13. 14.
15.

COMMON BIRCH
BEECH
ENGLISH ELM

60
.
.

LOBLOLLY PINE FOREST AND LOBLOLLY SLEEPERS

72
75

16.
17. 18.

SUGAR PINE, INCENSE CEDAR, AND WESTERN YELLOW PINE TYPICAL FOREST MIXTURE IN WASHINGTON RED CEDAR
CROSS SECTION OF CHESTNUT

....
.

78

88 96
107

19.

20.
21. 22.

REDWOOD FOREST
FIRE-SCARRED " BIG TREE " AND SUGAR PINK

MAPLE PLANK

.........
.
.
.

109
112

23. 24. 25.

26. 27.

"SNIPING" OF GREENHEART

122
. . . .

28.
I

HEART FLAW IN GREENHEART FELLING A MAHOGANY TREE FORMER METHOD OF SQUARING MAHOGANY DRESSING AFRICAN MAHOGANY DEODAR
T.

123 154

155 157 165

1>

LIST OF ILLUSTEATIONS
FIG-

PAGE

29. 80.

TEAK AND DWANI

JARRAH FOREST

.180
212
.

3L
32. 33.

OPENING OUT OF A SECTION FROM A EUCALYPTUS LOG

EUCALYPTUS LOG SECTION

(see FIG.

31)

34.
35.
36.

WANDOO TREE BLUE GUM FOREST

CRUSHING TESTS OF TASMANIAN BLUE GUM

37.

38. 39.
40. 41.

WORM-EATEN TIMBER TELEGRAPH POLES STACKED FOR SEASONING SHOWING METHOD OF STACKING SLEEPERS FOR SEASONING COMMON METHOD OF STACKING PLANKS FOR SEASONING CREOSOTING TANK EMPTY CREOSOTING TANK FILLED WITH POLES
. . . .
. .

.... .... ....

. .
.

215

215 217 245

248
263

270
271

273 280
281

42.

HEARTSHAKE
STARSHAKE

288 288
289
.

43.
44.
45.
46.

SEASONING CHECKS OR OPENING OUT

CUPSHAKE
RINGSHAKE

290

47. 48.

CUPSHAKE OFTEN FOUND IN PITCH PINE SHOWING THE EFFECT OF CUP OR RING SHAKE WHEN THE
TIMBER IS CUT UP SHOWING RISK OF KNOTS ON UNDERSIDE OF LOADED BEAMS SAP ON CORNERS OF TIMBER SHOWING THE CAUSE OF WANY AND SAPPY TIMBER
RIGHT METHOD OF LAYING FLOORING

....
.

290
290

290
292

49.
50.

51.
52.

53.
54.

WRONG METHOD OF LAYING FLOORING

...... ..... .....

.
.

294
295

296
296
322

EFFECTS PRODUCED BY GRAIN OF OAK IN PANELLING

TIMBER
CHAPTER
TIMBER
Timber being displaced by Steel New uses for Timber Street Paving, Pulp Manufacture, Telegraph, and Telephone Poles Advantages and Disadvantages of Timber compared with Iron and Steel The artistic side of Timber Structures Wide-reaching Subject and Plants from which Timber is proDifficulties of Explanation duced Description of the Structure. of Wood Annual Kings, etc. Causes of Shrinkage and Expansion of Timber.
of " " ? steel age value, for do we not live in the questionable It is true that steel plays a much more important part in
I

A NEW

work on timber may by some be considered

use will doubtless be increased

will

constructional work than was formerly the case, and its the use of ferro-concrete
;

tend to displace a great quantity of timber in building and other work, chiefly owing to the smaller risk of fire. " In the huge " sky-scraper of forty-seven stories now being

New York by the Singer Sewing Machine Comnot a cubic foot of timber enters into the permanent pany construction.* Ferro-concrete is also much used for foundaerected in
tion

work where formerly timber was employed, yet as in

fire

* Since the above was written a

upper
T.

has occurred on one of the

stories of this building.

TIMBER

the case of electric lighting, which it was prophesied would of the market, the use of the latter increases yearly, so in the case of timber, greatly increased quantities are imported into Great Britain every year, the

run gas lighting out

increase for 1907 over that for

1906 being about 4 per the year just closed has been one of the cent., although worst known in the building trade. been superseded and shipbuilding work, yet it is now used for many purposes for which it was not used in the past. To mention only a few, it is within quite recent years that timber has been adopted for street paving, and now in Great Britain this class of paving can be reckoned by square miles. The same applies to nearly all the countries of the world, and its use in this form is
to a certain extent

Although timber has

by other material

for building

continually increasing.

Immense
;

quantities of the smaller

softwood trees, spruce and others, are converted into pulp this too is quite a recent for the manufacture of. paper
business, yet in 1906 nearly 9,000,000 tons were used The immense confor pulp in the United States alone.

sumption
us

of

wood
are

for this

purpose
the

when we

told

that

is brought vividly before average circulation of a

popular daily halfpenny paper requires 200 trees for pulp. Millions of acres of forest are converted into railway
sleepers every year, whilst telegraph and telephone poles are erected by millions, and for the casing of electric wires
in dwelling-houses wood are employed

miles of small scantling white even in ferro-concrete a large quantity of timber is used for temporary purposes. Timber was probably one of the earliest, if not the earliest, materials used by man for constructional purposes.

many

With

it he built himself a shelter from the elements, it provided him with fuel and ofttimes food, and the tree cut down and let fall across a stream formed the first bridge
;

TIMBER
from
it,

" " to travel along and he made his dug-out so on district in which he dwelt across the rivers of the down through the ages, for shipbuilding and constructive pin-poses, timber has continued to our own time to be one

too,

of the

most largely used of nature's products. Timber as a constructional material has many advantages stand excessive strains and it will over iron or steel
;

shocks without giving way suddenly that is, indications for some time before arriving at
;

it

will give

its

ultimate

often cheaper, in many situations breaking point much cheaper, and will last longer in exposed situations without requiring any protection such as painting, which
it

is

is

In case of absolutely necessary with iron or steel. damage or fracture it is in many instances easier to repair.

Timber
sustain.

piers

the excessive

and quays possess remarkable resilience under bumping and knocks which they have to
they are more liable to take
fire,

It is true

but

particularly to the decking, and even in In the case iron piers the decking is generally of timber. such as is now largely erected in towns, of fire in a building
this applies

more

where the beams carrying weight are almost invariably of steel, these become so buckled and twisted by the action of fire and water as to become useless, so that although it is
true that the less timber or combustible material used in a

building the less risk there is of fire, yet when a fire does occur the results are practically the same, both materials but the warping and twisting of steel are rendered useless
;

girders and columns often push over the outer walls, which does not happen in the case of timber. Then, although

small scantlings of timber will be destroyed by fire, it must be a very intense heat which will destroy a large timber The outside becomes charred, and the inner beam.

portion thus protected buildings after a severe

and timber beams often stand in fire, when steel joists would become
B 2

TIMBER
It is

red hot, buckle and twist, and fall. matter to thoroughly burn a 12-inch

a very difficult
of timber.

beam

As to the aesthetic side of timber work, it will be readily admitted that nothing from an artistic point of view can excel the old timber-framed houses in our old towns, and
they are not only artistic but substantial, as their long life shows and when we look at some of these which were built
;

several centuries ago, the thought comes to our mind, what will be the condition of the steel structures now being

erected several centuries hence ?

well-known writer on architectural matters, Mr. T. G.

"
:

Jackson, in a recent work, Eeason in Architecture," says " All experience hitherto tends to show, that an architect

who wishes

his building to go down to posterity, will do wisely to let iron play as small a part in his construction
as possible."

One

of the reasons

why

so

much

less

timber

is

now used

in the large buildings erected for commercial purposes is that greater strength can be obtained in steel with much
less

depth of girder, and thus a gain in height is obtained which is of great advantage. There are few more extensive and wide-reaching subjects on which to treat than timber, which in this book refers to dead timber, the timber of commerce, as distinct from the
living tree

are

such a great number of now being brought from various

;

different kinds of

parts of the world,

wood new

kinds are continually being added, and what renders the subject more difficult to explain is that timber of practically the same character which comes If tries goes under different names.

from different counone were always to adhere to the botanical name there would be less confusion, although botanists differ as to names, and except in the case of the older and better known timbers one rarely takes up two books dealing with timber and finds the

TIMBER
botanical
species

names the same

produce a

may

much

moreover, trees of the same poorer quality of timber when

obtained from different countries or even from different

same country, so that botanical knowledge not allow us to dispense with other tests. The wood of the northern pine (P. sylvestris) varies considerably in
localities in the
will

quality if obtained in parts of Norway in Sweden or Eussia, and there is

from that obtained

even a difference
that

between the pine of South from North Sweden.

Sweden and

obtained

In practical work one has to keep to the vernacular,

but that changes not only with countries, but with localities in the same country, and makes the difficulties of distinguishing the different timbers particularly troublesome, especially in places such as India and the East, where there
are so many languages and dialects, and the same timber is known by different names in each. In London the Baltic redwood planking is known as " yellow deal," but the man in the north of England who talks about yellow deal is thought to

be referring to Canadian yellow pine, and which in its native district and America generally is called " white pine." Baltic redwood is referred to sometimes as pine, sometimes
fir again Oregon pine and Douglas fir, which are the same timber, are much confused, and if the timber man finds that you do not like Oregon he will sometimes offer you Douglas fir, telling you it is a different wood and much

as

This is not done to deceive you, but from a belief superior. that they are different timbers, and of this the author has

had experience.
for in the

The timber merchant has much

to

answer

of calling, or miscalling, various timbers. quantity of different woods are known under the common name of " white wood," which comes from America, the

way

Baltic, Galatz

and other
;

places,

of

quite

different trees

and is often the produce sometimes the same timber is

TIMBER
and
at

called cypress,

other times

poplar.

Tasmanian

gum, according to a letter in the Timber Trades Journal some time ago, is now being imported under the name of Tasmanian oak, whilst the sap boards of the American red gum (satin walnut) and Tupeloe are sold as
blue
"

hazel pine."
is

Quite as

American timber trade

there

much confusion prevails in the as in that of Great Britain. If then

such confusion in the trade, one cannot be surprised at the novice in timber selection being confused. After all it matters little what is the name given to certain
classes of timber (although when it has to be described in a specification it would not be amiss if the botanical name

the main thing

were given, so that the required material might be defined), is to see that we get suitable timber for the work required, and there are certain practical methods of
distinguishing most of the timbers in general use. Timber is produced only by the Spermatophyta, or seed-

bearing plants, which are subdivided into the Gymnosperms and Angiosperms the Conifer or cone-bearing tree, to which belong the pines, larches, and firs, is one of the
;

three

natural

orders
"
is

of

Gymnosperms.
;

These

are

generally classed as classed with them,

softwoods," although yew, which is certainly not soft they are more

extensively scattered and

more generally used than any

are

other

class

of

timber, and
so-called
;

simple and
"

regular in
"

structure.

The

"

hardwoods

are

"

Dicotyledons

or broad-leaved trees

a subdivision of the Angiosperms,

they are generally of slower growth, and produce harder timber than the conifers, but not necessarily so basswood,
;

gums, though classed with hardwoods, are not nearly so hard as some of the The palms and bamboos are Monocotyledons, the pines. The other of the two divisions of the Angiosperms. chief characteristics of the conifers and the dicotyledons
poplar, sycamore,
of the

and some

TIM!?!-; II

are the annual rings in the cross section of the wood, the produce of successive seasons these trees are often spoken
;

of

as

exogenous or

outward

growing, their

diameter

increasing yearly, in contrast to the palms, called inogenous, and which, as a rule, grow only in length, their diameter

being the same at

five

years old as at
of

fifty.

Wood

is

composed

alburnam or

duramen or heartwood, and and when dry consists approxisapwood,

mately of 49 per cent, by weight of carbon, 6 per cent, of hydrogen, 44 per cent, of oxygen, and 1 per cent, of ash, which is fairly uniform for all series. The sapwood is the
external and youngest portion of the tree, and often a very considerable proportion. It lies next the bark, and after a

course of years, sometimes many, as in the case of oaks, sometimes few, as in the case of the firs, it becomes

hardened and ultimately forms the duramen. Sapwood is generally of a white or light colour, almost invariably lighter in colour than the heartwood, and is very conspicuous in the darker coloured woods, as for instance the yellow sapwood of mahogany and similar coloured wood, and the reddish brown heartwood or the yellow sap of

Sapwood lignum vitae and the dark green heartwood. forms a much larger proportion of some trees than others, but being on the outer circumference it always forms a large proportion of the timber, and even in sound, hard pine will be from 40 per cent, to 60 per cent, of the tree, and in some cases much more. It is really imperfect wood, whilst the duramen or heartwood is the perfect wood the heartwood of the mature tree was the sapwood of its
;

earlier years.

Young

trees

when

cut

down
;

are almost

all

it is, however, sapwood, and practically useless as timber the sapwood that the life-giving juices which through sustain the tree arise from the soil, and if the sapwood be cut through, as is done when "girdling" teak, the tree

TIMBEE

quickly dies, as it can derive no further nourishment from the soil. Although absolutely necessary to the growing tree, sapwood is objectionable to the timber user, as it is the first part to decay. What is called the pith was once the seedling tree, and in many of the pines and firs, especially after they have been seasoning for a good while,
this is distinctly noticeable in the centre

detaches

On

of the tree, and from the surrounding wood. looking at the cross section of most timbers of
itself

SUMMER WOOD
SPRING WOOD

FIG.

1.

Pine Timber.
called the annual rings, repre-

commerce we

see

what are

senting generally a year's growth; clear and distinct in the pines and
;

these are especially firs, and are approxi-

mately circular they form the pleasing patterns noticeable on boards, Figs. 1 and 2. It will be seen that they consist of alternate light and dark bands gradually shading into one another, or dark lines with a light coloured space between
;

the distance apart of the rings tells us whether the trees are of quick or slow growth, those with rings far apart generally indicate quick growing timber, those with rings close together a timber of slow growth, but even in trees

of the

same species and the same size they vary sometimes very much, and they vary also from year to year. As ;i rule they are wider apart in the earlier stages of the
life

of the tree,

and gradually get closer

until,

when

the

tree attains a considerable age, they are very close. sionally one may count forty rings in an inch

Occawithin

6 inches of the centre of a pitch pine log, but from the author's note-book he has taken the following at random,

[Photo by A. L. Oubridge.

FIG.

2.

Cross Section of 14-inch Pitch Pine Log.

showing the variations in widths of rings in the coniferous woods in the hardwoods they do not vary so much
;

Pitch pine logs, all sound] and good, for 2 inches h!4, 18, 18, 15, 18, 18 rings. out from centre of heart
)

])o.

do.

next 2 inches

22, 30, 28, 24, 25, 20 rings.

10

TIMBER
In his

Fig.

2),

own specimen, a section of the rings are as follows

:

a 14-inch log (see

4 rings for first inch. 6 second inch. ,,

7

third
,, ,,

8
9

fourth
fifth

15

,,

sixth
,,

,,

25

,,

seventh
eighth
:

,,

30
Baltic

redwood

(P. sijJrcstris)

First inch out from heart

13, 11, 16, 18, 11, 14,

4, 3, 7, 5, 8, 5,

6 rings.

Second
Third

,,

8
7

,,

Fourth

13, 15, 13, 5, 6

called a soft log, but occasionally inch in this timber.

In another case only 25 rings for 4 inches, which would he one finds 25 rings to an

Douglas

fir

or Oregon

First 2 inches out from centre, 10, 9, 9 rings.

Four inches from centre, 29, 17, 15, 27, 25 rings. Next 3 inches in one case showed 42 rings.

The dark bands are the summer wood, the lighter and inner portion the spring wood the latter is generally much wider and the former much harder in some of the
;

rings the darker portion is wider than in others, showing variations of growth owing to various causes, and in one

ring
of

than

be wider in one part of the circumference on the opposite side, due possibly to the effect sunlight acting more on one side of the tree than on
it

may

it is

the other, so that, counting the rings for some inches out

TIMBER

11

from the centre of the tree, one sometimes finds several more rings on the same space on one side than on the other. The rings are sometimes found contorted, due to the action of winds, and in some trees are wavy in outline, as In oaks and other hardwoods the in some of the oaks. dark shaded portion which forms the patterns on boards is the spring wood and the lighter portion the summer wood, just the contrary to what it
is

in pine.

Many of
clearly

the tropical trees show distinct rings, and in

such as greenheart, the are clearly defined in one rings part and in other parts appear to blend into each other, forming
others,

dark undefined bands.

In these

tropical woods there is no time " of the fall of the leaf," as in

conifers

and other timber

FIG.

3.

Block
section
;

of
;

Oak.
R. S. T. S.
;

of the

0. S., cross section

the northern hemisphere, so annual rings are not generally so

clearly defined. Wood is called " coarse grained " " " or of if the annual bigger bait

radial

tangential section m. r. a rays medullary

;

height length

b,

of

e width med. ray.

;

(After Roth.)

rings are wide apart, and

"

fine grained

"

if

they are close.

Shrinkage of Timber.
piece of

Looking at the cross section of a ordinary hardwood with a magnifying glass it

appears exactly like a web of cloth or spider's web, with the annual rings in one direction and the medullary
rays crossing
together.
so fine as

them at right angles and connecting them The medullary rays, which are always present,
to

even when the annual rings are absent, though sometimes

be invisible, except with the microscope,

12

TIMBEE

generally appear in cross section as hard, thin bands, and in some cases they are an inch deep on the vertical The spaces between are filled to a section, Figs. 3 and 5.

by what look like small pinholes running longitudinally through the wood in circular lines, and form the annual rings these pores are very conspicuous in most woods except conifers. The web-like arrangement is very noticeable in hickory, where the concentric and
greater or less extent
;

radiating lines are clearly marked (Fig. 4). These tubes or cells or pores, as they are generally
called,

appear circular

in section to the
eye,

naked
are

but

they

various

sided

figures,

from a parallelogram to nearly a circle, and when cut through

longitudinally,
as in

planing wood, show as channels or indenta-

FIG.

4.

Cross Section of Hickory.

on the surface and " form the " grain of

tions

wood.
pores are cells or tubes,

The

so-called

enclosed by walls of cellulose, with other material, forms the fibres of the wood. The which, tubes are not continuous, each one is distinct from the

Their length is other, and they are closed at the ends. from ^l(T to % of an inch, and is from fifty to one hundred times greater than their breadth. After a certain amount of moisture has been extracted from the timber these cell walls begin to shrink but, as has been said,
;

their width, take place in both directions, it is although shrinking may not appreciable in the long diameter of the cells, and as

their length being very

much

greater than

TIMBER

13

the long diameter is in the direction of the longitudinal axis of the tree, it will be understood why the shrinkage of boards and timber generally is inappreciable in a long

Some of these cells have thick walls, others have length. thin walls, and as both kinds are generally mixed the shrinkage is greater in one case than in the other, causing
different

strains to occur.

Again, the

cells

forming the

medullary rays, which

constitute

a consider-

able proportion of all wood, have their length

at right angles to the

others (see Fig.

like the others

5)

and

shrink

most
of

in the direction

breadth, so that two severe strains

their
at right angles to each other are set up, and,

referred

with those previously to, cause the

splitting

and cracking
FlG.
5.

which occur when

timber
soned.
is

a,

1>,
;

longitudinal cells or
c,

being

sea-

wood

fibres

d, cells of

medul-

If

done

too

lary ray.

rapidly the cells have not time to selves to the altered circumstances

or adapt thembecame distorted they or ruptured, and the wood is damaged. Shrinkage of wood then is caused by the walls of the cells or pores becoming thinner, and as the thicker walled

"

"

give

cells are

found in the harder woods, these as a rule shrink Wood shrinks or twists to an extent split the most. the quality and size of the timber this is dependent upon

and

more evident

if it

be dried too rapidly,

is

more noticeable

in

14

TIMBER

wood than in that of a softer nature, in thin boards than in thick boards, in wide boards than in narrow boards or logs, but occurs in all timber, although no outward
the harder

manifestation

may

exist.

Pine,

spruce,

and coniferous

its very regular structure, suffers less in seasoning than oak and other hard woods, because, although the same laws take effect, the softness of the material probably allows the cell walls to be crushed by the contracting

timber, owing to

forces,

and so the primary law

is

modified.

Timber

loses

water more rapidly at the ends than on the longitudinal faces, and shrinks more quickly there and tends to split a wet board having one side exposed to the sun, the water
;

is

extracted from that side, and the board buckles.

On examining

floor-

ing or panelling one often notices that there

is

an

opening at
although

the

FlG 6

joints,

when

originally laid or fixed

the joints were perfectly flush (Fig. 6), and were it not for the tongues and grooves the planks would often lift " " the timber has or shrunk on drying, up pined
;

for

however well seasoned timber may be when placed and much in the dry atmosphere of a dwelling-house
of
it

is

not well seasoned

of
its

some more

it will probably in time lose moisture and tend to shrink. Owing

to its structure, as

has been
is,

affected in length, that

Eondelet found

many

said, timber is not appreciably along the grain, by seasoning. years ago that fir might shrink

to 5^. from 7^5 to 3^0 f its length, and oak from Mr. Hurst makes an allowance of | inch for northern pine and ^ inch for white deals nine inches in width, being ^Q and y\ respectively, and recent American experience

has shown that whilst the longitudinal shrinkage

is

usually

TIMBER
less

15

than O'l inch per 100, the shrinkage in width

to 3 per cent, for soft pine, spruce, cedar,

may

amount

and light 4 per cent, for hard pine, larch, locust, and old conifers, oaks, 5 per cent, for elm, ash, walnut, maple, beech, and sycamore, 6 per cent, for birch, chestnut, and basswood, whilst hickory and young oaks may sometimes shrink up to 10 per cent., or one inch in a 10-inch board. The narrower the plank the less noticeable the amount hence in good work panelling is often done of shrinkage in narrow strips three or four inches wide, which so minimises the action as to be unnoticeable. Expansion of Timber. It must not be forgotten that
;

timber, in common with every other material, expands as If we extract the moisture from a piece well as contracts.
of

original

wood and so cause it to shrink, it may be swelled to its volume by soaking it in water, but owing to the protection given to most timber in dwelling-houses it is
not

more apparent, more

by wet or weather, the shrinkage is lasting, and of more consequence to the architect, builder, or owner than the slight expansion which takes place, as although the amount of moisture
affected

much

contained in wood varies with the time of day, the consequence of damp or moisture on good timber used in

houses only makes itself apparent by the occasional jamming of a door or window in wet or damp weather.
Considerable expansion, however, takes place in the wood

and when this form of paving was in its much trouble occurred owing to all allowances not infancy having been made for this contingency, the trouble being
paving
of streets,

doubtless increased owing to the blocks not being properly seasoned kerbing was lifted or pushed out of line and
;

As a rule in street gully grids were broken by this action. paving a space of one or two inches wide is now left next
to the kerb,

which

is

filled

with clay, sawdust and

tar,

or

16

TIMBER
soft material, so

some

that the blocks

may expand

longi-

tudinally without injuring the contour or affecting the kerbs. But even with this arrangement it is not at all unusual for an inch or more to have to be cut off paving blocks
parallel to the channels

some years

after the

paving has

been
the

laid,

owing

to the expansion of the

wood exceeding

allowed. Considerable variation occurs in the expansion of wood blocks, but it occurs in the Australian

amount

hardwoods as well as in the pine timber, and is often greater in the former than in the latter. Expansion takes
place in the direction of the length of the blocks as they are laid across the street, and causes no trouble in the

other direction, the reason being that the lengthway of a block is across the grain of the timber, and they expand or contract as a plank does. On one occasion, in a roadway
forty feet wide, expansion occurred until four inches a side, or eight inches in all.
it

amounted

to

This continual
loose.

expansion and contraction

deal of

is

doubtless the cause of a good

wood paving

in streets

and buildings working

CHAPTER
THE WORLD'S FOREST SUPPLY.

II

QUANTITIES or TIMBER USED. TIMBER IMPORTS INTO GREAT BRITAIN

Forest Area of Europe United States Canada India Australia Japan Africa South America Quantities of Timber used in

United States and Other Countries Waning Supply of American Hardwoods Great Waste in Converting Timber Afforestation
Physical Advantages of Forests
Britain.

Imports of Timber into Great

THE
acres.

forest

area

Russia,

of Europe is about 734,000,000 including Finland, stands well first with

nearly 500,000,000 acres, and

when we add 326,000,000

Asiatic largest

under Crown
this
will

her management make Russia the probably

in

dominions,
forest-bear-

ing

Next come Sweden and country in the world. each with about 42,000,000, Germany Austria-Hungary, These are 34,000,000, Norway 16,000,000 acres.
the countries from which the chief soft timber supplies come to Great Britain. France and Spain have each

forests covering about 20,000,000 acres, although they are not to any extent exporting countries, leaving about
It

60,000,000 acres amongst the other European countries. may surprise some to know that there are slightly over

2,500,000 acres of woodland in Great Britain, but it forms the smallest percentage of any country in Europe and

probably in

the

world,

being

Denmark comes
T.

next, with about

only about 4 per cent. 4-J per cent., the perc

centage gradually increasing until in the case of Norway

18

TIMBER

we

get about 25 per cent., Germany 26 per cent., Eussia 33 per cent., and Sweden 44 per cent, of the total area of the country under timber.

Turning

to the

Western hemisphere, we

find the United

States (exclusive of Alaska) with a forest area of at least

500,000,000 acres, and Canada with about 800,000,000, although only about 300,000,000 can be looked upon as merchantable timber. Canada's chief timber supplies lie in Ontario with 7,750,000, Quebec 70,000,000, and British

Columbia 182,000,000 acres. In British India some 135,000,000 acres are covered by forest, of which more than one half are more or less under Government control.
Australian forests cover about 173,500,000 acres, those

Tasmania 11,000,000, and New Zealand 20,500,000, being about 10 per cent, of the combined area of these
of

countries

two-thirds of Tasmania are forest covered, and

about one-third of New Zealand. Japan has a forest area of about 28,500,000 acres. Of the timber resources of Africa but little is known, though they must be considerable large supplies of
:

mahogany come from the west

there
is

coast.

In Matabeleland

said to be 1,250,000 acres of forest,

and a smaller

area in Mashonaland, whilst there are enormous supplies in the region of the Congo but in Cape Colony, so destructive have been the native races for generations that the
;

colony

is

almost wholly dependent for

its

timber supply on

foreign sources, what timber there exists is difficult of the Crown reserve only amounts to half a million access
;

acres.

The French colony

sesses over 8,000,000 acres, of

of Algeria, in the north, poswhich over half belongs to

the State.

As regards South America, though there are no

available,
it

statistics

may

be stated that large portions of Colombia,

THE WORLD'S FOREST SUPPLY

19

Venezuela, British, French, and Dutch Guiana, on the north, are covered with excellent timber so are millions of acres in Brazil, especially in Bahia, Minas Geraes, and the
;

basin of the Amazon.

The great
in

forest of

Matto Grosso,
cover
over

probably the largest

500,000,000
acres,

the the
of

world,

may

whilst

Argentina and a large part

extensive tracts of timber.

portions of are covered with Paraguay

northern

As regards China, although little or no timber is found along the Gulf of Pechili, stone mile-posts having had to be put down on the railways because the natives stole the
wooden ones
well
for fuel, other portions of the country are wooded, especially the central provinces, where

magnificent pine timber is to be found. We may at a reasonable estimate,

and from

fairly

reliable sources, place the forest land of the

world at the

present time at over 2,200,000,000 acres, an area nearly as large as Europe, about one-sixteenth of the land area of
the globe, and sufficient to provide more than an acre and These look a half of woodland for every inhabitant.

equal to

at first glance would appear to be reasonable call upon them, but when we any consider the constant and increasing consumption, when

enormous resources, and

we

realise that vast areas of forest in the

United States,

Canada, Norway, Sweden, and even New Zealand and Tasmania, which thirty years ago produced great quantities of timber, are now worked out, our opinion becomes
modified.

Large areas of country where forest once stood

are required for tillage as the population increases, and this particularly affects countries such as the United

and Canada, where there is a large immigrant population, and millions of acres of woodland which have been cut down will never be replaced. Yellow pine (P. strobus), which thirty years ago was the chief timber
States

c2

20

TIMBER

imported from Canada and the States, has disappeared from large districts, and although it still holds second place in the cut of United States timber, it is chiefly used for home consumption, the quantity brought into Great Britain being only one-fifth of what it was consequently this timber, formerly plentiful and cheap here, is now scarce and dear. Kauri, of New Zealand, which thirty years ago was the
;

chief export from the island, will, according to the opinion of an expert, be extinct in a few years.

Millions of

acres

are destroyed

by

fire

yearly,

and

enormous waste and destruction of timber have gone on for many years in Canada and the United States, probably more than has been converted to useful purposes. The United States furnish as good an object lesson as one could have of the enormous quantity of timber used, and of how rapidly a country with enormous resources may be depleted, and it is unique in this respect, that its Forestry Department furnishes particulars which are not to be had elsewhere.
Rapid as has been the increase of population in the United States, the timber consumption has been still more The increase of population from 1880 to 1900 was rapid. 52 per cent., the increase of lumber cut was 94 per cent.
of

The following are a few details of the annual consumption wood taken from the United States statistics for 1905,
:

which are only approximate, and the actual figures may be from 10 per cent, to even 25 per cent, more
12,800,000,000 cubic feet used for fuel lumber. 2,911,000,000

200,000,000 408,000,000

mine timbers.
pulp.
sleepers.

280,000,000
128,000,000

tan bark.

THE WORLD'S FOREST SUPPLY

89,000,000 cubic feet used for distillation.
30,000,000
25,000,000
cooperage. veneers.

21

Besides which there were used over

15,000,000,000 shingles for roofs.
3,111,157,000 laths.

3,500,000 telegraph and telephone poles.

Something
annually

like

to provide the

3,000 square miles of forest are required American railways with sleepers.

amount used for fuel in the United States put down as a very conservative estimate
of

These particulars bring out the startling fact that the and it has been
the
total

timber

cut,

which

is

is 64 per cent, estimated at about

20,000,000,000 cubic feet; this will be gradually much reduced as the coal mines of the country become developed. The amount of lumber used per head of population in the

United States
of

is

34 cubic

feet,

the average for the whole

Europe is only 5 cubic feet. At a meeting of the Hardwood Timber Association (who

the total timber supply of the United States) at Memphis, Tenn., in 1906, a conservative estimate placed before the meeting stated that there was not enough timber standing to continue commercially for more than twenty years.
cut about one-third of

recent leaflet

of

the United States

Agriculture calls attention to and although the existing supplies of softwoods are being rapidly decreased, both the States and Canada possess
resources of
that
class

Department of hardwood supply, the waning

of to

only beginning regions possess no hardwoods, so there is the unpleasant outlook to be faced that when the existing supplies of hard;

which

is

come

timber on the Pacific slope into the market but these

woods are used up there are no others

to take their place.

22

TIMBER
The hardwood
cut in 1906 was 15 per cent, less than in was a time when American industries

1899, although this

were rapidly advancing, when the output of nearly all structural material used considerably increased, and even softwoods increased by 15'6 per cent., so the diminution was evidently due to lessened supplies, and high prices
consequent thereon.
the various
classes
;

of

During this same period the prices hardwoods advanced from 25

" "

of
to

increased 50 per quartered cent, in price from 1887 to 1900, and 60 per cent, up to the present time. Oak, which in 1899 produced one half the

65

per cent.

white oak

hardwood supply, fell off 36'5 per cent., yellow poplar, which came second, fell off 37'9 per cent., elm 50'8 per cent., cottonwood and ash 36'4 and 20*3 per cent, between that date and 1906. Indiana, Ohio, and Illinois, which in 1899 produced 25 per cent, of the hardwood supply, in 1906 produced only 14 per cent., the reason being that the forest land had been turned to agricultural use. Probably 2,000,000,000 cubic feet is not an excessive estimate of
the hardwood timber used per annum in the States, whilst the largest estimate sets the supply at about 33,000,000,000 cubic feet, which means at the same rate of consumption

only about sixteen years' supply.

is felt,

To show that the pinch

much greater latitude is now allowed in specifica" we are tions for lengths and scantlings, showing that down to rock bottom and require every sound piece of
timber that can be put upon the market." The situation " We have apparently about a is summed up as follows fifteen years' supply of hardwood timber now ready to cut.
:

Of the four great hardwood regions, the Ohio valley States have been almost completely turned into agricultural States, and the Lake State sand the Lower Mississippi valley
are rapidly following their example." The consensus of opinion as to the average length
of

THE WORLD'S FOREST SUPPLY

23

time the supply of timber for pulpwood would last in the United States was twenty-one years opinions in different Even now districts varied from thirteen to twenty years. of timber for their pulp manufactories are large quantities
;

brought from Canada. Of the quantity of timber cut in any country only a proportion comes into use for merchantable timber, and this
is

The especially noticeable in Canada and the States. this is unavoidwaste in conversion is enormous much of
;

able, but a great deal is doubtless

material, which could be,

due to the profusion of and with waning supplies doubtIt has been stated that to less will be, much decreased. a railway sleeper worth 35 cents out of some of produce
the Californian trees, timber equal to five times this amount in value is wasted 70 to 74 per cent, of loblolly pine is
;

wasted in producing sleepers in Texas, one reason of this waste being that a large proportion of the American railway sleepers are hewn and not sawn in the conversion of red
;

cedar
the

(J.

the timber cut has

United States consider that nearly if not quite reached its maximum. The damage done by fire in the States has been estimated at 5,000,000 per annum, and probably
of the

With Government officials

virginiana) for pencils nearly 70 per cent, is waste. the facts as stated it is some comfort to know that

now

10,000,000 acres of forest are destroyed. The same drain is being made on the forests of Canada, Sweden, Norway, and Kussia, although to some extent
at present Russia's

enormous resources compared with

its

output and its population place her in a more favourable The world's timber supplies are position than the others.
being used up in a reckless manner.
Afforestation.
It is true that

the

Governments

of all countries possessing forests

almost without exception have

24

TIMBER

taken up the question of afforestation or the planting of which in time will take the place of those cut down some countries, indeed, have adopted this practice for many
trees
;

years.

France and Germany have for generations, and amid far-reaching political changes, steadily pursued an

enlightened national policy in the care of their forests.

France was the pioneer and has pursued the practice since 1669. There is the well-known instance along the west coast between the Gironde and the Adour, known as the Landes, where M. Bremontier, a civil engineer, planted the Maritime pine about the year 1789. As the result of this planting not only were large areas of land which were being covered by the drifting sands of the Atlantic seaboard preserved and made valuable as pasturage for
cattle,

but there are

now about 220,000

acres covered with

valuable

pine woods which yield a handsome return on

the original expenditure. Switzerland has pursued this policy for 100 years, and to show the value of this management it may be stated
that the city of Zurich owns 2,400 acres of the Sihlwald, which in the year 1889 yielded a return of ^1 13s. per
acre, or

^4,000 for the whole property.

that

Its

working

is

so

equal productive capacity regulated covered by stocks of every age, from the seedling to the

areas

of

are

mature tree

of ninety years. In 1895, 5,500,000 trees were planted in the south of Sweden, and 2,000 Ibs. of fir seed sown. Although in 1875 a commission found that Norway had
feet of timber, whilst the re.

consumed 401,000,000 cubic

production was only 293,000,000, leaving a shortage of 108,000,000 cubic feet, yet it was not until 1893 that the matter of protecting her forests was taken up, and the present annual output exceeds the natural increase, so that
the supply
is

not only decreasing, but the average size of

THE WORLD'S FOREST SUPPLY

the trees felled
its
is

25

becoming smaller.

Japan, even under

feudal lords, recognised the value of woodlands, and has now an excellent forestry school and a large number of students, and our own Government in India have a large

staff of forest officers to look after the

enormous timbered

area of the country, whilst even a young country like Australia has already reserved 2,000,000 acres, although
the speedy regeneration of the eucalypts removes a difficulty which confronts the forester having to deal with
conifers and slow-growing timber.

The United States, on whose forests greater inroads have been made than in any other country, and which are being used up much quicker than their natural reproduction, have been slow to move in this matter, and even yet,
owing
to opposition

reserves,

by various interests, the Government which are chiefly in the Eocky Mountains and on

the Pacific slope, only amount to about one-fifth of the and sufficient total forest area, exclusive of Alaska,
protection is not afforded even to this. At the present time a commission is sitting to inquire into the question of afforestation in the British Isles which,
it

is hoped, may be productive of much good, for, with a proper system of planting on our waste lands, we might in time become to a considerable extent independent of foreign

supplies.
It is evident from what has been said that, apart from the national question, and the serious outlook of a country like our own being wholly dependent upon foreign supplies, a proper scheme of forestry may be

made

to pay.

it is remembered that the time required to produce a valuable hardwood or pine tree may be anything from 40 or 50 to 150 years or more, it is quite probable that some of the countries which have only lately adopted

When

26

TIMBEE
and are large users and exporters
of timber

afforestation
will

be denuded of their natural-grown timber before the planted supplies become available and will find themselves
in a similar position to Great Britain. Again, as countries increase in population, not only will the forest area be

reduced, but, as we have already explained, the tendency will be in the direction of larger requirements of timber
for

home

supply, and in time

they will have none to

export.

has been said that he who makes two blades of grass grow where one had grown before is a benefactor to his The same may be said of those who by replanting race. timber trees, or resorting to measures for preserving
It

to

timber, cause less of it to be used and so ensure its forests " a longer life. Silva," written more than Evelyn, in his

200 years ago, says,

without timber."

"

We

had better be without gold than

Besides the intrinsic value of forests to a country in providing its inhabitants with timber, their physical

advantages should also be considered. Humboldt, in his " " In felling Travels," pointed out many years ago that
the trees which cover the tops and sides of mountains men in every climate prepare two calamities for future genera" for there tions, a want of wood and a scarcity of water
;

is

no doubt

that, in addition to the

heavy transpiration
is

of

moisture through the leaves of trees, there

though moderate evaporation from

the

a steady surface of the

air for future

forest-clad soil also, thus restoring to the

precipitation a proportion of what has been absorbed in the form of rain. In many parts of the United States the

farmer of to-day looks upon the hollows on the surface of his land, which when the country was better wooded were the courses of streams and which would be invaluable to

an agriculturist.

Forests also serve the useful purpose

THE WORLD'S FOREST SUPPLY

;

27

to the stripof regulating the flow of streams and rivers due in ping of the Apennines of their trees is said to be

and great measure the rapid flooding of the Tiber, Po, other Italian rivers, owing to the rapidity with which the
rain or

snow

falling

upon

their

steep,

rocky slopes

is

delivered into the plains below.

Imports of Timber into Great Britain. Great Britain is the a largest importer of timber in the world whilst she has
;

and manufactures her bricks, cement, iron, and steel, for practically the whole of the enormous quantity of timber used she is dependent on
plentiful supply of stone

and

slate,

is it

foreign supplies, and to her more than to any other country a matter of importance that the sources from which

she draws her supplies of this valuable product should not be dried up or so diminished as to curtail her allowance. According to the Board of Trade returns the value of timber
27,094,365, and imported into Great Britain in 1907 was the total quantity imported close on 10,000,000 loads, or about 500,000,000 cubic feet. In addition to the above must be added 1,920,026 for manufactured wood in the

shape of furniture, fittings, doors, windows, etc., woodware and turnery imported during 1907, making up the total

import value of wood and wooden goods to over 29,000,000. As regards the value of timber imported from different countries into Great Britain, at the present time they Russia (1), Canada (2), stand in the following order
:

Sweden
regards Russia

(3),

United
(6),

States

(4), (7),

Norway

(5),

Countries"

British
of

India

Germany
stand

(8);

"Other and as
(4),
(7),

quantity
(1),

timber
India

they
(3),

as follows:

Sweden
British

(2),

Canada
(6),

United States

Norway (5), Germany (8).

"

Other Countries"

The larger proportion of the deliveries for over two-thirds of the whole, was divided amongst 1907,

28

TIMBEE
following ports in the
:

the

order of
Hull,

precedence as to

quantity

London,

Cardiff,

Liverpool, Hartlepool,

Manchester, Newport, the Tyne, Grimsby, Grangemouth, Glasgow, Bo'ness the balance being distributed amongst
;

more than one hundred other ports. Russia and Sweden supply us with about

two-fifths of

the quantity imported, and about half their total export, and we pay these two countries for timber something over

10,000,000 a year, or nearly double the amount which we pay for timber to British Colonies. Over 80 per cent, of
the total imports into Great Britain are conifers.

CHAPTER

III

EUROPEAN TIMBER
Chief Timbers imported into Great Britain

Forests of Eussia, Norway, and Germany White Sea Trade Baltic Eedwood Sweden, Dantzic and Baltic Whitewood Fir. Larch English Oak

Adriatic

Oak

Common Yew
Horse

Hornbeam
Alder

Spanish

Chestnut

Chestnut

Sycamore Plane Willows Lime

Apple

Laburnum Pear Cherry Plum Common Cypress Beech Birch Acacia Poplar English Elm Laurel Holly Bruyere Hazel Hawthorn Walnut.
Box
Ash

MUCH the larger proportion of the timber imported into Great Britain comes from Russia, Norway, Sweden, and Germany, from the Baltic and Finnish Gulf ports and the
White Sea, and forms the bulk
building trade.
of the timber used in the

Although there are something like 42,000,000 acres of Sweden, chiefly pine and spruce, suitable timber of sizes for conversion into deals and planks has shown signs that the supply is suffering depletion, and Norway, with its 16,000,000 acres of forest, of which 73 per cent, consists of pine and spruce, or fir, only supplies a comparaforest in
tively small quantity of deals, the bulk

coming

in as planed

wood.

Russia, Norway, Sweden, and

Germany supply Great

her total imports of

Britain with about 65 per cent,

of

timber, and although Norway and Sweden for long held the lead, Russia now stands first both as to quantity and value.

Enormous

strides

have been made within the

last

few years

in developing the

large forest resources of the provinces

30
of

TIMBER

Archangel and Vologda, comprising something like 190,000,000 acres, of which nearly half are in the province of Archangel, the produce being shipped on the White Sea, and owing to its excellent quality this timber holds a high

About place in the market and commands a high price. 65 per cent, of the timber shipped on the White Sea, and
recently at Petchora, is pine, 32 per cent, spruce, and 3 per cent, larch ; the latter timber is as yet little known,

when timber merchants become better acquainted with the excellent qualities of Siberian larch, it will doubtless, like the local pine and spruce, find a ready sale. Pine and spruce are found in about equal quantities in these probut
vinces,

and in the eastern portion and the Petchora valley there are great quantities of larch.

Red Fir (P. cembris), birch, poplar, and alder are also found in considerable quantities, but not much of these latter timbers has so far come into the foreign market.
Practically the whole of the White Sea trade is in sawn Out of a total of 158,000 St. Petersburg standards goods. in 1906, 108,000 came to Great Britain. Archangel shipped

the chief port of shipment, doing three-fourths of the There are now twenty-five sawmills in Archangel, employing over five thousand hands, whilst others are to be
is

trade.

found in Onega, Kem, Soroka, Keret and various other places along the shores of the White Sea, and even at Petchora and elsewhere well within the Arctic Circle. When

we consider the

difficulties

of transport, for roads are

few

and bad and railways practically non-existent, and the long distances, in some cases over 500 miles, which the timber
has to be brought down the rivers to the sawmills on the
coast, and the very short season, only four or five months in the year, during which the trade can be carried on, one cannot but admire the energy and resource of the Swedes

EUROPEAN TIMBER

FIG.

7.

Northern or Scotch Pine (Pinus

ftylvestris}.

and Norwegians who largely command the business and have brought the White Sea timber trade up to its already very considerable proportions. Great Britain imports a much smaller proportion of the

32

TIMBER
Norway and Sweden than she
did eight or ten

trade of

years ago.
are

The chief timbers used in the building trade of Europe known as Baltic redwood and Baltic whitewood, although,

as will be seen from the above remarks, the

name has

much

wider signification

now than when

the timber was

shipped from only three or four ports in the Baltic.

Baltic

Kedwood

is

the timber of the northern pine (Pimis

is

sylvcstris), Fig. 7,

or what

incorrectly called Scotch

fir.

The
80
to

tree in the
at

ft.

more northern regions attains a height of 150 or 200 years old, and gets rid of its branches
of

height

over 30

ft.

above ground
of

level.

It

is

Memel, Dantzic, and imported from the old ports Riga, in hewn logs, and from these and numerous other ports on the coasts of the Baltic Sea and Finnish Gulf, as well as from the White Sea, in planks, deals, and battens. The logs are not sawn, but are dressed with the axe almost there is a slight camber on the sides to perfectly square The timber in the log allow the water to drain off. the old name of Memel or Baltic, and a generally goes by very excellent quality is now coming from Windau, and can be had in lengths of 35 to 40 ft. and about 12 inches " The cut timber is known as " yellow deal in the square. London market. The name redwood is doubtless derived from the reddish tinge in the whitish yellow coloured wood, and which is more noticeable when the timber is wet. Some of the more northern and hill-grown wood is redder in colour and more resinous, and this colour is liked best The timber is even and straight in for outdoor work. grain tough, moderately hard, easily worked and durable.
; ;

Red Riga Brindley, the old English engineer, said that deal or pine wood would endure as long as oak in all in protected situations it situations," but this is doubtful
;

"

EUROPEAN TIMBEK

3:}

might apply. Dr. Smith says that natural-grown Scotch pine the same class of timber after 300 years in the roof of an old castle was as fresh and full of sap as new wood imported from Memel, and that part of it was wrought up into furniture. There is probably less loss in the conversion of Baltic redwood into small sizes than any other timber in general use it is generally sound throughout. As regards strength and durability it is only surpassed amongst the coniferous woods by pitch pine, and is suitable for indoor or outdoor work. Used for joists, roof timbers, doors, window frames in good building, and general joinery, it was formerly the chief timber used for heavy construction and piling work of quays in Great Britain, and is still
;

largely used for this purpose, especially for decking. Some of the best deals come from Archangel and other ports on the White Sea, and command the highest price in the

Good deals also come from St. Petersburg and Finnish ports and the more northern of the Swedish ports, being of finer grain, more free from sap, harder and more durable than those from the southern Baltic ports. The
market.

Norwegian timber is small, seldom more than 9 or 10 inches, roughly squared, and 30 to 35 ft. long, and the chief trade with Norway is in planed wood of rather narrow widths. Baltic redwood should be hard and dry to the touch,
should not leave a woolly surface after the saw, or fill its teeth with resin the annual rings should be fairly close timber with less than ten to the inch, a few inches out from
;

objectionable and twenty rings per inch are in the outer portions of logs. The shavings from this timber and the same applies to whitewood the heart,
is

not

uncommon

are a good test of its quality in good timber they will bear twisting several times round the fingers without cracking, whilst those from timber of poor quality come off short and
;

brittle.
T.

large trade

is

done in

pit props, telegraph poles,

34

TIMBEE

and sleepers with Norway, Sweden, and Eussia, but only the shorter poles come from Norway. This timber has been largely used in the past for street paving, and is still
being used, but is gradually giving way to the more expensive but much longer lasting Jarrah and other hard woods.

The pinewood grown

Northern Europe.

in Britain is

more

cross grained, and

not so satisfactory as that produced in the colder climate of

Amongst other well-known European

of

pines, the timber

used locally, are the Black or Austrian pine (P. austriaca), Corsican pine (P. laricio), which produces some of the best of pine timber and is suited for indoor and
is

which

outdoor work, Stone or Umbrella pine (P. pinea), whitish, moderately resinous, and very light timber, used in Italy and
the south of France for general carpentry, and the Aleppo The pine (P. lialpensis], which is of large dimensions.

average weight of Baltic redwood per cubic foot, taken over a large number of fairly seasoned whole and cut
logs, is 37'51bs.,

max. 43'5, min. 33'9

Ibs.

known

Spruce or White Fir (Piece cxccha) produces the timber " " It comes Baltic whitewood or white deal. as

from the same districts as the redwood, grows to a height of 90 to 100 ft. or more, with slender trunk, but carries its branches nearer the ground than the redwood hence the
;

great

number

of

knots to be found in

it.

The wood

is

nearly white in colour, a yellowish white with sometimes a reddish or brownish tint, straight in the grain, light, tough
elastic but soft, yet more difficult to work than redwood, owing to the hardness and great number of the small knots it contains, and inferior to it in every way. It is a timber which shrinks a good deal, but has only a

and

moderate thickness
distinguish owing

of sap,

which

is

sometimes

difficult to

to its being nearly the

same colour

as

EUEOPEAN TIMBER
the

35

heartwood.

In the poor qualities

"

it

is

the

timber

largely used

by the jerry builder," and in a good deal which owners would not call by that name inferior in strength and durability to redwood, unfitted for good
;

exterior work, suitable for a cheap description of interior work such as shelves, common tables, flooring and panelling, it is used for all the classes of interior work for which the

better class

redwood is used, and is probably quite as much used as redwood in ordinary house building some of
;

the best of

it is

very good, but

it

is liable

to shrink

if

less

than an inch thick.

poles and pit props and 6 to 8 inches in diameter.

of

large quantity in mines, of

It is

is

used for scaffold

8
ft. in length valued as one

to

much

the

resonance woods

for

the

bellies

of

fiddles

and

violins, as the sycamore and maple are for the backs. Not only is there a large trade in planed white as well as

yellow

boards, which are also imported tongued and grooved, but a great quantity of manufactured joinery, doors and door frames, window frames, etc., comes from Norway and Sweden. The best of the Norwegian timber is

used up for flooring and planed goods and manufactured Spruce forms much the larger proportion of the joinery. timber used in the toy trade of Austria and the Tyrol. Good deals, either yellow or white, should be bright in
a dull colour and open porous colour and close in grain Spruce is grain of a woolly character betoken poor wood.
;

hardly distinguishable from

fir

except by the presence of

resin ducts, which are wanting in the latter. The usual trade terms for Baltic timber are as follows

Logs or baulks, various lengths and sizes, up to

40
ft.

long.

Battens and deals, various lengths, 4 to 9 inches wide and 2 to 4 inches thick average lengths about
;

18ft.

D 2

36

Photo by]

[Henry Irving, Horley.

FIG.

8.

Larch (Larix Europea).

EUROPEAN TIMBER

37

Planks are pieces of various lengths and thicknesses, 11 inches wide and over, and 12 ft. and upwards in
length.

Boards or flooring are pieces 1 inch thick and under. Although these names, deals, planks, and battens, are still used, they have not the same significance as when Baltic timber was confined to the sizes 7, 9, and 11 inches, and a reference to Appendix, p. 330, will show the almost unlimited variety of scantlings from which the timber buyer can now make his selection in this wood. Great quantities of spruce, especially from the smallersized trees, are manufactured into pulp for paper.
Fir
is

name
;

indiscriminately

applied

to

the pines,

spruces, and firs they come from the same districts in the Baltic. The Northern and Scotch pine are often called fir the timber is used for the same purposes and the quality is similar to spruce, from which it is not easily
;

distinguishable, except by the absence of resin ducts.

" Swiss pine," is imported as for the sounding boards of pianos and the employed chiefly
Silver Fir (Abies pcctinata),
bellies of violins.

The colour

is

a pinkish white, light, soft,

porous, silky easily worked, but not if exposed to wet and durable dry it is sometimes used as piles on the Continent, and is fairly satisfactory for proin texture, elastic,
;

tecting river banks

from scour
It is also

it

is

one of the most

for toy-making,

sonorous of woods.

much used

carving, and for packing cases, is largely imported from the Tyrol, and is used in its native district for fencing,
internal work, general carpentry, pulp,

and charcoal.

The

well-known Strasburg turpentine

is

obtained from this tree.

Larch (Larix Europea), Fig. 8, a tree which attains a height of 60 to 100 ft., grows rapidly, and is useful from an

38

TIMBER
It is

early age.

found in the British

Isles

and in various
of the finest

parts of Europe, especially in the north.

varieties of larch timber

Some
;

in small quantities 9 to 13 inches square

come from Russia it is imported from the White Sea ports in hewn logs
and up
to

27

ft.

long, also

in
ft.

planks | to 3 inches thick, 4 to 11 inches wide, and 28

Photo by]

[Henry Irving, Horley.

FIG.

9.

Common Oak

in winter (Quercus Pedunculata}.

long,

and commands a good price. This timber is one of the toughest and most lasting of all the coniferae, but a good deal of timber which is not larch is sold under that It shrinks a good deal, but is strong, durable, name. is straight and even in grain, and free from large knots
;

liable

to warp, to

but stands

well
fir,

when thoroughly
the surface
is

dry.

Harder

work than Baltic

smoother

EUROPEAN TIMBER
when
finished.

39

The wood

is

like

the best of hard pine,

both in appearance, quality, and uses. The heartwood is reddish brown with yellow sap, it is very resinous, and in Siberia, after fires, the scorched trunks of the trees yield a

gum

similar

to

gum

arabic,

known

as

Orenburg gum.

Some kinds of larch give a yellowish white cross-grained and knotty wood, but it is generally of reddish brown
is more free from Used for fencing posts and palings, field gates, scaffold poles, and occasionally in Great Britain for telegraph poles and railway sleepers also for floors, and positions where there is much wear, and in ship stairs, and boat building, being light, tough, and lasting. A fence of larch from twenty-five year old trees is said to last from

colour and has a straight grain, and

knots than spruce.

seventeen to twenty years. Great quantities were used for piling and building work in Venice and other Italian cities in past centuries, and many noted Italian pictures by the
old masters have been painted on panels of larch. It will not absorb creosote so readily as pine. Weight up to 40 Ibs. per cubic foot, the white variety being much the lighter. Larch is the source of the Venice

turpentine of commerce.
English Oak, of which there are two or three varieties

distinguished by botanists,

the stalk-fruited or

common

oak (Qnercus pedunculata), Fig. 9, and the cluster-fruited, The durmast oak, which sessile, or bay oak (Q. sessiliftora) is found in the New Forest, would appear to be only a
.

variety of the Q. sessiliftora. The two first named are the prevailing oaks of Northern Europe, although the common oak is the more plentiful in

ment

Great Britain, France, and Germany, and its finest developis found in Hungary. It grows as far south as
Central Spain.

40

TIMBEE

the superior or old English oak over that of the sessile oak, and as to the durmast not being so good as either, but the fact that the timber of those of the first two species at any rate was used
literature
to

Much

has been written as timber of the

qualifications of the

common

for the best work shows that there is no difference between them what difference there may be is due more to the various localities and soils in which the timber grows than to any inherent difference in the timber; in fact much of the oak taken from old buildings, and much prized, appears to have been the wood of Q. sessiliflora ; even the wood of the durmast oak, though of more open texture when young, shows very little difference from the other varieties when the timber

indiscriminately
practically

has reached maturity. Few could tell the difference between the timber of the first two named, though the

wood

of the

common

oak, which

best, is of rather lighter colour

is usually spoken of as the than that of the sessile or

bay oak
distinct,
closer,
is

and

the medullary rays in the latter are very straight, far apart, in the common oak they are rather
finer.

not so straight, and

The timber

of these oaks

from knots, has good silver is easily worked, and is well suited for ornamental grain, work, as well as for joists, rafters, or wherever stiffness and accuracy of form are required it splits well and makes good laths, is strong, hard, and tough, warps a good deal in seasoning, and takes a long time to season, hence it sometimes continues to alter its shape after being put into buildings it is very elastic and easily bent to curves when steamed, and stands changes of temperature better than most timber. Oak contains gallic acid, which corrodes iron fastenings, hence all bolts used in it should be galvanised young oak is more cross grained and harder to work than As to its durability, one has only to look at old oak.
straight grained, fairly free
; ; ;

EUROPEAN TIMBER

41

scores of roofs in old English churches, and at the half-

houses throughout England, where it has weathered successfully for centuries. The two large door-posts and arched lintel of Llangstone Church, Monmouthshire, are of oak, probably Q.pedunculata, which is the prevailing species. The lintel has carved upon it the date April, 1022 both it and the door-posts

timbered

are in fairly good condition. The oak ties between the piers in the oldest portion of Westminster Abbey, put in during the reign of Henry III.,
in the thirteenth century, are still intact. Owing to the in obtaining it in suitable sizes, English oak difficulty is now but little used for constructional purp'oses, although

quite recently
for

it

was
to

specified for heel

dock

gates,

be

entirely
ft.

free

and mitre posts from sap. The

required nett sizes, being 31

inches, were with

long by 22 inches by 18

and the price must have been large trees to produce they Oak of that reddish brown tint called logs of this size. " which it assumes when beginning to decay, is foxiness," prized by some cabinet-makers, doubtless owing to the colour. For beauty there are few woods which will compare with the variety known as English brown oak its
difficulty procured,

much

was very high

knotty, gnarled grain brings out the best results owing to the variety of shade and colour, especially when used as a veneer. Irish oak, when sound, is equal in all respects to

good English oak, but the supply is scarce. The greater proportion of the oak used in Great Britain comes from America and the Continent, and many varieties are
imported.

Dantzic or Stettin and Riga oak comes from these Baltic

it is grown in Prussia and Russia, and is somewhat ports similar in appearance to English oak; it is really the
;

produce of the same

tree, rather

more

of a yellowish tinge

42

TIMBER
;

the annual rings are slightly wavy as in English very easily bent, and fairly durable; it is superior to American oak, largely used in wagon work, and to be had in logs 12 to 18 ft. long, 10 to 16 inches a side, roughly squared with wany edges, some almost octagonal also in planks 15 inches wide and 2 to 8 inches thick. A large number of Eussian cleft spokes are imported, 28 to 30 inches
in colour
oak.
It is
;

long and 3^ by 4 inch sides. Oak also comes from Norway and Italy. Austrian or Adriatic oak in round logs with the

FIG. 10.

Cross section of Oak, magnified about five times. (After Both.)

bark on

is

largely imported to the

London market from

Fiume and other

wainscot and

Adriatic ports, and has a ready sale for other purposes ; it was largely used for

parquetry flooring on the recently constructed SS. Maurctania, as well as for the saloon fittings, where a great

mild growth, and even in colour. A good deal of oak from the Russian and Roumanian forests is shipped at Odessa in short lengths and from 16 to 24 inches a side, but is not suitable
size,

obtained.

quantity was used as panelling, and This Adriatic oak is of good

beautiful

effects

for

first-class

work.

Most

of these oaks

produce tough,

EUROPEAN TIMBER
hard timber, and when worked up few could
difference between them.
is,

43
tell

the

Oak
;

is

often

"

cut radially to the circumference, so

quartered," that as to show the

silver grain to perfection

of

it is generally of various shades with a hard, firm, glossy surface, and with brown,
;

exposure changes to an ashen grey and becomes striated

the annual rings are very narrow and regular, wide rings and large pores are signs of weakness ; the medullary rays
are very conspicuous (Figs. 3 and 10), and produce the " " beautiful or silver-grain so characteristic of oak, figure if it be cut on the Oak is now chiefty especially quarter.

used for superior joinery and furniture, occasionally for

windows and doors,

sills,

treads of steps, and largely for

for railway and other wagons, and in coachbuilding and keys for railway chairs. Good oak gate-posts will outlast iron and take no

wedges, treenails, chocks and framing

upkeep

it is

the best

wood

for carving,

English oak being

especially appreciated for this purpose. The weight of the different varieties does not vary

much

45 to 49

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

There are numerous oaks grown in Europe, most of which The holme or evergreen oak produce excellent timber. a native of the Mediterranean districts of France, (Q. ilex), Spain, and Italy, produces wood more like the English oak than any other kind, and the Turkey oak (Q. cerris)
produces some of the heaviest of European oak, but the timber is not so much used as that of the common
oak, though suitable for the same class of work, and the rays being numerous it has a varied and handsome
grain.

Fumed oak
It is a

is

method

a good deal used in the furniture trade. adopted to give the wood that olive-brown

tint peculiar to old oak.

The wood

is

enclosed in an airtins of liquid

tight chamber,

and under the wood are placed

44

TIMBER
effect of the

ammonia, the

fumes

of

which

is to

darken the
;

timber, and this can be done to any required tint half a pint of ammonia is sufficient for the timber contained in

a chamber 9 ft. by 6 ft. by 3^ ft. A good useful colour can be obtained in one night. The process does not raise the grain, the wood keeping as smooth as at first any depth of colour can be given with certainty, and the darker shades will penetrate the thickness of a veneer; American
;

red oak does not take the colouring well, English and Eiga oak do. The different pieces of wood must be kept separate to allow the fumes to act all round and about

them.

Common Yew (Taxus

baccatft)

is

common

in Spain

and

Italy, often seen in English churchyards, and is indigenous to Nottinghamshire. It attains a great age, some specimens having a girth of over 50 ft., but it seldom attains

is in

a greater height than 30 or 40 ft. The trunk of the yewstriking contrast to most British trees, for instead of

one trunk there are what appear to be several, like a sheaf of columns growing from the same root. The wood is of red colour some of the older timber is pale yellowish darker fine close grain, tough and elastic, susceptible of fine polish, handsomely striped and often dotted like Amboyna wood annual rings are very narrow and wavy. From the yew were made the weapons of the celebrated English bowmen of olden times, and it is still employed in the manufacture of bows for archery, also of small articles of furniture, and occasionally in chair-making, It is a hard and exceedingly durable wood, and reckoned almost equal to box for fine work. It is often stained black and
;

called German ebony. preferred for bows.

The

Irish

yew

(T. fastigiata)

is

Weight 48

to

50

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

EUROPEAN TIMBER
Hornbeam (Carpinus
betulus) is a British tree
ft.

45

which grows and produces a hard, tough, to a height of 30 to 50 strong, white coloured, close cross-grained, inelastic, heavy wood, containing little or no sap it stands exposure well Under vertical pressure the unless cut from old trees.
;

up instead of snapping. Makes good mallets and lasts, and is also used for agricultural implements and turning; takes a fine polish, tools employed upon
fibres often double
it

soon lose their edge is difficult to split and make smooth under the plane it also shrinks a good deal. In Gerald's
; ;

"

Herball," 1633, he says that this that the toughness and hardness of

wood
it

"

waxeth so hard
be rather com-

may

pared to horn than unto wood and therefore it is called hornbeam or hardbeam." It was formerly in Britain and is still in some parts of Europe preferred for making yokes for cattle hence, according to some authorities, the name. A considerable quantity of the hornbeam used in Britain is
;

imported from France in planks 6 to 19 inches wide, and 3 to 6 inches thick.

ft.

long, 6 to 12

It

grows

fairly

which attained its maximum at end of the sixth day, ranged from 45 to 79 per cent, of its dry weight, and the weight needed to crush 2-inch cubes of dry wood was from 19,621 to 25,794 Ibs. Annual rings fairly close, medullary rays distinct and numerous.

plentifully in America, but the wood is not exported. amount of water absorbed into cubes of hornbeam,

The

Weight about 47

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

often

Sycamore or Great Maple (Acer pseudo-platanus)

called the plane tree in Scotland, is neither a plane nor a true sycamore it is common in Britain and Germany,
;

although practically the whole of the sycamore of commerce comes from America. The tree attains a height of 60 ft.,

and produces an almost white wood,

slightly yellow in older

46

TIMBEE

trees,

darker near the heart, of uniform texture, compact firm, though it cannot be considered hard, durable when kept dry, and not liable to warp. It is used for

and

furniture,

turning, wooden screws, reels and bobbins, pianos, harps, backs of fiddles and violins, also for coach

panels, rollers for wringing and mangling machines, and for the superior sorts of Tunbridge ware and dairy utensils.

The annual rings are distinctly marked, and medullary The wood is very similar to that of the Norway rays fine.
maple, though rather closer and heavier, and takes a fine
polish
;

much

of

it is

Weight about 40

Ibs.

beautifully figured. per cubic foot.

The Egyptian sycamore is a large tree of the fig tribe. Most of the Egyptian coffins discovered are made of
sycamore.
is such a conspicuous and handsome London squares and parks and along the many Thames Embankment, is a variety of the Eastern plane

The

Plane,

which

tree

in

It is often confounded with the (Platanus orientalis). but the plane has very broad medullary rays, thus sycamore,

giving a nice figure to much of the wood (which is yellowish red in colour, somewhat like beech, but softer), whereas the The timber when rays of the sycamore are very fine.
polished

The Eastern plane Western plane, called sycamore in the United States, but the timber, though good, is but little used in Great Britain. The boundary of the rings, which are not clearly defined in the Eastern plane, is a means of distinguishing it from the Western plane, in which they are very
is

not unlike the best walnut.

closely resembles the

distinct.

In both species the medullary rays are well defined.

Used in the pianoforte trade and by cabinet-makers. Weight of Eastern plane about 33 Ibs., Western plane about 40 Ibs., per cubic foot.

EUROPEAN TIMBER

47

Spanish or Sweet Chestnut (Castanea sativd) is found in the south of Europe, Africa, North America, and most parts of England, especially the southern counties. It is a stately

and handsome

tree, closely allied to the beech, and grows to a great age. It has no large or distinct medullary rays, and this is the characteristic distinction between it and the oak
;

its
is

annular rings are very distinct and fairly wide. The wood not unlike the oak in appearance, the colour being of rather

it has practically no sapwood and is of a closer grain than oak, although softer and generally lighter ; it is more liable to split in nailing than oak, but

a redder tinge, but

the nails do not blacken the timber.

growth, easier to

It is a wood work than oak, does not shrink or

;

of slow

swell so

much, and

remarkably durable the younger wood is much harder and more flexible than the old. Chestnut was formerly much used in England for large span roofs and
is

for

similar

purposes to

oak, but

now

chiefly

in

small

sizes

by coachbuilders and wheelwrights.

Young chestnut

trees are

much

appreciated for hop poles and also for gate-

posts and fencing.

Chestnut
is

in durability. The wood in warm climates. grown

is said by some to surpass oak heavier and closer grained when A good deal has been used in the

London

park fencing. In France the smaller pieces are used for hoops and vine props. Weight about 38 Ibs. per cubic foot.
district split

up

for

tree

Horse Chestnut (JEsculushippocastanum) is quite a distinct from the above, and remarkable for its magnificent

foliage, rapid

growth, and stately

size.

Most Londoners

know

the tine avenue of these trees along the main road at Bushey Park, and they present a beautiful sight when
in full

blossom the wood is yellowish white, of fine, close, even grain not unlike maple, and in character not unlike poplar it is not durable. It is used for turning, and is
: ;

48

TIMBEE

one of the many whitewoods used by the Tunbridge ware manufacturer. Softer than holly, but preferable to it in

some ways
sizes
;

for the turner, as

it

can be had in

much

larger

it is

Weight

into charcoal for gunpowder. 35 to 37 Ibs. per cubic foot.

also

made

where
GO
to
ft.

Alder (Alnus glutinosa) grows both in Europe and Asia, it is found along the swamps and low banks of
It is

rivers as in Great Britain.

only a small

tree,

30

to

wood is white when first cut, but changes a reddish colour, and then fades to a reddish yellow of
high
;

the

the roots and knots are beautifully veined, annual rings are rather broad and wavy, and it is very durable in damp situations or when kept perfectly dry. It is a soft, light timber, uniform in texture, with fine, smooth grain, is easily worked, and shrinks a good deal. It is used for clogs and last-making, patterns, sides of
different shades
;

its

packing cases, and also for wooden bowls, turnery, and occasionally for furniture. German cigar boxes are The roots and hearts are usually made of alder wood. used by cabinet-makers, and much small stuff is grown for
carts,
It was baskets, staves for herring barrels, etc. a good deal used for water-pipes, pumps, and sluices. formerly The supply comes chiefly from the Baltic. Vitruvius, the

making

early
of
It is

Eoman
not of

Ravenna on the Adriatic were

architect, says that the whole of the buildings built upon piles of alder.

much

value to the carpenter.

Grey or White Alder (A. incana) is a native of many parts of continental Europe, produces a white, fine-grained, compact wood, but soon rots in damp situations.

Weight

of alder 26 to 41 Ibs. per cubic foot.

Willows, of which there are about 160 species known, yield a soft, light brownish yellow coloured wood, easily

EUROPEAN TIMBER

49

worked, and tough. It is valuable as lining for carts, barrows, etc., as the wood dents instead of splitting when struck by heavy objects, for steamboat paddles, brake
blocks

shoemakers'

on railways, and is much used for cricket bats, lasts, and in France for sabots, also for baskets and wicker work. Mr. W. J. Bean, of Kew

Gardens, considers the Salix alba, or Huntingdon willow, the best for bat-making. It is found in Essex, Hertford, and Suffolk, but supplies of best " bat willow " have

become
Lime

scarce.

tree,

or Linden (Tilia Enropea), a common European giving a white, soft wood, fine and close in grain, sometimes of a reddish tinge, is used to a small extent in

furniture-making; it, as well as the willow, is used for cricket bats and malt shovels, and it makes good pianoforte

sounding boards
but
is fairly

it

is

not suitable for exposed situations,

painted.

durable

when kept protected and

;

much of Grinling Gibbons' carving at Windsor, St. Paul's, and other places was done in lime. There are three kinds of lime included
good deal used for turning and carving
under the above name, the small-leaved lime (T.parvifolid), large-leaved lime (T. platyphytta), and the common lime the latter is the most common. Some trees (T. vulgaris)
;

reach a height of 80 ft. and a diameter of 4 Weight about 35 Ibs. per cubic foot.

ft.

Apple (Pyrus mains) provides fairly hard, durable, finegrained wood of reddish brown tint it is used largely for
;

It is one of the dark woods of turning. Tunbridge ware, stands well when seasoned, is not so tough as pear. The

timber of the wild or crab apple, which grows to a height of 20 to 30 ft., is best.

Weight about 49

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

50

TIMBER
Pear (Pyrus communis), a tree of 20 to 50ft. in height and the wood is much used for drawing curves
;

of quick growth and set squares,

it is

and also much appreciated for carving, as cut with equal facility in all directions of the grain. Much old carving was done in pearwood, and some fine

wood

specimens are to be seen in the British Museum. The is somewhat like the lime, but harder and tougher,

fine grained

and strong, though

seasoned.

it

does not stand well

unless thoroughly

few state-rooms in the

;

Cunarder Mauretania have been carried out in pearwood the colour is a yellowish brown, and annual rings are
distinct.

Weight 40
Cherry, of

to

44

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

which there are three varieties, Pyrus auium, and P. cerasus. The first is the most widely P. padus, distributed, and sometimes attains a height of 30 to 40 ft. It produces a handsome pale reddish brown wood, used
It is only to for cabinet work, walking-sticks, pipes, etc. be got in small sizes, as is the case with apple, pear, and

plum, is easily worked, and is one of the best brown woods of sometimes may be mistaken the Tunbridge ware workers for birch, but the rays are much more conspicuous in the The wild cherry is used for furniture in France cherry. and other parts of the Continent where the tree abounds.
;

Weight 42

to

46

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

to pear, is also

Plum, which
turnery.

is

somewhat similar

used for

Weight about 40 Ibs. per cubic

foot.

Common Cypress (Cupressus timber sometimes called cedar

Minor, Persia, and grows

sempcrvirens)
;

furnishes a

it is

in

found in Cyprus, Asia mild localities in Great

EUROPEAN TIMBER
Britain.

51

The wood is of a yellow or reddish colour, growit is hard, darker on exposure strong, and very ing the resin it contains durable, and has a pleasant smell
;

enables
It is

long period the action of water. not liable to the attacks of insects, and being of beautiful colour and easy to polish it is much used for
it

to resist for a

finished woodwork. The doors of old St. Peter's at Rome were of cypress, and when taken down to make way for the brass doors of Antonio Philarte were found in perfect
life of at least 600 years. In early times was much used in conjunction with cedar for shipThis timber must not be confounded with the building. wood now known as cypress in the English market, and which is imported from America. The common cypress,

condition after a

it

as indeed

is

the case with

all

cypress wood,
foot.

is

very

light.

Weight about 20 Ibs. per cubic

Laburnum (Laburnum rulgare), a well-known tree which grows in the British Isles, the Continent of Europe, and America, and in favourable situations attains to a height of 40 ft. and a diameter of about 12 inches, though this size is rare the wood is a beautiful brownish or sometimes dark green colour, of fine grain, hard and heavy, much valued for cabinet work, turnery, and inlaying and parts
;

it

instruments it is not, however, much used, as can only be had in small sizes. It is sometimes stained and passed off as ebony. Weight 52 to 57 Ibs. per cubic foot.
of musical
;

Box. The Common Box (Buxus sempervirens) is said to be a native of Surrey, and great quantities originally came from Box Hill in that county. It also grows in Gloucester-

and Kent, and is found throughout Europe, North In Britain the tree seldom America, Asia, and Japan.
shire

E 2

52

TIMBER

attains a greater height than 12 to 14 ft., but in warmer climates is found of twice this size. The wood is heavier

than any European wood, and some of

the colour
is

it

will sink in
;

water

a beautiful yellow or orange it is hard, close and silky in grain, easily worked, and takes a fine polish. It is much used by the turner and wood carver referred " " to by Virgil as and in proper for the turner's trade

the manufacture

of

rules

and drawing

scales, also

for

planes, handles of turnscrews and other tools, and is preferred to any other wood for flutes and other wind instru-

ments.

It

was the chief wood used

for

wood engraving

that process was much more common than it is to-day, admitting as it does of a finish as fine almost as that

when

most solid at the pith of any wood the pith of all true boxwoods is lozenge the wood is cold and smooth to the shaped in section the bark and sap together are only about the thicktouch,
of metal. It is about the to be

met with

The box of commerce now from the Caucasus and parts of Turkey in Asia, but the supply is scarce and dear, and a good deal of persimmon and other timber is used in place of box. The true box can only be had in short lengths up to 6 ft., and from 2| to 12 inches in diameter it is usually sold by
ness of
stout cardboard.

comes

chiefly

weight.

Weight up
Ash
Japan.
is

to

72

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

natives of

wood of which there are about fifty species, Europe and North America as well as Asia and

The Common Ash (Fraxinus excelsior) is a umbrageous tree, but extremely injurious

beautiful
to grass

and and

The wood is crops immediately under and around it. or brownish white with longitudinal yellow streaks, greyish

EUROPEAN TIMBER
tough, hard and elastic, easily worked, even and close in grain, and is probably superior to any other British

timber for toughness and elasticity too flexible for use in It excels the oak in strength and toughbuilding work. ness. It is much used by wheelwrights, coachbuilders,
;

cabinet-makers, and turners, and for hammer shafts, oars, horizontal bars for gymnasiums, golf clubs, and anything
is easily requiring toughness combined with flexibility bent after steaming to any shape, valuable for barrel hoops
;

and motor wheels, not

liable to split,

and so

is

a good deal

used for butchers' chopping blocks and boards. Often found irregular in the disposition of its fibres, sometimes
finely

figured,

it

is

then

much

prized for

(TTTTT

cabinet work and furniture.

Annual rings
meduloO
!

are

distinct,

lary rays and pores are very fine (Fig. 11).

flP
FlG. 11.

The wood
young

of

the

Cross section of Ash, showing

trees is almost
;

pores and medullary rays.

as valuable as the old

indeed the value

is

greatest in trees of

which the growth has been rapid, for it then exhibits the characteristic toughness of the timber in the highest degree. A considerable quantity of native-grown ash is used in England, and Irish ash is unequalled in quality and fibre by any in the world. It is, however, from America that we Ash get the larger proportion of the ash used in Britain. are used for sheep hurdles and crate-making, and poles were at one time much used for trawl beams on fishing boats.

Weight about 49

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Rowan
in

or Mountain Ash (Pyrus aucuparia), now common suburban gardens, is found up to 2,600 ft. above sea

54

TIMBEE

Photo by]

[Henry Irving,

Ilorlcy.

FlG.

12.

Common

Birch (Betuhi

alba).

EUROPEAN TIMBER
level.
It attains a

55

height of 30 or 40 ft., and produces a tough and elastic wood, but can only be got in small sizes. The tree is It is much used for crates and walking-sticks.
intimately bound up with Norse folklore. Hungarian ash is often richly figured, but varies a good deal in grain, and when used as veneer the glue is apt to
discolour
it.

Birch (Betida alba], Fig. 12, is a beautiful and rapid growing tree which attains a height of 50 to 60 ft., but only about 1^ ft. in diameter. It is very straight, gets

Common

less in size

towards the Arctic regions, where

It is

it

becomes a

the last tree to disappear as we go northward. The wood is whitish or light brown in colour, firm and tough, easily worked, cannot be considered

mere shrub.

moderately hard and even in grain, rather is excellent wood coarse, but works up to a satiny lustre for turners, wheelwrights, and coopers, and is used for
durable, but
is
;

suites of

bedroom

furniture, largely in chair-making,

and a

good deal is made into charcoal. English-grown wood is the twigs are often used for handrails, stairheads, etc. made into besoms, and on account of their fragrant smoke The wood is are used for smoking herrings, bacon, etc. also used for box-making in the tinplate trade, and any shortage made good by English elm. Occasionally used as veneer in cabin fittings, it has a nice effect when stained it is also used for chair seats, and in Kussia tea chests for India are made up of two thicknesses glued back to back, with their grain crossways and a good deal is used for " " venesta Birch comes from Sweden, where panelling. it is made into furniture, and Prussia to Britain, but the greater quantity is brought from the United States and Canada. The wood is, as a rule, softer and rather darker than beech medullary rays are scarcely noticeable. It is
;

56

TIMBER
" "
difficulty in

caney wood, and there is no bubbles through it. Weight about 45 to 49 Ibs. per cubic
rather a

blowing

foot.

Common Acacia (Robinia pseudo-acacia) grows in Britain and the Continent of Europe, though the acacia of commerce generally comes from America, and is known as the American locust. The wood of acacia is greenish yellow the structure is compact yet with reddish brown veins
;

porous, the annual rings very distinct. It is very tough, durable wood, hard and heavy, but only to be had in small sizes. Acacia gave favourable results in German mines,

but

its

weight and relative costliness militate against

It flourishes well in

its

general employment.
pit props.

poor

soil,

and

in fifteen to twenty years attains sufficient proportions for

Weight 42

to

48

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Common Beech (Fagus

forests in

sylvatica), Fig.
is

13,

forms whole
in the

many

parts of Europe,

very

common

counties of Surrey, Hants, Bucks, and Sussex, and is one of the stateliest of our English forest trees, attaining a height of 100 ft. The timber is of reddish white or pale brown
colour, close, hard,
twists
polish.

and cracks

and even in grain, and works up well, easily, and does not readily take a good
brittle
it

Being rather purposes of the house

bility are required.

is

not well adapted for the

joiner, or where strength and dura-

very durable in wet situations, and has been a good deal used for sluices, weirs, etc., but it is not Extensuitable for exposure to variations of atmosphere.
It is

by cabinet-makers and for chairs and bedroom by turners for wooden bowls, ladles, butchers' trays, wooden shovels, planes and other joiners' tools, sink drainers, underwater parts of ships, and a good deal of
sively used suites, also

EUROPEAN TIMBER

57

If cut on straight-grained wood is used for pianos, etc. the quarter the wood often gives a very pretty figure, as the medullary rays are broad, well defined, and numerous.

FIG. 13.

Beech (Fay us

sytratica).

Beechwood

is

also well adapted for a

good deal

of wheel-

wrights', cartwrights', and coachbuilders' work, and great quantities are used for broomheads in the Black Forest
districts.

In France

it

is

much used

for the

making

of

sabots, being

preferred to

any other wood for this purpose,

58

TIMBER

it is said to resist the damp, although, as in apparent contradiction to this, beech will take in more creosote than most woods, as much as 22 Ibs. per cubic foot having been

as

injected into beech paving blocks, for which this timber has been a good deal used, and has generally given satisfaction. Beech props in German mines gave superior
results to either oak,

pine, or

fir.

It is

much used

for

sleepers on the continental

railways,

and makes good

charcoal.
Irish beech, though not so economical in conversion as English beech, stands unrivalled where hardness is a requisite, and is much appreciated by piano manufacturers and for the making of bobbins. The beech forests of Roumania are virgin soil they cover about 3,000,000 acres, but are situate in wild, inaccessible mountain ranges. At present the larger portion of our supplies comes from Canada. European beech, sycamore, and birch are trees without distinct heartwood. Weight about 44 Ibs. per cubic foot.
;

Poplar, a genus of handsome trees with tall straight stems, is found chiefly in the temperate and cold regions of the Northern hemisphere. There are many varieties
;

easily worked, yellowish or brownish white in colour, and of uniform texture is not easily and when dry and well seasoned is fairly durable. splintered,
is soft, light,
;

the

wood

Annual rings are very

distinct but very fine.

White Poplar (populus

alba),

found in Britain and the

southern parts of Europe, attains a height of 80 ft. The wood, of a yellowish brown colour, is used by cabinetmakers, turners, and toy-makers, but is liable to swell and
shrink.

In restoring the foundation of the Campanile at

EUROPEAN TIMBER

59

Venice, which fell in 1902, some of the piles were found to be white poplar, and in such good condition that they were

allowed to remain.

Grey Poplar (P. canescens) is very similar to the white makes good variety, but the wood is harder and better and is preferred to pine near fireplaces, as flooring, and by some
it is

said to be less liable to take

carts,

fire.

It is

used sometimes
cases,

for

rough doors, barrows,

and packing

and

is

much esteemed by

not liable to split nails are driven through thin boards.

turners.
It is

when

Black Poplar (P. nic/ra) is used for poses as the white and grey varieties.

much
It

the same pur-

and

is fairly

common

in Ireland, but there

grows in England it is -mostly used

rough cart sheathing, as it is not liable to sometimes used for flooring and roofing. It splinter It is largely used shrinks a good deal and is not durable. for sabots in Holland, where it grows plentifully.
locally
for
;

well-known and public places variety, is now largely planted in gardens in English towns because of its speedy growth, but the wood is of little value.

Lombardy Poplar

(P.

fastiyiata),

another

In the case of poplar, as of so many of our native timbers, wood used under this name mostly comes from America, and much which goes by the name of poplar is not poplar
the
is

Aspen (P. treiiuda), which is used for turning, and soft, and trays, whilst in France it is used for made into pails It was once highly esteemed as a wood for the sabots. making of arrows, and in Henry V.'s time an Act was
at
all.

The wood

of the beautiful

light, white and smooth,

passed, which was not repealed until the time of James I., forbidding the use of the timber for any other purpose

Photo by}

FlG. 14.

English

Elm (Ulmus

campestris]

EUROPEAN TIMBER

61

under a fine of 100s. A good deal of aspen comes from " Russia and is used for " venesta panelling, and a large is made into matches in Sweden. quantity Weight of poplar about 26 to 33 Ibs. per cubic foot.
(Uinuts campcstris), Fig. 14, a tree of 70 or 80 ft. in height and sometimes 5 ft. in diameter, produces a wood of a reddish brown tint, the sap being brownish white,

English

Elm

highly valued for its strength especially across the grain toughness, closeness of texture, and great resistance to

crushing

stands driving bolts and nails very well, excellent

in water or

damp

situations,

and was formerly much used

for water-pipes in English towns, many of which, taken up in recent years, bored to 3 or 4 inches diameter, after

being in the ground for a great number of years, were in good condition. It was at one time a good deal used for
the piles of old London Bridge piling in difficult ground were of elm, and found in good condition after being in the
for 800 years also for keels and other timbers of naves and spokes of wheels, and butchers' blocks it ships, is not now so much used, owing to the American elm being

ground

more

readily obtained of the required sizes, but the quality

inferior.

of the latter is

English elm

is,

however,

still

supplied to South Wales from Gloucestershire and Somerset for box-making in the tinplate trade whenever there is
a scarcity of birch, and used in large widths for wagon and cart planking. The wood is much twisted in grain, which

makes

it
if

difficult to
left

work, and

it

is
is

very

difficult to split,

though open very liable to split. the pores run in peculiar Medullary rays scarcely noticeable, zig-zag and wavy lines. Used a good deal for coffins; so is the Dutch elm, which is the same tree. The French elm is also chiefly the wood of the U. campcstris, and grows to a considerable size, but is not generally so hard as English

lying in the

62

TIMBEE
;

elm

fishing boats.

of ash as trawl beams for The wood of the Wych Elm, or Scotch elm (U. montana), is somewhat lighter in colour than the common elm, and rather harder, clean and straight in

sometimes used instead

it is used for naves of wheels, grain, tough and flexible and in boat-building. The tree attains a height of 80 to 100 ft., with a large trunk. Elm was at one time, before
;

iron became so

common,

often used for divisions in stables,

horses having a dislike to biting it. Weight of common elm about 36

Ibs.

per cubic foot

to

sometimes the weight

cubic foot.

of

wych elm runs up

43

Ibs.

per

Common

Laurel (Primus lauro cerasus)

is

but rarely found

of sufficient size to be

used as timber, but, according to a recent note in the Timber Trades Journal, some forty tons

were sold on an Irish estate some time ago, and several of the largest sticks were quite 12 inches in diameter at
the butt end, and a quantity grown on reclaimed peat bog The was sold for use in Belfast by Lord Charlmont.
timber, which
70s. per ton.
is

very heavy and durable, brought as much as The tree originally came from Trebizond, and

has been planted in Britain since the sixteenth century.

Holly (Ilex aquifolium), the common holly, is seldom seen except in hedges, yet many specimens attain a height of 40 feet with a diameter of 8 or 10 inches. It produces a

wood

of exceedingly fine grain, closer in texture

than any

English wood, and very hard, of white colour, sometimes almost as white as ivory requires great care in the treatment to preserve the whiteness of the wood, it does not
;

readily absorb foreign matter

much used by
is

turners and

for parts of musical instruments, handles of tools

and metal

teapots,

draught-boards,

etc.,

and

often dyed black and

EUROPEAN TIMBER
called ebony. Employed by the Tunbridge ware facturer for some of his best work, especially that
is to

63

manuwhich

be painted in water colour.

Ibs.

Weight 47
Bruyere,
of heath

per cubic

foot.

commonly

called briar (Erica arboria), a species

which grows in the south of Europe, the roots of which produce a fine, hard wood used in large quantities for The Australian myall and the Austrian tobacco pipes. cherry are used for the same purpose.
Hazel (Corylus avellana)
of
is

a native of Britain

and parts
; ;

Europe, and grows plentifully in the Home Counties is a reddish white, soft, highly elastic wood, but not durable the smaller branches and stems are used for crates, hoops
for barrels, stakes, etc.,

and the larger wood is made into The roots are charcoal for forges and for artists' crayons. sometimes used by cabinet-makers for veneers. It is a " " water diviner often uses in his art. hazel which the

Hawthorn (Cratcegus oxyacantlid) a well-known tree, will grow in some situations to a height of 40 ft. and conthe wood is hard and tough, but it is not siderable girth
, ;

much used

except occasionally by turners. It is yellowish white in colour, of fine grain, and takes a good polish. It is one of the substitutes for boxwood.

of Persia

The Common Walnut (Juglans regia), is a native and the Himalayas, but for a long time has been It is a lofty tree, some 60 to 90 ft. cultivated in Europe. with large bole the wood is much valued and chiefly high used by cabinet-makers and for furniture the wood of young trees is nearly white and but little esteemed, that of old trees is brown, veined and shaded with darker
Walnut.
;

64

TIMBER
black.

brown and

The wood

of the roots is often beauti-

Walnut wood is heavy, fine grained, longifully veined. tudinal fibre short and brittle, does not split in seasoning,
takes a beautiful polish. The tree grows well in Britain, but the wood is pale, rather coarse, and not much used.

Large quantities

of

excellent

walnut come from

the

Black Sea, called Circassian walnut, in short logs up to 18 inches a side and in planks 6 to 11 ft. long, 2J to similar timber 8 inches thick, and up to 19 inches wide
;

in the piano trade, but Italy, the larger portion of the walnut of commerce probably comes from the United States. A few short logs up to
is

comes from

and

much used

36 inches at the butt come occasionally with mahogany from the west coast of Africa, and this trade seems rather All walnut trees have a peculiar dividing of to increase.
the pith into a number of small chambers, which forms a serious defect in the centre of every log. Many years ago
furniture trade, but

walnut to a considerable extent took the place of oak in the it is now more generally used as veneer.

Large quantities of French and other walnut were used in the cabin fittings of the SS. Mauretania ; the grand stairs were constructed entirely of this wood, as much as
10,000
ciated
ft.

of veneer being used.

Walnut
for

is

much

appre-

carving and in France, where the turnery, in the pianoforte trade, and tree is found in large numbers, the wood is largely used for
for

the

best

gun

stocks,

Swiss

sabots.

Weight about 46

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

CHAPTER

IV

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

White Pine Red Pine Longleaf Pine Shortlenf Pine Loblolly Pine Cuban Pine Sugar Pine Western Yellow Pine Douglas Fir Firs Larch Eastern Hemlock Western Hemlock Yew Eed Gum Hickories Cedar, Eed and White Tupeloe

Gum Chestnut Buckeyes Spruce Myrtle Cherry Buttonwood Poplar and Cottonwood Tulip Tree Ash Birch Beech Elm Californian Eedwood Big Trees Maple Locust Persimmon Basswood Walnut Osage Cypress Orange Dogwood Hardy Catalpa Tests of American Timber.
Black

Oaks

As in the north of Europe, the chief timbers of North America are pines and firs, timbers which probably cover more forest area than any others in the world but besides these Canada, to a certain extent, and the United States, especially, possess a greater variety of useful hardwoods than is to be found in any other country.
;

White Pine (Pinus strobus) the yellow pine of the English market, is a tree of noble dimensions, reaching a height of In 80 to 100 ft. or more and 7 or 8 ft. in diameter. the days when the tree was much more plentiful than it is now, single logs 60 ft. long and 36 inches square have
,

by English botanists Weymouth pine, known in Britain as Yelloiv pine or Quebec pine, as it is chiefly exported from Quebec and other St. Lawrence ports. The tree grows and was formerly very common in Lower Canada, and notwithstanding the inroads which have been made upon it there are large
;

been cut
tJic

called
is

but

timber

T.

66

TIMBER
still

quantities

uncut in Ontario and Quebec and in the

northern United States, but no appreciable amount grows south of a line between Chicago and New York, about 42 north latitude 77 per cent, of the United States white
;

pine comes from the Lake States, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan, of which the first two supply 68 per cent. White pine and red or Norway pine are, in the States and

Canada, sold together under the name of Northern pine." White pine stands second in the United States cut of
timber, and in 1905 amounted to 405,000,000 cubic feet, of which nearly one-fourth may have been red pine. It is

"

the

most valuable of Canadian trees. The timber is becoming scarce and high-priced in Britain, as there is, compared with former days, a comparatively small amount
sent over.
is

now

This

one of the

many

cases of the confusion caused by

;

timber going under different names in different places the American or rather United States term "yellow pine" applies to all the pine in the eastern States, except white
pine and red or Norway pine, and these include longleaf, thus it will be seen shortleaf and other southern pines in the English market is called that the timber which
, ;

yellow pine

is

the

very timber which the

Americans

exempt from that

title.

The wood is of white or pale straw colour, recognised by dark hair lines running in the direction of the grain it turns a darker colour with age, is generally free from
;

is of uniform colour, clean, straight in grain and worked, is fairly strong but inferior in that respect easily to Baltic redwood, and, even when it was plentiful and cheap, not used for outdoor or substantial work in Great

knots,

Britain, although

it is

much

used for these purposes in the

until of late
It is excellent for

drier climate of the States

and Canada, where,

years,

it

was the chief building timber.

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

all

67

classes of

good joinery, and

;

is easily

worked into mould-

ings and panelling it is the chief wood used by patternnmkers, as it shrinks but little. It is largely used for decks It of passenger steamers owing to the clear white colour.
is

the pine timber and readily in the log by the height it stands out of the distinguished water, and for this reason was often used for temporary
lighter

than most of

rafts.

imported in square and roughly-squared logs, and known as Quebec square pine or Quebec wany pine (the latter have a wane on the edges, the former are square), up shorter logs may be to 40 ft. long and 16 inches square
It is
;

had over 24 inches square, also in deals and battens classed in three or four qualities in widths of from 7 up to 25 or even 30 inches, but the larger widths are always in
shorter lengths
first
;

this

applies

to

timber generally.

The

quality
all

may

be obtained practically free from knots

and

defects.

Annual rings

clearly marked, medullary

rays numerous but not very distinct. Weight 28 to 32 Ibs. per cubic foot. A large trade is now done in prepared pine doors, which are exported to Great Britain in large
quantities
;

to the doors

these as a rule are of good quality and superior and other manufactured joinery sent from
this

Norway and Sweden, but

cannot be said of some of

work,
for,

the American manufactured

according to the

American West Coast Lumberman, a short time ago, as many " as sixty-two knots have been counted on one side of a door

made

for a subject of
is

King Edward VII."

another white pine, called western white pine (P. monticola), which very closely resembles the above both

There

and quality of timber, cut in Vancouver and the Selkirk range in Canada and in parts of Montana and Eastern Washington, but a good deal of it is put on
in appearance

the United States market with the western yellow pine F 2

68

TIMBER
ponderosa) which grows in the same districts same purposes as P. strobus.
;

(P.

it is

used

for the

American Red Pine (P. rubra or P. resinosa), commonly Canadian red pine, is a tree of 50 to 80 ft. in height and 2 ft. in diameter which goes by different
called

names

in different localities

in

some places

it is

called
it

Norway pine, in others yellow pine, and, as has been said, is classed with white pine in the States timber trade ;
grows
to

it

a great extent in

Canada and
fact over
is

in

Minnesota,
fine,

Wisconsin, and Michigan, in The timber the white pine.

the

same area as

reddish white, with

clean grain, a good deal of sap, somewhat soft though harder than P. strobus, but fairly tough and elastic, not

warp or split, and durable when seasoned. Chiefly imported into Britain as deals and planks and used for It is not so much appreciated as internal house fittings.
liable to

Baltic timber, although the price

is

somewhat lower.
is

Longleaf Pine (Pinus palustris)

the pitch pine of the

English market and comes from the southern States of it is shipped from Mobile, North America Pensacola, Gulf Port, and other places on the Gulf of Mexico. It is sometimes called Georgia yellow pine in the States P.
; ;

often called pitch pine, but ivhere pitch pine is to in this book it is to be understood to mean lonyreferred
riyida
is

Icaf pine. This tree furnishes the hardest

and most durable as well

as one of the strongest pine timbers in the market, imported chiefly in square and hewn logs the former are preferable,
;

although the hewn can be had in longer lengths and larger scantling. It first came into the English market about forty years ago, since which time it has been

having

less sap,

the timber most largely used for heavy constructional works,

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

ousting to a great extent the
for that purpose, as
it

69

Memel timber formerly used

;

was stronger and could be obtained

in longer lengths. The colour is a reddish yellow dried it becomes lighter in colour, but the reddish tint

when
shows

when the timber is wet the annual rings are marked (Fig. 2), and it is full of resinous matter, strongly making the timber very durable, but difficult for joiners to work. It is hard, dense, and strong, the best of it fairly free
conspicuously
;

from knots sometimes one may see a 40-ft. length without one straight in the grain, fairly free from sap, and excellent for interior work which is only intended to be varnished, such as roofs or gallery timbers, seats in churches and public

marked and handsome grain

buildings, door frames, panelling, etc., owing to its clearly it is also now much used for
; ;

the framing of spring mattresses one of the best timbers for heavy engineering structures where great strength, long span, and durability are required, it has also been much

used for wharves and

is

jetties,

and also

for ships' masts.

It
it

has been stated as one of the defects of this timber that

subject to cup- and heart- shake (see Chap. XII.); although one certainly finds a large proportion of logs with cupshake at the butt end, the defect often goes but a short distance

and by cutting a foot or two off the end the rest of the log is found quite sound moreover this defect, unless very pronounced, does not detract from the usefulness of the timber when used in the log or in large scantling, and it
in,
;

only when cut up into small sizes that it causes a loss in conversion sometimes when sawn through the centre and
is
;

left to lie it will

open out

at the heart.
it

the run on this timber that

So great has been has degenerated in quality

size twenty years ago it was quite easy to get logs 45 to 50 and even without much difficulty 60 ft. and over, and 14 inches square, almost free from sap. These sizes are
;

and

now

rare,

and the average

at present is

more

like

85

ft.

by

70

TIMBER
it

11 to 12 inches square, but

at a

can

still

be had up to 50

ft.

high price.

The

large quantity of pitch pine of small

scantling and with a large proportion of sap now exported shows that the larger trees have been cut or are more
difficult to get

more must

to obtain good pitch pine now requires much selection than formerly, and more allowances careful be made, but it can be got in shorter lengths and
;

smaller scantling and in small quantities even up to 50 by 14 inches by 14 inches.

It

ft.

has been stated that pitch pine " bled for turpentine becomes reduced in strength and durability, but the late
Professor Johnson, in his "Materials of Construction," " It is as strong bled as unbled." Some logs are to be says

"

found beautifully figured, although much of the figure in pitch pine only goes a short depth into the wood, and these are generally secured for cabinet-makers' work. This timber has not been found satisfactory for constructional

work
it

in parts of

Cape Colony, as

in

some
is

situations there

rapidly decays

when exposed
sea.

to alternate

damp and

heat

on river beds and near the

Such

not the author's

experience with this timber in Great Britain and other places, and he has used thousands of logs, in exposed situa-

and subjected to variations of temperature, which have been in position for over twenty years and are still quite sound. Pitch pine is now imported to a small extent in planks, but much of it comes as stowage with the log timber and is poor stuff. It is better to have planking cut from the imported log, and for good flooring it should be cut on the " quarter." The timber is used a good deal in the
tions

States for paving, and it is at present being tried as block paving for workshops in England, made up of four pieces, 2 inches by 3 inches, and 3 inches deep, joined by dowels underneath to form a block about 8 inches by 3 inches. This enables very small pieces of wood to be utilised.

TIMBER OP THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

71

After open-air seasoning for about three months, and the weight of taking the average over 300 fair-sized logs, cubic foot; the pitch-pine worked out at 45'8 Ibs. per minimum was 35'5 and the maximum 54'6. The percentages
of weights

were as follows

5 per cent,

27 54 14

under 40 Ibs. per cubic foot. between 40 and 45 Ibs. per cubic 50 45
50
is

foot.

55
it

The average weight

years ago.
Shortleaf

rather less than

was twenty

Pine

(P.

echinata),

also

called

slash
;

pine,

it is Carolina pine, yellow pine, etc., resembles loblolly the common tree of Missouri and Arkansas, and is found it attains a height of 40 to in all the southern States
;

80

ft.,

and as

a timber

although

as regards

ranks next to longleaf pine, strength it is slightly weaker than

it

either of the other southern pines. Weight about 39 Ibs. per cubic foot.

appearance the longleaf and shortleaf pine trees, particularly the latter, very much resemble the Scotch or
In

Northern pine.
Loblolly Pine (P. tceda) is a large tree sive forests in the southern States

which forms extenfrom Virginia and

South Carolina right round to Texas. The timber is wider ringed, coarser, lighter, softer, and contains much more sap than the longleaf pine as a rule the larger portion of the tree is sap, but the two timbers are sometimes mistaken
;

for

one another. One occasionally comes across a log of loblolly even amongst a lot of good pitch pine, but it can
generally be detected by
its

much

wider

rings,

greater

TIMBER

FIG.

15.

Loblolly Pine Forest and Loblolly Sleepers.

quantity of sap, and, as a rule, it comes in shorter lengths and greater scantling, often 16 or 17 inches a side. It is a quick-growing tree, and in forty years has attained a height of 80 ft. and 16 inches diameter. It is the first pine to

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

take possession of the

7:5

marshy prairies after they have been drained to allow of tree growth; it is adapted sufficiently to a wider range of soils than most of the other southern
pines, and, owing to its rapid growth and comparative freedom from damage by hogs and fires, has a much better chance of holding its own than the more valuable longleaf pine, which is of very slow growth, so that we must look forward to a not far distant time when it will form the bulk
of the pine supply

from

this region (Fig. 15).

tree of

Forty years ago longleaf pine was the most important South Carolina; now the loblolly occupies that position, and what happened there is more or less common throughout the south. The usual height of the tree is 90
to

and from 2 to 2| ft. diameter. A tree of 100 years is already old and subject to an early stage of decay it possesses a fairly cylindrical stem and is often free of branches for 65 ft. or more. The markets are so prejudiced against the timber that it is rarely handled under its own name, and resort is had to the objectionable system of selling it, either by itself or mixed with true shortleaf, as shortleaf pine the latter is a better and a harder timber, it is often almost though impossible to distinguish one from the other. Loblolly is largely used for railway sleepers and also for piling on the teredo-infested Gulf of
110
ft.
; ;

treated,

Mexico, but for both these purposes it has to be artificially and the great amount of sap it contains admirably
it

adapts
is

is increased 20 per cent, as compared with longleaf pine, although the price in log is considerably less. For interior work the timber has to be kiln

large cost of conversion

the

for absorbing a large quantity of creosote. So amount of sap that by clogging the saws the

dried immediately after being sawn to avoid the fungus which attacks the green timber and turns it blue ; after

drying

it

neither swells nor shrinks as the harder pines do,

74 in
this respect

TIMBER
somewhat resembling P. strobus. and sashes and takes paint well.
It
is

suitable for doors

of tests shows that loblolly is only weaker than longleaf pine in compression parallel to grain, and 7 per cent, stronger in bending tests, whilst it is of equal strength in compression across the grain and shearing with grain. Its weak point is the great quantity of sap it contains, which makes it of much less value as a constructional timber unless artificially

large

number

6 per cent,

treated, but

if

creosoted

it

should be nearly equal to longleaf

(pitch) pine.

Weight about 33

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Cuban Pine (P. hetercphytta) resembles the longleaf, but often has wider sap and coarser grain, does not enter the

markets to any extent as yet, and is stronger than longleaf in compression parallel to grain and as a beam, and equal to it in shearing strength. It is found along the coast from Carolina to Louisiana. P. rigida, which goes by the name of pitch pine in its
native district,
is

a small or medium-sized tree which does

;

not come

much into the foreign markets grows along the coast from New York to Georgia. " All these southern pines go by the name of " yellow pine
;

American markets. Longleaf is considered best then follow, in order of importance, shortleaf, loblolly, Cuban, and pitch pine (P. tada) they form more than one-fourth of the whole timber cut in the United States, and amounted in 1905 to 730,000,000 cubic feet. Nearly
in the
;

came from the States bordering the Great Mississippi, which forms an excellent outlet for the timber. There is little doubt that several of these southern pines are imported into Great Britain under the name of pitch pine,
half
it

may

be as yet only in small quantity, but this would

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

account for

75

much of the poor and sappy material recently on the market. If the timber were creosoted one need put have no fear of using any of these.

[/Ji/

ptnMeslon

of U.

.S.

Dept. of Agriculture.

FIG. 16.

Sugar Pine and Incense Cedar in foreground, Western Yellow Pine in background.

forests

Sugar Pine (P. lambertiand), Fig. 16, forms extensive iii the Eocky Mountains and furnishes most of the
It is

timber of the west United States.

confined to Oregon

76

TIMBER
California,

and

and grows
it

at

from 1,500

to 8,000

ft.

above

closely resembles the P. strains, but is a larger tree and of rapid growth has an average height of 150 to 175 ft. and a diameter of 4 to 5 ft., with a maximum height of 235 ft. and 12 ft. diameter. The w ood

sea level.

Botanically

is

soft, straight

grained, easily worked, very resinous, and

lustre
its

has
is

satiny

which
is

makes

it

appreciated

for

It very used for doors, blinds, sashes, and interior extensively finish, also for druggists' drawers, owing to its freedom
;

interior

work

colour

like Baltic

redwood.

from odour, for oars, mouldings, shipbuilding, coopers' work, shingles, and the poorer grades for fruit boxes. It is largely replacing white pine, owing to its cheapness.

The timber

is

fairly free

from attacks

of fungus,

and very

durable, as proof of which

many

mills are

now working

up large logs which have lain on the ground for thirty or forty years, and though the sapwood has rotted away the heartwood is usually as sound as on the day the tree was
felled.

Very
feet

little

of

the

difficulties of transport,

timber goes abroad, owing to the but in 1905 over 400,000 cubic

were exported via Galveston, the larger portion of which went to Australia, and the balance to Great Britain.

Weight about 30

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Western Yellow Pine (P. ponderosa), or bull pine, is the most widely distributed tree in the West, its range comprising almost the whole of the Pacific and liocky Mountain regions. It is sold under the names of western pine, western
white pine, and California white pine, closely resembles
the Jeffrey pine (P. jeffreyi), and attains a height of nearly 200 ft. with a maximum diameter of 6 to 7 ft. ; it is

more subject

to insect attack

western conifer, grows

much more

than probably any other rapidly than the sugar

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

77

timber is rather pine up to 100 years of age, and the heavier and stronger, the heartwood is reddish brown, of sapwood yellowish white, and there is often a good deal
it.

It is

building work generally,

and extensively used for beams, flooring, ceilings, also for railway sleepers, and the
Sugar and yellow pine form
output of
California
half.

smaller trees for pit props. nearly half of the timber

at

the

present time, redwood nearly the other

Western but less so and lighter than yellow pine is very resinous, the southern yellow pines. The resinous smell of the wood
is

very remarkable (Fig. 16). Weight about 32 Ibs. per cubic

foot.

Douglas Fir or Oregon Pine (Pseudo-twga Douglasii), Fig. 17, also known as Douglas spruce, yellow or white fir, and
red
fir, is

really neither a pine nor a

it

fir

it

is

generally
really the

known to the trade as Oregon, and that Douglas fir is the better timber.

is

sometimes said

They are

same, although, as is often the case, the timber from one 1 It is the chief locality is better than that from another.
tree of

Washington and Oregon, and the most abundant and most valuable in British Columbia, where it attains its in Vancouver Island, or along the shores greatest size the river valleys near the coast on the mainland, and along This timber is trees of 300 ft. in height are not rare. it Pacific ports shipped from San Francisco and other
;
;

ranks third in order of timber-producing trees of the United 2 States, has nearly trebled its output from 1899 to 1905, and
the output will doubtless soon exceed that of the pine of the southern States.
There are two kinds of Douglas fir recognised, one called "red fir," although it is not really a fir, and which is the timber usually " white fir," and is imported into Great Britain, and the other called a fir, but is not such a good timber for general purposes. strictly 2 In 1906 statistics it ranks second, and white pine third.
1

78

TIMBEB

[By permission of U.

S. Deft, oj Agriculture, Forestry Div.

Typical Forest Mixture in Washington. left to right Douglas Fir, Spruce, Hemlock, Cedar, Douglas Fir.
FIG.
17.

Species

from

TIMBEE OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

79

Now

that pitch

pine

is

more

difficult to

get in long

lengths and large scantling, Oregon is being largely imported into Great Britain. It has been known as a good, sound timber for many years, but the cost of bringing it

prevented its competing with pitch pine in the English market when that timber was cheap but now that the price of pitch pine, indeed timber in general, has
across
;

advanced so
the future for

much during

a better chance in the market, and

the last few years, Oregon has is likely to be used in

all purposes for which pitch pine has been There is little doubt that in the near in the past. used future it will be the chief timber used for heavy construc-

tion in Great Britain,

lings are required.

where long lengths and large scantThere are enormous supplies of this timber, and it can be obtained in almost any required length, such as 100 to 120 ft., and up to 20 inches square, and in shorter lengths of larger sizes. The logs are sawn with perfectly square edges to 10, 12, 14, 16, and 20-inch sides there is no difficulty in getting them 60 ft. long and 14 to 18 inches square, and the price is about the same
;

as that of pitch pine. Good Oregon is not such a sound, strong timber as good pitch pine it is more variable in we character, and it is doubtful if it will weather as well
;

have not had

have

said, pitch

the Oregon

But, as we say. to get in large sizes, and pine is quite equal to much of the pitch pine now
sufficient
is

experience to

difficult

imported. It is of reddish yellow colour, redder than pitch pine, but very like it in general structure, such as annual rings, straightness of grain, etc., so that when logs of the

two timbers are lying together it is often difficult to tell one from the other by looking at the surface but Oregon has little of that resinous quality so characteristic of pitch pine, and the wood when sawn has a much woollier appear;

ance,

somewhat resembling Canadian red

pine,

and in

80

TIMBEE
it is

colour

not unlike some of the cedars.

bait

It is, as

a rule,

it

than pitch pine. A carpenter would call a rougher wood, and though apparently more open in grain it will nevertheless take in much less creosote than
of larger

"

"

either

pitch
its

against

pine or Baltic timber, and that is rather use for sea work. On one occasion some Oregon

logs were tanked with Baltic redwood logs ; the latter took in nearly 11 Ibs. of creosote per cubic foot, whilst the

maximum

for the to

Oregon was only 2f

Ibs.,

and the same

thing applies author has made

into pitch pine months, whilst

thin planks. On several occasions the careful comparisons in creosoting this

Ibs. of

timber, and he has got 7 to 9

which has been

air

creosote per cubic foot drying for about three

and

for the

Oregon logs dried under the same conditions same period, and subjected to the same pressure

in the cylinders along with the pitch pine, rarely took in more than 3 Ibs., and many of them not 3 Ibs., per cubic
foot,

difference in the quantity injected.

and retanking and repressing made no appreciable It is a lighter wood

than pitch pine, weighing only about 37| Ibs. per cubic foot after seasoning. This was the average taken over fifty the maximum weight of any piece was 42 Ibs., large logs the minimum 33 Ibs. per cubic foot. The average weights were as follows
:

23
39

19 per cent, weighed 33 to 35 35 to 37 37 to 40

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

19

40
it

to

42

showing that

does not vary so

much

as pitch pine.

It is

more easily worked, having none of that stickiness which makes pitch pine so unpleasant for the carpenter or joiner,
well adapted for piling and heavy structural work, and is now largely used for harbour and dock work. It is
is

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

si

imported also in planks of various lengths and thicknesses, usually rather short lengths, and the timber is imported practically free from sap, which is a great advantage, and The writer recently saw a log 50 ft. perfectly square.
long and
of the logs

Some inches square absolutely free from sap. out a good deal after lying in the sun, open being much more liable to this defect than pitch pine or Baltic. It is a quick-growing tree. Many of the Douglas
2-4

planted in Great Britain about 1834 have attained a height of 100 ft., and it has been known to grow to a
firs

height of 76

ft.

in

twenty-two years.

The

flag-pole at
fir

Kew, which many

159
ft.

will

remember, was a Douglas

stick,

long, 6
ft.

ft.

6 inches in circumference at the base,

tapering to 2

at the top.

The Atchison and Santa Fe Railway Company use a great quantity of Douglas fir timber, and Mr. E. 0. Faulkner,
the

manager

of the tie

and timber department, in replying

to the author's inquiry as to the difficulty of creosoting this " have found it next to impossible to treat timber, says, fir satisfactorily after it has been seasoned, and for Douglas

We

this reason
still

we have adopted the treatment

it

of

it

w hile
r

it is

green, or just after

it

has been taken out of the water,

has been floated, which in either case will give the same result. This water or sap is then removed by the boiling process, which is described in the enclosed specification,

when

and we find no difficulty in getting 10 to 16 Ibs. per cubic foot into the wood, the quantity of oil varying entirely with the time used in the boiling." J
1

It

should be noted, however, that in America the timber

is

gene-

rally treated in the round log, which contains a much larger proportion of sap than the squared timber sent to the English market, and so will

more readily take

in creosote;

but Mr. David Allerton, of the American

Creosoting Company, has by a different treatment to Mr. Faulkner's got 10 to 12 Ibs. of oil per cubic foot into square timber.
T.

82

TIMBER
The name
fir is,

in

America as well as

in Great Britain,
fir.

applied to trees and timber which are not

is

commonly

applied to spruce,

In America it and in the English markets

The wood very much resembles spruce, but can be distinguished from it as well as from pine and larch by the absence of resin ducts. Its qualities, uses, and
to Baltic pine.

habits are similar to spruce.

Amongst American
tree.

firs

may

be mentioned

White Fir (Abies grandis and Abies concolor'), an important The former occurs from Vancouver to California,
latter

and the

from Oregon
Mexico.

to

Colorado and

New

The wood

Arizona and eastward to is soft and light,

" coarse grained, not unlike the " Swiss pine of Europe, but

darker and firmer, and

is

not suitable for any purpose

requiring strength. It is used in Canada for boxes and Abies amabcdis is barrels, and to a small extent for pulp.
also a good-sized tree

which

is

found in Washington and

Oregon.

Red Fir or Noble Fir (A.

with Douglas
fir
fir, is

nobilis),

not to be confounded

a very large tree, forming with white extensive forests on the Cascade mountains of Oregon,
ft.

3,000 to 4,000

above sea

level.

Balsam Fir (Abies balsamea) is sold with pine and spruce, grows from Minnesota to Maine and northward, and is a common tree in Ontario and Quebec wood light and soft, not durable in the ground. It is used for pulp, but is not
;

one of the best woods for that purpose. The Canada " balsam of druggists is obtained from blisters on the bark
of this tree.

"

Larch.
excellent

The American and Canadian larches produce timber and are known as tamarack or hack-

matack.

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

The western
100
to

83

larch or tamarack (Larix occidentalis) is little inferior to oak in strength and durability, grows to a height
of

150

ft.,

and yields a timber

;

of light

brown colour

with lighter sapwood, has a fine, slightly satiny grain, and the annual rings are distinct. It is fairly free from knots

very largely used for railway sleepers in Canada, also for planking sidewalks and footpaths in towns, and it is employed to a small extent in shipbuilding.
is

The Common
(L.

or
is

American

Larch
the

or

Black

Larch
of

amcricana)
;

common

in

northern

parts

it is a smaller tree than the western larch, Manitoba about 80 ft. in height and 2 to 3 ft. diameter, and produces hard coarse-grained but strong and durable timber. It is valued for sleepers, telegraph poles and posts. It often inhabits swamps and low-lying ground, where the trees are smaller and the timber produced is of poorer quality. The American larches, like those of Europe, have straight and tapering stems their timber resembles that of the best hard pine, both in appearance and quality and in its uses, and it is very durable. They grow plentifully in Their Canada and the northern parts of the States.
;

timber
than,

is

somewhat similar

to,

the European larches, but

it is

probably rather better not yet a commercial

commodity

in Great Britain, nor

United States.

The
42

is it largely used in the tree is peculiarly liable to disease.

Weight 34

to

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Eastern Hemlock (Tsuga cnnadensis), often called spruce or hemlock spruce, and by the French in Canada "Peruche,"
is

a medium-sized tree found in the

It

same

districts as black

produces a coarse-grained wood, brittle, subject to shakes, easily split, a softish timber but rather firmer than white pine it is used as a substitute for that timber.
spruce.
;

It

grows plentifully in

New York

State and Pennsylvania,

G 2

84

TIMBER

forests, attains a height of

and also in Quebec and Ontario, where it forms extensive 70 to 100 ft., and 2 ft. in diameter. It is used for rough framing, and in large quantities for railway sleepers, and it holds nails well. Great quantities are used in Canada for piling in wharves and quays. The colour is a light brown tinged with yellow, the sapwood nearly white. It is imported as deals and
battens.

Weight about 36

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

in

Western Hemlock (Tsuga heteropltylla, or T. mertensiana Canada) is by many considered superior to eastern
difficulty of transport

hemlock, although the

reputation of the latter
used, but in

and the high

it

have hitherto caused

to be little

Washington. manufactured into flooring and scantling and sold as spruce or fir, and an attempt has been made to introduce it as Alaska pine. It is a good deal used for pulp. There is no record of its durability. It has given satisfaction in floors. Not adapted for use partly in and partly out of ground in fresh water, hemlock piles will last about ten years, but as it is softer than fir it is less able to stand
;

1905 a considerable quantity was cut in To get the timber into the market it is usually

driving successfully.
is

It is

straight in grain, will take a

good polish, and has a beautiful grain when cut in certain ways. Very subject to black streaks or checks f to 3 inches long, about f inch wide, and thin, which run parallel with the grain, and are apt to open out when dried it is also liable to black knots, and very liable to attack by boring insects. It
;

much

used for wainscot panels and newels,

is

not suitable for heavy construction, especially where exposed to weather, but is used for ordinary building work.

Though

times a reddish brown, which

usually of whitish colour the heartwood is somemay extend to the sap, and

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

is

85

is to be used as pulp. a noble tree with very cylindrical, straight, tapering trunk, and has been found with a diameter of 8 ft. and a height of 250 ft. (Fig. 17).

a serious defect in timber which

is

The western hemlock

Hemlock

of either species

Canada, as there is kind and of better quality.

especially, surface.

appreciated in abundance of other timber of a similar

is

not

much

Hemlock, the western variety

its

may

be recognised by the silvery character of

of the

Weight about the same as spruce

about 27
Ibs.

same

localities,

per cubic foot.

brevifolid) is a

Yew (Taxus
forms no

forests,
is

but

is

small to medium-sized tree, scattered amongst the conifers.

stiff

The wood

heavy, hard,

and strong,

of fine

texture

with pale yellow sap and orange-red heart, seasons well, and is quite durable.

Extensively used for archery bows, turners' ware,

Hickory.

etc.

The hickories

of

commerce

are

exclusively

North American, and some of them are large and beautiful trees of 60 to 70 ft. or more in height. They are closely allied to the walnuts, and the timber is very like walnut in grain and colour, though of a somewhat darker brown. It is one of the finest of American hardwoods in point of
in toughness it is superior to ash, rather coarse in texture, smooth, straight in grain, heavy and strong as well as elastic and tenacious, but decays rapidly when exposed to damp and moisture, and is said to be very

strength

liable to attack

from worms.
;

hoops

of casks

it

makes

Great quantities are used for excellent handspikes, handles of

axes or picks, golf clubs, fishing rods, and is largely employed in the making of carriage shafts and in coachbuilding
generally.

Hickory

is

imported

into

Great

86

TIMBER
;

Britain in round logs up to 18 inches diameter the second growth wood is the best. There are many varieties of

hickory mockernut hickory, also known as whiteheart, big bud, etc. (Hicoria alba), big shellbark hickory (H.
sulcata),

small-fruited
f/labra),

hickory

(H.

hickory (PL
ovata),

shagbark or

microcarpa), pignut shellbark hickory (H.

medium-sized trees which produce the hickory of commerce and also yield the nuts so much esteemed, which in flavour resemble walnuts. The Bitternut is not quite so valuable as hickory, but is used for the same purposes. Like many other American hardwoods,

and others,

all

The cross section of hickory is getting scarce. the annual rings appear like fine lines instead of peculiar, like the usual pores, and the medullary rays, which are
hickory
is

also

very fine

but distinct,

in
is

crossing these

form a

one of the characteristic between hickory and ash (Figs. 4 and 11), the differences latter having a very clearly defined zone of spring wood hickory is also of more reddish hue than ash, pores
;

peculiar web-like pattern which

and

is

artificial

Hickory is rarely subjected to lacking in figure. treatment, but there is this curious fact in con-

nection with the wood, that, contrary to most others, creosote is only with difficulty injected into the sap, although
there
is

no

difficulty in getting it into the

heartwood.

Weight
is

of hickory

45 to 55

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Pignut
to

the heaviest, and from

some

tests

made would appear

be the strongest. About 5,000,000 cubic feet were cut in the States in 1905, 67 per cent, of which came from Indiana, Arkansas, Kenit is found in parts of Ontario tucky, Tennessee, and Ohio
;

in Canada, but not in

Cedar.

any great quantity.

so called is the well-known

The cedar properly

tree of Biblical times, the Cedar of

Lebanon (Cedrus

libani),

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

87

but of the ancient forests where this tree grew only a few hundred trees are left, and these are found at an elevation

above sea level. The cedar was well known to the Sumerian founders of Eridu, the oldest city It is a tree of Babylonia, six to eight thousand years ago. of only moderate height, 50 to 80 ft., with massive trunk
of about 8,000
ft.

some fine specimens of cedar of and large branches Lebanon are to be found in Britain, among other places at Sion House, Goodwood, Hopetown, Dalkeith, and a few
;

scattered

about Enfield.

The

heart of

the

timber

is

reddish brown, the sap reddish white, the wood is straight grained but porous, somewhat like larch in appearance,

and though the timber had a high reputation in ancient times, that grown in Europe is soft and brittle, liable to warp, but in some outside situations durable. The name cedar is given to many trees which are not true cedars the Siberian stone pine is called cedar, and the red cedar
;

of California is a species of of the

fir,

the Virginian or red cedar

United States is a species of juniper, and some of the American so-called cedars are cypresses. There are
fine trees amongst the North American cedars which produce valuable timber suitable for inside or ornamental work and other purposes.

some very

Red Cedar is one of the most widely distributed and one most valuable of American forest trees. It is rare in Canada, but grows along the St. Lawrence and on the north of Lakes Ontario and Erie, and from there to the Gulf of Mexico and as far west as Texas and Nebraska, and is most extensively found in Alabama, Florida, and Tennessee few trees exhibit a greater indifference to soil and climate, and it must be very hardy, adapting itself as it does to such a wide range.
of the
;

There are two

varieties, the

northern red cedar (Juniper us

TIMBER
virginiana), Fig. 18, and the southern (J. barbadensis) which grows in the sub-tropical coastal region from Georgia
,

to Florida

and westward along the shores

of the

Gulf of

[By permissiun

<<f

U. S. Deft, of Agriculture.

FIG. 18.

Eed Cedar

(Juniper us virginiana}.

Mexico
other

to Texas.

The

latter is also

found in Jamaica and

West Indian

islands.

The structure and physical

the same. properties of the two species are practically The red cedar grows to a height of 50 to 60 ft., and, the

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

J. barbadensis at
is

89

any

rate, generally quite straight.

The

sap usually only about f inch thick, of dingy white the heartwood of bright pinkish red, of uniform colour,
even, and straight in grain, very compact and durable, light, soft, easily worked, it takes a high polish. A good deal used for poles, and makes one of the most

colour

fine,

lasting of sleepers, having 50 per cent, longer life than white oak in most situations. Large quantities are used
for butter

and these do

It is a tree with few diseases, one of the few timbers practiOf late such large quantities cally immune from fungus. of red cedar (J. virginiana) are used in the pencil trade that
little

churns and tubs.

harm

supplies are getting scarce.

Something like 315,000,000 pencils are manufactured in the United States yearly, requiring about 7,500,000 cubic feet of timber, of which by far the larger proportion is red
mills are continually moving to fresh nearer the supplies, whilst, where that is not get the case, old rails and knotty logs are now being used which a few years ago would have been rejected wholesale.

cedar.

The cedar

fields to

It is its softness,

straightness of grain, and freedom from

this

defects

which render

wood

peculiarly

adapted for

pencil-making, an industry which is practically dependent upon this one wood. Only the heartwood is used for
pencils, the

sapwood being made into penholders, but as

of these are required,
is

not so
waste.

many
There

much

of

it

goes to

nearly 70 per cent, of waste in the conversion of the wood into pencils, and this has little market
value except for fuel, although some of it is now manufactured into thick paper for underlaying carpets, and some is converted into fine shavings and used instead of camphor
for the protection of furs and woollen goods. good deal of red cedar is used in Germany for cigar boxes, and its

beautiful red colour

makes

it

much

appreciated by turners.

90

TIMBER
is

usually got in lengths of about 25 ft. and 15 to the annual rings are fairly close, eight to fifteen to the inch, and in old trees from twenty to thirty,
It

20 inches square

and the medullary rays are small and faint. It comes to the English market under the name of pencil cedar. Weight about 31 Ibs. per cubic foot.
White Cedar, of which there are several varieties, is a timber to the red cedar, but is whitish or light brown in colour, and has not the strong fragrance greyish

similar

of the latter.

The following
trade
:

are white cedars in the

American timber

(Cnpressus lawsoniana), a very large Oregon, yielding a fine, close-grained, yellowish white durable timber, elastic, easily worked, free of knots,
tree
of

Port Orford Cedar

and fragrant, and much used

for panelling

and furniture.
of

the

The Alaska or Yellow Cedar (Cnpressus nootkatensis) same high regions on the west coast is equal to

or

better than the above for inside work.

White Cedar (Capressus

States.

tJtyoides), also

from the western

The Arbor
of

vitas
ft.

20 to 40
is

in height,

or White Cedar (Thuya occidentalis), a tree which grows in the northern

;

appreciated .for sleepers used also for cedars are appreciated for shingles and are shingles more used for this purpose than any other timber in the
States,
(all

much

United States, and white cedar shingles, if of good quality, have a life of forty to fifty years in the northern States), 1
1 Eoof shingles iu America are from 16 to 24 inches long, 6 to 10 inches broad, and taper in thickness from | to 1J inches. In the Alpine districts of Europe they are larger.

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

posts,

91

coopers' work, boats, and building.

This tree apis

preciates

swampy

situations.

The wood

light,

soft,

colour, and bears exposure remarkably well. is abundant in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and It Ontario, where it grows to a considerable height but small diameter, and is the timber chiefly used for telegraph posts.

reddish in

Incense Cedar (Libocedrus decurrens) is another large tree which grows in Oregon and California, producing a fine-

grained wood (Fig. 16).

Idaho Cedar has been largely used in the past for telegraph many districts from which the supplies have

posts, but

hitherto
time.

come

will

be worked out in ten or fifteen years'

arbor

Canoe Cedar or Red Cedar of the West, also called giant vitae (T. gigantea or T. plicata), used by the Indians

for canoes, is another white cedar of the States timber trade and ranks next to Douglas fir as a timber tree in

British Columbia,

and in Vancouver Island

;

it

attains a

great size.

It is found in the Selkirk Hills

ft.

though rarely
considerable

more than 150

shingles.

in
ft.

height,

it

is

of
it

the
is

diameter of 8 to 10

The wood

finishing, as there is It is also a good deal used for fencing and telegraph posts. This tree is in the Vancouver district often confused

chiefly used for takes a fine polish suitable for interior much variety of shading in the colour.

In Canada

with the yellow cypress or yellow cedar (Thuya cxcclsa), a tree of about the same height, but of less diameter, and

which produces timber of a similar character. The cedar woods above described are soft and

stiff,

but

not strong, of fine texture, season rapidly, shrink and warp but little, are very durable, and owing to this quality are, as has been stated, preferred for shingles and much used

92

TIMBEE
The State
of

Washington supplies 69 per cent, United States with the exception of the red or pencil cedar. They are but little known in the timber trade. English These cedars must not be confounded with the furniture cedar of the English market which is the produce of the Cedrda odorata and is of the same species as mahogany.
for sleepers.

of the

total cut in the

Red Gum (Liquidambar

styraciflua),

sometimes called sweet

gum,

is

the timber

known

walnut

one of the

many

in the English market as satin misnomers of the trade.

It is the

most common
to the

of the three species of

gum which

grow and south

Kansas (from Gulf of Mexico) and is the commonest tree in parts of the south. In the best situations it attains a height of 150 ft., with 5 ft. diameter, but this is exceptional the stem is straight and cylindrical, and the timber
States

in the southern

Carolina to

is

exported from the southern ports in logs up to 18 ft. long and 24 inches a side. Much of it grows along swampy land subject to flooding, and great difficulty arises in cutting and getting it to market, the green timber being so

heavy that much of it will not float. About 60 per cent, of the timber, and in some cases as much as 85 per cent, of trees 15 inches in diameter, is sap, whilst in the larger trees
the percentage is less. The sap is a creamy white colour, the heartwood rich reddish brown ; the timber is straight

grain and has but few knots, the heartwood is very durable, the sap quickly decays ; it is not strong enough for
in

The external appearance of the wood is of and smooth, close texture, but when broken the lines of fracture do not run with the apparent direction of the growth possibly it is this unevenness of grain which renders the wood so difficult to dry without twisting. It is a fairly tough wood, about as strong and stiff as chestnut,
structural work.
fine grain
;

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

;

93

does not break short, but has little resilience can be easily bent when steamed, and when properly dried will hold to
its

shape.

The annual rings

fine

are not distinctly

marked,

medullary rays

and numerous.

Weight when well seasoned about 32 Ibs. per cubic foot. The demand for this timber has increased rapidly of late years owing to its being obtained cheaply and in wide boards, and it is largely filling the place of poplar and
cottonwood in the United States.
of the better grades, are exported.

Large quantities, chiefly

great deal is used in the furniture trade of Great Britain for the cheaper class of

bedroom furniture, also for inside fittings, stair newels, etc., and much of it is cut for veneer one American sewing machine company uses 15,000,000 board feet a year, chiefly 3 in the making of tables the wood is built up of three T g inch pieces laid crossways to each other to prevent warping, and
; ;

the top

is

generally finished off with oak or other veneer.

It is also

used forbarrels, and a good deal of the commoner timber for flooring in America, for which use it is found to be fairly satisfactory, as it is not subject to atmospheric

changes in such a position also for

;

coffin

boards, mould-

ings,

It polishes well. The handles, etc. sapwood is chiefly used in the manufacture of packing cases, but some planks of it are said to have come to the English

mop and broom

market recently as " hazel pine."

The
to

chief objection to the timber is its great tendency warp and twist it is almost as bad in this respect as elm,
;

it

but this can be overcome with care and proper handling requires a long time to season, at least twelve months,

though
a bad

this partly
for

name when

was used

size. The timber got England some years ago and paving and proved a failure the same difficulty

depends upon the

it

came

to

to a certain extent

blocks were

first

occurred when the Australian paving put on the market, and has been overcome.

94

TIMBER
is

no doubt that close grain, durability, and power of abrasion, the qualities necessary for good paving blocks, are to be found in the red gum if only the timber can be so seasoned as to prevent warping and twisting. In some tests made by Mr. W. Kendrick Hatt, Ph.D., of the United
There
States Forest Service, joists of 16 ft. span, 4 inches by 8 inches to 6 inches by 8 inches, gave an average fibre stress at elastic limit of 2,608 Ibs., a modulus of rupture of 4,570
Ibs.,

and a modulus
;

inch
inch.

of elasticity of 1,075,000 Ibs. per square the average crushing strength parallel to grain was

2,620

Ibs.

and

at right angles to grain

639

Ibs.

per square

Tupeloe Gum or Tupeloe (Nyssa aquatica), another of the three important gums of the southern United States, is found

over the same district as the red gum, but the chief district from which the supplies come is near Mobile and Southern and Central Louisiana, where the country is very swampy and where the tree during the rainy season stands in from
6 to 20
ft.

of water.

The heartwood

dull brown, the sap,

varies in colour from a dull grey to a which is considerable, is white or

light yellow, like that of poplar, and after seasoning it is difficult to distinguish the better grades of the sapwood from
It is sold in the American market as bay poplar, poplar. as it was substituted for a grade of yellow poplar found

furniture trade

In the which is now getting scarce. is sometimes called Circassian walnut, and some manufacturers call the wood nyssa, a subterfuge near Baltimore
it

again,
is

owing to the feeling against these gums. Tupeloe about the same weight and strength as red gum, but
it is

much
so

tougher, and there is the same difficulty in seasoning, It is cut into boards of one inch thick or less.

used for furniture drawers and backs, for panel work and

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

inside finish, but chiefly for boxes, as
it

95

is light,

strong,

and cheap.

even grain, moderately hard and stiff, not elastic, very tough and hard to split, easily worked, it is also used in but is not durable in contact with ground
It is of fine
;

the States for flooring, laths,

largely

wooden pumps, and turnery,

;

for mouldings, and in Great Britain chiefly for over electric wire fittings great quantities are casings used for this purpose. Great Britain is the best market for tupeloe.

Weight when

Some

of

it

lost

well seasoned about 32 Ibs. per cubic foot. 32 per cent, of its weight by kiln drying

for fifteen

days and shrunk 4^ per cent.

(Nyssa sylcatica)
is

Black

Gum

the other of the southern

States gums, and, though it has a greater range than tupeloe or red gum, nowhere forms an important part of

the forest.

Owing

to its less

abundant supply and the

poorer quality of its timber it is not cut as mill timber, but is used for wagon repairs, cattle yokes, and other

purposes requiring a strong non-splitting wood, also largely

for pulley blocks

and

belt wheels.

Chestnut (Castanea viilgaris) was formerly the

of the total cut,

common over New England States, Pennsylvania supplying 18 per cent,

Tennessee coming next, but the timber is getting so scarce that supplies have been drawn from the Canadian boundary and as far west as Minnesota on the north to the centre of Texas on the south it is one of the chief timbers used in the States for telegraph poles, and
;

something

like 53,000,000 cubic feet are required

annually

for this purpose, also for sleepers and fencing. Chestnut is a long-lived tree attaining an age of 400 to 600 years, but trees over 100 years are usually hollow it grows quickly,
;

and sprouts from a chestnut stump often attain a height

96
of 8

TIMBER

It has a fairly cylindrical stem ft. in the first year. and grows to a height of 100 ft. The wood is light yellow or yellowish brown in colour, the heartwood being readily distinguishable from the lighter coloured sap which very early turns into heartwood, and it hardly ever amounts to 20 per cent, of the volume of the tree works easily, but splits and shrinks a
;

good deal in drying the annual rings are very distinct, medullary rays very minute and not visible to the naked
;

I^M^i&'^M
[.l//cr

Roth.

FIG.

19.

Cross section of Chestnut.

eye (Fig. 19). Coppice chestnut, that is, chestnut grown on old stumps, furnishes better timber for working than chestnut from the nut; it is heavier, less spongy and straighter in grain, easier to split, and stands exposure
longer, but the ends are

inclined

to split after sawing.

Chestnut wood
durable

is flexible

and

elastic,

when

in contact with the

it

soil,

not strong, but very which is due to the

amount

of tannic acid
is

contains.

sapwood, chestnut

of use

Owing to the very thin when ten or twelve years old,

useless.

an age when most hardwoods are

Many

railways

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

refuse

97

sawn chestnut sleepers entirely because their rough surfaces are said to absorb more moisture and to decay
quicker than hewn verting the timber.
ties,

hence there

is

a great waste in con-

Chestnut in Canada (Castanea dentata) is confined to the south-western part of Ontario, and even there it is only .met with in small quantities. It is one of the many woods
used by the turner, and also for marquetry and inlaid work, white holly, box, and pear being some of the others.
Buckeyes or Horse Chestnuts (^Escnlus glabra and d. flava) produce a soft wood of but little value. It is used a good
deal for
it is

wooden ware, and for the making preferred to any other.

of artificial limbs

Spruce grows intermixed with fir in the north-eastern States and the Eocky Mountain region, is found in abundance in Ontario, Canada, and grows from there to the
Pacific.

alba) is used largely wherever pine scarce for floors, joists, doors, sashes, mouldings, and panel work, in fact it is rapidly taking the place of the white pine (P. strobus) for building purposes in Canada,
is its being cheaper, but because it has been found satisfactory for many purposes, and the demand on this timber is also active in the northern United States. In Southern California some species grow to a height of

White Spruce (Picca

not only because of

200

ft.

with a trunk 4

ft.

height of the tree is about to Norway spruce, excels it

in diameter, but the average 70 to 80 ft. It is very similar

in toughness, is rather less durable and dense, and more liable to warp in seasoning. Over 9,000 spruce piles 25 to 40 ft. long were driven in their natural condition as foundation piles for Long Island

City power station a few years ago.

T.

98

TIMBER
Black
Spruce
(Picca nigra)
is

medium-sized

but

important tree in the eastern States chiefly used for the manufacture of pulp, and great quantities of this as well Others of as of white spruce are used for that purpose.
the species are Red spruce (P. rubens), closely allied to the above, Engelmann spruce (P. engelmanni), and Sitka

spruce

or

Tideland spruce

(P.

sitchcnsis),

which grow

plentifully in British Columbia, and the latter particularly is largely used on the west coast for doors, window frames,

and shelving and interior finishing, and is a valuable pulp wood. Spruce is one of the resonance woods and is a good deal used as sounding boards for pianos, violins, etc.
Myrtle or Laurel (Umbellularia californica), a Calif ornian tree, produces timber of light brown colour of great size

and beauty, and

work, as
Cherry
it

is

very valuable for cabinet and inside

takes a fine polish.

is

Canada.
difficult to

found extensively in the western States and The wood is fine grained and of moderate hard-

ness, the colour a beautiful reddish or yellowish brown, not

work, has a satin-like surface when smoothed, and takes a fine polish which somewhat resembles mahogany the pores are small and indistinct, the medullary rays very
;

distinct but fine.

to

The Black Cherry (Prunus

ft.

scrotina), a

tree of 50 especially esteemed and can be high, obtained in wide boards cherry mellows and grows richer in colour with age, the varieties with wavy textures are particularly beautiful the timber is mostly used for cabinet

80

is

work and

The wild furniture, turnery, walking-sticks, etc. cherry of Canada also goes by the name of buckthorn. Stained birch is often used as a substitute for cherry.
There are something the United States and Canada
Oaks.
:

like fifty species of

it is

oak in

the White

Oak (Quercus

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

alba)

99

timber from

generally known as American oak, but the other species is doubtless exported under the same name. The white oak, which is found

which

is

many of

from Canada to California and Florida, is a tree of 60 to 80 ft. high and 4 ft. diameter a good deal comes from which grows in the Lake States, and this northern Quebec, oak is of a better quality than that which comes from
;

further

south.

The wood

is

much

the same colour as

;

European oak, being pale reddish brown, with coarse grain it is sound, hard, and tough, very elastic, does not shrink
much, and can be bent
rings are
distinct,

any form when steamed annual medullary rays very broad and conand the pores are very fine and numerous, spicuous,
to
;

especially in the

summer wood.
so

American oaks, not

strong,

the strongest of compact, or durable as

It
is

English or Dantzic oak, but it has the advantage of greater length and square. It is used in shipbuilding, and in parts

where formerly English oak was used, also in and largely in the furniture and cabinet trades. In the past it has been much used for sleepers on the United States railways. Several oaks go by the name of white oak with different botanical names in different districts. Western white oak (Q. garryand) grows in Vancouver district, and the wood is very like that of
of buildings

wagon

building,

English oak.

Red Oak (Q. rubra) is found over the same regions as the white oak, and is more plentiful it produces a browny coloured wood, spongy in grain, moderately durable, but
;

unfit for work requiring strength. It is used for furniture and cask staves, is inferior in quality to the white oak, but almost as hard and heavy.

Live Oak (Q. virens) grows from Maryland to the Gulf of Mexico and attains a height of 60 ft. and 4 -ft. diameter the
;

H 2

100

TIMBER
is

hard, strong, and durable, but of rather quick growth and makes good mallets. The live oak of Florida is now reserved by the United States Government for navy

wood

purposes.
Iron
or

Post

Oak (Q.

obtusiloba), of

the

eastern and

southern United States, gives timber of great strength but small in size, the tree being seldom more than 14 inches in
diameter.
grain,

The colour
It is

is

and often superior

durability.

much

brownish yellow hue, close in oak in strength and used for posts and fencing.
of a
to the white

Swamp

Post

Oak grows in

the

swampy

districts

of

Carolina and Georgia, and is a larger tree than most of the other oaks, and produces excellent timber, but it grows in districts difficult of access, and is not much used.

Burr Oak (Q. macrocarpa), one of the most valuable and most widely distributed of American oaks, 60 to 80 ft. in height, and, unlike most of the others, adapts itself to very varying climatic conditions the wood is very like that of the white oak, and is classed with it one of the most
; ;

durable of oaks when in contact with

soil.

Rock Oak or Rock Chestnut Oak (Q. Prinus) and White Chestnut Oak are other species producing good timber, but scarcely up to that of white oak.

American oak comes into Great Britain in logs 25 to 40 ft. long and 12 to 24 inches square or over, also in planks 1J to 4 inches thick, and in boards, moulding strips $2 by f and in other forms, and a good deal is imported " In the American timber trade oaks are quartered." divided into two main classes, White and Black, although Bed oak, being the most plentiful, is often referred to. Weight of American oak generally from 44 to 49 Ibs. per
,

cubic foot.

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

Buttonwood
also

101

or

Western

Plane

(Platanus

occidentalis),

known as sycamore, is plentiful along the basins of the Ohio and Lower Mississippi. In Canada it is confined to
South-Wesfcern Ontario.
It is quite a different tree to

the

English sycamore. North America, sometimes attaining a height of 100 ft., it produces timber of yellowish white or reddish brown colour, hard, stiff, strong and tough, often cross grained, difficult
to split,

One

of the largest deciduous trees of

which shrinks and warps a good deal

is

not con-

sidered durable for outside work, although a good deal of and Canada for timber it has been used in the States

quays, and is not much appreciated, though it is sometimes used for internal fittings and cabinet work, also for tobacco

boxes and cooperage. It has broad medullary rays, and much of the timber has a beautiful figure. Some is sent
to the "

English market cut on the quarter under the name The true lacewood," and used for veneer and fretwork.
is

lacewood

the produce of
California.

Daphne lagetta.
is

timber similar

to the western
racem,'.,sa of

buttonwood

obtained from the Platanus

Poplar and Cottonwood, of which there are several varieties, are classed together in the States timber trade. The poplars
are

more numerous

in the northern parts of the States

in the south of Canada.

are several varieties

and which there (Populns monilifora furnishes most of

The cottonwoods,

of

the cottonwood of the market), are found chiefly in the States east and west of the Southern Mississippi. Arkansas,
Missouri, and Louisiana provide three-quarters of the whole supply, which amounted in 1905 to nearly 20,000,000 cubic
feet.

The timber is generally sold as poplar or whitewood, sent to the English market in planks and deals, and is being used by many who have turned to it owing to the
high price of white pine.

The timber

is light,

very

soft, of

102

TIMBER

fine grain, whitish or greyish in colour, often with satin-like

lustre,

some of it cross grained, shrinks in drying but is not very liable to split, is easily worked, but not durable. Cottonwood is looked upon as a soft timber of fair quality,
and in common with the poplar has a large output.

The Aspen (P. trenndoides) is one of the most widely distributed Canadian trees. The wood is light and easily worked. It is used for wooden ware, light barrels for
sugar and
for pulp.
flour,

and

for furniture in Canada, but chiefly

as aspen,

Balsam Poplar (P. balsamifera) has much the same range and grows to a great height and considerable

diameter in Canada.
(Liriodendron tulipifera), better known as Canary wood, or canary whitewood, is also called a poplar
Tulip

Tree

yellow poplar and is shipped in large quantities to Great Britain, chiefly in planks of various thicknesses, which can be got up to 27 inches wide. It somewhat resembles satinwodd on the first glance, but the dark
streaks on the yellow ground
soft

show the

difference.

It is

and

of fine texture, stiff but not strong

nor suitable for

outdoor work, shrinks considerably but seasons without much injury, is easily worked, stands very well, bends
It takes stain and paint well. is used for furniture, table tops, car and ship building, panelling, and also for fretwork and by the carver and toy-

readily

when steamed, and

maker. It is a large tree of 100 and considerable diameter, and basin and southward to Florida.

ft.

is

and upwards in height quite common in Ohio

Weight 30

to

38

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Canadian and American Ash are of

many

varieties,

and

are imported into Great Britain, chiefly for

making

carriage

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

103

shafts, in short round pieces of small diameter, but it also comes in square logs up to 18 inches a side and cut timber A good deal is used for 7 to 20 inches wide, 2 to 3J thick. furniture and tram and carriage framing also for barrels,
;

baskets, oars, tool handles, etc.

Amongst the

varieties

are

American or White Ash (Fraxinus americana), found in Canada, becomes scarce south of New Jersey. It is of a
very light brown colour, tough, and the best material for oars.
distinct.
elastic, straight in grain,

Slower in growth than

English ash, the annual rings are

much

closer, yet

very

Second growth wood

,

is

preferred.
to,

Eed Ash (F. pubcncemi) smaller than, white ash.

a timber very similar

but

Black Ash (F. sanibucifolia) is more widely distributed in Canada than the white ash the wood is not so hard, but is well suited for cooperage work and basket-making. It is darker in colour than white ash, and is used for the same
;

purposes.

viridis), Carolina

Ohio (F. quadrangulata) Green Ash (F. Ash (F. caroliniand) are chiefly found in the southern United States. Canadian ash in the log is now nearly a thing of the past, the round wood from the States having nearly dis,

Blue Ash of

it, although quite recently a good number of square American logs of Quebec ash were landed in England.

placed

and Canadian ash is generally of light brownish tint, similar in character and used for similar purposes to the common
ash of Europe, but it is lighter in weight. Some of it is In ash the medullary rays are scarcely distinquartered. the pores are very fine and scattered in broken guishable, American ash forms lines, and annual rings are distinct.

101

TIMBER
the larger proportion of the ash used in the trade
Ibs.

much

in Great Britain.

Weight about 38

per cubic foot.

Birch grows plentifully in the Alleghanies and the Lake It is regions, west of Virginia, and also in Canada.

imported largely from Quebec and other Canadian ports in logs of short lengths up to 17 ft. and in planks up to 26 inches wide it makes excellent furniture, shrinks a good deal in drying, and is not durable when exposed.
;

Red or Cherry Birch (Betula lento), a wood of beautiful reddish or yellowish brown and much of it nicely figured, is straight in grain, hard and durable, takes a fine polish,

and is largely used for furniture and cabinet work, for which purpose it is sometimes stained to imitate mahogany, and this is not easily detected if well done.
Yellow Birch (B. luted), of Nova Scotia and south to is a large tree the timber of which is firm and
It is

Tennessee,

fine grained, of light

and strong.

brownish yellow colour, hard, tough, used for cabinet work, wheel hubs, and in

shipbuilding.

White Birch (B. papyri/era], a small tree, the timber of which is very like the English common birch, is the principal timber used for spools, bobbins, bowls, shoe lasts, and
pegs.
It is also

much used

in the furniture trade.

great quantity of birch is used in America for chairmaking, and some for floors, interior finishings and turnery,
as well as for furniture.

very

fine

The medullary rays in birch are and close and not easily seen, the pores are
American birch was imported which was in

noticeable as grey specks. Over 1,500,000 cubic feet of

into the

Mersey

in 1906, about two-thirds of

planks.

Weight about 44

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

TIMBER OP THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

Beech

1<>5

(Fagus ferruginea), of which there are several varieties, is found in great quantity hoth in Canada and
the States, where
Mississippi basin.
it is

most abundant

in the

Ohio and the

Lumber men distinguish them as red and white beech and say that the former is harder, with a redder and thicker heartwood. The red beech, which in some places forms The wood of extensive forests, is the most esteemed. American beech is used for the same purposes as English beech it is hard, heavy, stiff and strong, coarse in texture, can be easily split, and is rather liable to warp like the English beech, the American timber has broad and numerous medullary rays, very small and almost indistinct pores, and when cut on the quarter it is very beautiful. It is chiefly
; ;

used for tool handles, carpenters' planes, shoe

lasts, mallets,

chair-making and furniture trades. The larger quantity of beech used in Great Britain comes from America, although there is probably more English-grown beech used than any other class of native

and

to a certain extent in the

timber.

Rock Elm or Cork Elm (Ulmus racemosa), a timber which

has largely taken the place of English elm although it is not so good, grows in Quebec and as far south as Kentucky,
but the supplies come chiefly from Ontario.
It is

a clean,

straight timber, sometimes cross grained, very uniform in texture, and can be had in roughly- squared logs 35 to 40 ft. long and 10 to 15 inches square whitey brown in colour, hard, tough and flexible, fairly free from knots, it has
;

only a small quantity of sapwood

split.

generally difficult to

It is

a tree of rapid growth.

The White Elm (U. americana)

to

is

a noble tree

of

80

100

ft.

in height.

Other varieties are the Cedar

Elm

106

TIMBER
Winged Elm
(U. alata], and'

(U. crassifolia),

Bed Elm

or

slippery elm (U.fulca), with chiefly along river beds.

wood

of a reddish tinge,

found

The three The wood

elm,

latter are small trees.

of the

is liable to

twist

American elms, like that of the English and split, especially if used in thin
;

scantlings, and should be kept in water or under cover until required for use there is a good deal of wane on the

edges and sometimes a twist in the imported logs, and to get a 12 X 12 timber it may be necessary to saw down a the thin slabs cut log of about 13^ or 14 inches square
;

off

coming handy The best logs are of uniform colour. Bock elm is used for fenders on quays and for the fenders, handrails, and keels
of

in

for repairs to boats, or similar work.

ships,

arid

elm generally

for cooperage, saddlery

and
cut

harness work, agricultural implements, and largely for

furniture, as the

handsome

figure produced

when elm

is

tangentially

is

much

admired.

Elm

is

also a

good deal

used by wheelwrights the hubs of the wheels in the " deacon's "one horse shay were made of " settlers' ellum," " " last of its timber, it is sometimes they couldn't sell 'em used for piling, where driving is difficult, but is too costly
;

to

be

much
lines.

used for that purpose.

The medullary rays

;

and pores

of

summer wood

are fine

the

pores are in
to

wavy Weight about the same

cubic foot.

as English elm,

up

50

Ibs.

per

Orham Wood, which is used in the English shopfitting trade and a good deal for church seats, is a species of elm with coarse and open grain, of light brown colour, which comes from Canada. Orme is the French for elm, hence doubtless the corruption of the word into orham.
It

works up

to a nice

smooth

surface.

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

Sequoia or Californian Red
S.

107

Wood

icashiiKjtoniana)

is

only found

(Sequoia semperuirem and on a narrow strip of

coast line, ten to thirty miles wide, extending from the southern boundary of Oregon to Monterey Bay. S. semper-

[Vy permission of U.

S. Dept. of Agriculture.

FIG. 20.

Redwood Forest

(Sequoia eempervirens)

The man standing at foot of tree enables one to judge the size of some of this timber.
In this place 85 per cent, of the forest is Redwood, and the average diameter of the Redwood trees at breast
hig-h is 7
ft.

rirens
tree

grows to a greater height than any other American " and is only exceeded in girth by the " big tree of the allied species. Et sometimes reaches 350 ft. with an unbranched trunk for 100 ft. from the ground (Fig. 20). The timber in quality and uses is somewhat like white

108

TIMBKR
;

varies a good deal, sometimes soft and grained,

it

cedar

is

sometimes
not

brittle

and cross

fine grained,
split,

durable

rather liable

to

but always very generally used for

carpentry work in Great Britain, though sometimes for drawer linings and a good deal for shop signs, etc. will not take polish. It comes from San Francisco and neighbourhood, where it is one of the chief building timbers, in conjunction with yellow and sugar pine, and is also
;

used

largely there for panelling as a plastered walls, and largely for shingles
;

substitute
it

for

comes

to the

English market generally in planks of two inches thick and upwards, but, although practically free from sap and
it is not much appreciated there. a bright, clear red, sometimes reddish yellow, turning darker on exposure, and with thin, nearly white

not liable to twist or warp,

The colour

is

sapwood. The wood is very light, when well dried, weighing only about 18 Ibs. per cubic foot. This tree is rapidly being converted into lumber about 35,000,000 cubic feet were cut
;

in 1905.

The

so-called

"big trees"
scattered

of California, formerly called

Wellingtonias, in small groves

Sierra

now

called Sequoia ivasltinytoniana, are found

along the west

slope

of

the

Nevada mountains, amongst the yellow and sugar and Douglas fir and the allied species, S. sempervirens, pine " from the middle fork of the American river to the head of Deer Creek, a distance of 260 miles." The utmost search only reveals ten groups, and the total number of these
remarkable trees does not exceed 500. They are, however, unique, the grandest, oldest, and most massive stemmed
not quite the tallest in the world. These two Sequoia species are the only remains of the genus of big trees which flourished in the temperate zone of three continents
before the glacial epoch, when the great ice wave came down from the north, and one after another the luxuriant

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

109

vegetations of the world gave way before it, their remains being buried. When the ice receded, just two species, the

[Ily

permission of U.

S. Dept.

of Agriculture.

FIG.

21.

Fire-scarred

Washingtoniana) on right.
diameter.

medium-sized "Big Tree" (Sequoia The Sugar Pine on left is 8 ft. in

redwood and the big tree, survived, occupying a small area of high land in the west, where they just manage to hold their own and do not increase. The " big tree " is nowhere found

110

TIMBER

much below

5,000 ft. nor much more than 10,000 ft. above sea level (Fig. 21). These trees are thus interesting from a scientific point
of view, being the last living representatives of a

former

geological age.

Redwood
affected

one of the few trees which are but little by fungus, thus lasting well for outdoor work or
is

sleepers.
felled

Some
still

of the oldest

specimens

of

"

big trees

"

were

sound

at the heart of

when

cut up.

the Sequoia washing to ni ana is about 275 ft., and the trunk diameter near the ground 20 ft., although individual trees from 300 to 320ft. are not
rare.

The average height

After centuries the tapering stem drops the slender, gracefully curving, branches, and the trunk, which is much enlarged and buttressed at the base, becomes naked for 100 to 150ft.; in very old trees the bark is as much as

ft.

thick.

Mr. John Muir measured one in King's River Forest 25 ft. in diameter at the ground and 10 ft. in diameter 200 ft. above, and one can ride erect on horseback through " the Father of the forest," whose trunk lies on the ground and whose heart has been eaten out by fire, for a distance of 82 ft. it is 10 ft. in diameter at 150 ft. from the base, and can still be measured for a length of 365 ft. There is a cross section of one of these trees in the American
;

Museum of Natural History, New York, 16 ft. 2 inches diameter inside the bark, which in places is nearly a foot thick, and if the annual rings are an indication of age it
was over 1,500 years
another
in
old.

There

is

a cross section of

the

ft. sington, 16 from a tree 276

History Museum, South Kendiameter cut at 18 ft. above the ground

Natural
ft.

high.

For interesting

details of these

trees see J. D. "

Hutchins's

" Yosemite Guide Book," J. M. Whitney's In the Heart of the Sierras," John Muir's

TIMBER OF THE UNITED. STATES AND CANADA

"

111

Mountains

of California,"

and other books dealing with

that region.
of these big the greater portion are on reserves, private lands and will doubtless soon disappear. Dealing with the trunks is difficult owing to their great size much

The United States Government have some

in their

trees

but

broken up in falling, and the remainder often with gunpowder, causing probably 50 per cent, waste on the timber it is used locally for grape vines, fencing,
of the tree is
;

Both the Sequoia species are cypress (Taxodium distichum).

shingles, etc.

allied to the

Maple, of which there are many varieties, grows freely in parts of the northern hemisphere, and is particularly luxuriant in Canada and the northern portions of the

One of the most delightful sights in these regions in the autumn is the rich crimson hues of the " " is a national Canadian maple trees. The maple leaf
United States.

emblem.

The
is

white wood

Striped Maple (A. pennsylvanicum) produces a very much used for inlaying and cabinet work. It

only a small tree.

The Black Maple (A. nig rum), Silver Leaved Maple, Red Maple (A. nibrum), and the Broad Leaved Maple or Oregon Maple (A. macropliyllon} form extensive forests and produce a light, soft, but not valuable wood.
Eock Maple (A. saccharum) is specially esteemed it grows abundantly in Canada, and the United States bordering the Great Lakes, to a height of 60 to 80 ft. and 2 ft. in diameter the wood is close grained, heavy, fairly hard and strong, the colour light yellowish red or brownish white it can be worked to a satin-like
or
;

The Sugar

112

TIMBER

surface and takes a fine polish, it is not durable if exposed, and requires a good deal of seasoning. Medullary rays

small but distinct.

The curly

or

wavy

varieties furnish

of the " " called bird's eye much sought after and being grain used as veneer. Maple is extensively used in all good classes of furniture, cabinet-making, panelling, interior of
fittings,
it is

wood

much

beauty, the peculiar

contortions

and turning

it

is

not liable to warp.

Much

of

now used

for the floors of mills

it

and workrooms in

Great Britain, where

stands the constant friction

much

better than pine timber, either as planks or blocks ; also for picture frames, Tunbridge ware, and the backs, necks,

and

sides of violins.

for fence posts, shingles, pails,

is

employed in America and railway sleepers. Maple imported in planks worked on the
It is largely

underside (see Fig. 22), in widths of 4 inches and upwards, and it is holed
FIG. 22.

for

secret

nailing

it

logs, blocks for

rails,

also "

comes

in "

flooring,

quartered

and in large quantities as rollers for wringing and mangling machines, for which there is a great demand. A good deal of sugar is extracted from the sugar maple, and one tree will yield from 5 to 10 Ibs. of sugar per season. The peculiarity known as " bird's eye," and which causes a difficulty in working the wood smooth,
owing
to be
to

due

to the little pieces like knots lifting up, is supposed to the action of boring insects. Its resistance
is

compression across the grain

"Weight about 49
Ibs.

higher than that of

most American timbers.

per cubic foot.

Walnut (Juglans nigra) or Black Walnut, a large, beautiful, and quick-growing tree, about 60 ft. and upwards in height, is found in most parts of the United States as far south as

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

the Gulf of Mexico, and also in Canada, but
getting very scarce.
It is heavier,
it

113

is

now

stronger, and more durable than the walnut of Europe, is easily worked, and takes a fine polish. Extensively used for gun stocks and stair newels, cabinet work, doors and window frames, it is dados, veneer, etc. tougher than mahogany and durable, and is commonly called American brown very walnut. The heart is of a dark brown or chocolate colour, sometimes almost black aged trees of fine quality fetch fancy prices, the wood sometimes possessing a figure someIt comes to the English what similar to mahogany. market in logs up to 24ft. long and 24 inches square, but most of it comes in planks f inch thick and upwards. Probably more American walnut is used than any other kind, and some of the best cornes from Indiana.
; ;

The Butternut (J. cinera), often called white walnut, is a smaller tree, only about 50 ft. in height and a foot in diameter. The wood is much lighter in colour, not so
heavy or strong as the black walnut, but has something of the same grain and when stained it is a very good imitation it works smoothly, takes a good finish, is much used for
;

very durable. Annual rings in walnut narrow and light in colour. distinct, sapwood Weight about 38 Ibs. per cubic foot.
inside work,

and

is

Basswood (Tilia americana), the American linden or lime, grows in the Atlantic States and abundantly in the province of Ontario, Canada. The wood is white or yellowish white,

even grain, fine texture, stiff but not strong. much used for cabinet work, carriage panels, carving and wooden ware. It shrinks a good deal in drying, but works and stands well in interior work. A good quantity is sent to Great Britain in the shape of boards and used for
of light weight,
It is

the cheaper class of furniture.

T.

Sometimes

it is

cut spirally
i

114

TIMBEE
;

round the

log, making very wide, thin boards it is largely " cut as veneer and used as " three ply for boxes and chair

seats, it is also

organs. for outside work.

Cypress, of

If well

used for sounding boards in pianos and seasoned and painted it stands fairly well

which there are several

varieties, the

bald

cypress, white, black, and red cypress, yields timber similar in character, appearance, and uses to white cedar. The

cypress

is

a large deciduous tree, inhabiting

swampy lands,

and along rivers and coasts of the southern parts of the United States grows to a height of 150 ft. and 12 ft. in diameter, and produces a wood of beautiful figure and
It is very durable colouring, yellowish or yellowish brown. in most situations, as it is very little subject to fungi, light, It is used for doors, grained, and easily worked. roof shingles, cabinet work, boat-building, etc., and takes a fine polish.
soft, close

The Red or Louisiana Cypress (Taxodium distichum), the timber of which at the present time is being placed upon the English market, is generally known as the bald or swamp
cypress and is allied to the Sequoia species (redwood). It is much used for tanks, vats, and tubs in New Orleans
;

90,000 fresh water cisterns are said to be

made

of this

wood, and

purpose gives great satisfaction, and has a long life. It can be got in fair lengths and widths the annual rings are very close. The timber is of fine uniform texture, soft, light, straight in grain and easily
for this
it
;

worked, but requires careful seasoning it is very durable in exposed situations, used a good deal in America for conservatories and greenhouses, and by the Navy Depart;

ment

for boats.

good deal
in

struction

of cypress has been used for railway conthe southern States. The red and black

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

varieties are excellent

115

and durable timber

some consider

the black cypress the better wood.

A good many fine specimens of this swamp cypress, which grows best where the roots are always in contact with water, are to be found in Great Britain growing to a The timber is said to last well in height of 100 ft.
fencing, but

we have not had much experience

of

it.

Persimmon, the Virginian date plum (Diospyros virginiana), tree of 30 to 50 ft. high and 18 to 20 inches in

is noted chiefly for its fruit, but it produces a hard and elastic timber of considerable value, some of very which comes in small pieces into the English market. The colour of the wood is brown, sometimes almost black, with

diameter,

rather broad, cream coloured sap, very close grained, tough

and strong, but

liable to split.

It is

used in turnery and

especially the black or largely as a substitute for box and a good deal in shuttles for weaving purposes, shoe lasts, etc. It does best in the lower Ohio

now

Mexican variety

The tree is valley, but is found from New York to Texas. also found in various parts of the world, including Japan.
fine.

The annual rings are distinct, and medullary rays very It somewhat resembles hickory, but is of finer

texture.

States

Locust or False Acacia grows extensively in the southern arid also in Canada, and produces a timber of

greenish yellow colour with reddish or brown markings.

It is

some
good

very durable, heavy, fairly hard and tough, rivalling of the best oak in this latter quality, makes good

treenails

and durable fencing posts and door

used for fretwork.

deal

torsional strength, excelling this respect. There are several varieties.

sills, and is a The timber has great most of the soft woods in

116

TIMBER
,

also called yellow coarse in texture, durable in contact with locust, tough, the yellowish soil, and shrinks a good deal in seasoning sapwood is very narrow, the heartwood is brownish with
is
;

The Black Locust (Eobinia pseudacacia)

shades of red and green. Used in America for wagon hubs, treenails, railway ties, posts, etc., and abroad for furniture, it is one of the best woods for insulator pins on
telegraph posts, but
it is

getting scarce.

The Honey Locust (Gleditschia triacanthos) is a somewhat similar wood, but so far is not much used, except for
fencing and fuel.

Some
logs

is

known

in the trade as

brown

locust

and sold

in

by weight.

Great numbers of locust trees were planted in England

many years ago, chiefly owing to the praise given them by William Cobbett. Locust also grows in Australia, but must not be confounded with the locust of the tropics (Hymenaia courbaril).
The
tree is very subject to damage by a boring insect. Weight of wood 42 to 48 Ibs. per cubic feet.

Osage Orange or Bois d'Arc

(Madura

aurantiaca), a tree

found in Texas and Louisiana, produces a very hard, heavy wood of brown colour which turns grey on exposure, strong, tough and flexible, of coarse texture which shrinks a good deal in drying, and is very durable. It is much used
in the United States for

and
it is

for the

latter

wagon framing and motor wheels, has been used in Europe it is easily
; ;

split, so is unfit for

hubs, but it is very suitable for spokes considered to be one of the timbers likely to supply the

place of black locust for insulator pins on telegraph poles.

Dogwood (Cornus florida), or American box, grows both in the States and Canada, and attains a height of about

TIMBER OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

30
ft.

117

and about 12 inches diameter.

The heartwood

is

red or pinkish colour, the sapwood, which is considerable, the wood has a dull surface and very is a creamy white
;

fine grain.

valuable for turnery, tool handles, and mallets, and being so free from silex, watchmakers use small splinters of it for cleaning out the pivot holes of
It
is

watches, and opticians for removing dust from deepseated It is also used for butchers' skewers, and shuttle lenses.
blocks,

and

is

Indian dogwood

suitable for turnery and inlaying. is quite a different tree.

The West

The Hardy Catalpa (Catalpa speciosa) is a tree which the Americans commenced planting about 25 years ago as a commercial speculation in Iowa, Kansas, and Nebraska. Its native habitat was along the rivers Ohio and Lower Wabash, and a century ago it gained a reputation for rapid growth and durability, but did not grow in large quantities. As a railway tie experiments have left no doubt as to its
resistance to decay
;

it

stands abrasion as well as the white

oak and

superior to it in longevity. Catalpa is a tree " free from destructive diseases. Wood after singularly cut from the living tree is one of the most durable being
is

timbers known.
resists the

In spite of

its

light

porous structure

it

weathering influences and the attacks of wood destroying fungi to a remarkable degree ... no fungus has for yet been found which will grow in the dead timber
.

fence posts this

wood has no equal

will serve as tele-

than almost any class of timber The (United States Bureau of Forestry Bulletin, No. 37). wood is rather soft and coarse in texture, the tree is of slow growth, and the brown coloured heartwood even of very young trees forms nearly three-quarters of their volume. There is only about \ inch of sap in a 9-inch tree.

"

graph

poles, lasting longer

Annual rings are

distinctly

marked.

118

TIMBEE
TESTS OF AMEEICAN TIMBEE
Carried out by the United States Department of Agriculture.

EESULTS or TESTS IN COMPRESSION ENDWISE.

(Pounds per square inch.)

TIMIJUll

OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA

119

RESULTS OF TESTS IN BENDING AT RUPTURE.

(Pounds per square inch.)

120

TIMBER

BESULTS OF TESTS IN COMPRESSION ACROSS GRAIN, AND SHEARING

WITH GRAIN.
(Pounds per square inch.)

Species.

CHAPTER V
TIMBERS OF SOUTH AMERICA, CENTRAL AMERICA, AND WEST INDIA ISLANDS

BRITISH GUIANA.
Greenheart
heart
Bullet Tree Mora Towaronero Wallaba PurpleSuradanni Cirouaballi Houbooballi Crabwood Ducalliballi Simarupa Cedar Locust Kakaralli Waibaima

Letterwood

Lignum

Vitse

Hackia

Souari-pikea.
is

Greenheart (Nectandra rodiei), which

for all classes of

so highly prized

submerged work, such as timber wharves, dock gates, etc., and for heavy constructional work, piers, comes from British Guiana. It is generally known as DemaIt grows in belts, and a large quantity rara greenheart.
of small timber
logs.
It is

has to be cut in order to obtain large-sized imported chiefly in hewn logs some may be got
;

65 ft. long, and occasionally larger, but it is not nearly so easy now as formerly to obtain timber of this size, as it is necessary to

16 inches a side in the centre

and

seek

it

much

further in the forests, where communication

is

difficult

of getting very primitive. In a cargo a short time ago of between 300 and 400 logs, the inspected author could not get an average of 14 inches square for about

and the ways

120 logs which he required from 45 up to 65 ft. long they The dimensions varied from about 11J up to 16 inches.
;

given are at the centre of the log, as greenheart, being a

hewn timber, tapers a good deal there is often of wane on the edges, and sometimes the logs
;

a good deal

are bent or

122

TIMBEE
The
"

twisted. "

butt

end

is

tapered

off,

what

is

called

a sniped," for about 3 ft., a hole is bored sledged or bolt fixed in it (see Fig. 23), few inches deep, and an iron

"

by which means the logs are hauled by natives to the rivers, then slung on each side of flat boats, as greenheart will not float, and taken down to the shipping ports at Berbice, Georgetown, and other places, possibly 150 miles distant from where the trees were felled. There are sawmills at these ports, and an effort is being made to develop a trade in sawn greenheart logs, as well as in planks of 1^ inch the former look very nice about thickness and upwards 12 inches square and quite straight, the ends banded with
;

iron

hoops and painted

to

prevent their splitting

they

FIG.

23.

cannot, however, be obtained in longer lengths than from 30 to 35 ft.

One

of the

weak points

of greenheart is its

tendency

to

split for two or three feet at the ends, hence the timber should, if possible, be kept in water or mud until required

for use

it

is

withdrawn

for shipment.

thus kept at the British Guiana ports until Great care has to be exercised in

putting the timber through the sawmill or in cross cutting " it, as it is liable to fly"; the safest plan is to slab the sides
before proceeding to convert it then there is not nearly and large timbers so much risk of the timber splitting should be kept under cover when being worked and dressed.
It
is

of great compressive

and

of the strongest

timbers known, and

tensile strength, being one is placed next to teak

TIMBERS OP BEITISH GUIANA

123

in Lloyd's List for shipbuilding timbers. When freshly cut and for some time after, the wood has a peculiar sour smell,

somewhat

like the smell of a

like cheese.

The colour
to

is

brewery, or as some would say a yellowish green, the older

;

timber being of a darker colour

is

the sapwood is lighter and compared many other kinds of timber, is often difficult to determine, but is not considered so deleIn the sawn logs the sapterious as sapwood generally is.
excessive

wood
is

is

of course

much minimised, and although

it is

the price

50 per cent, more, probably quite as economical if only short lengths are required, because one gets the exact scantling wanted, whereas in the hewn logs larger sizes

have
to

to

be

bought

to

enable

them
rings,

be cut down.

The annual

which near the heart are often regular, afterwards spread out on one or both sides and running into one another give a darker shade to the wood and become indistinct. The pores are very distinct. This wood burns readily, and

by the natives torchwood." Sometimes there are flaws in the timber which are only noticeable when cut up, and it is also subject to a characteristic flaw across the heart (see Fig. 24), but which does not open wider and does not affect large scantlings it is remarkably free from knots, and clean and straight in the grain. Greenheart sometimes gives way suddenly when the
is

called

"

ultimate breaking stress is attained with but little indication beforehand. Care should be exercised in working it owing
to the

poisonous character of the wood splinters are very dangerous if they get into the hand, and there has been more than one death recorded due to this. The wood is
;

much
his

prized by fishermen for rods.

fly

book on

Edward Grey, in throws a better line fishing, says, "Nothing

Sir

124

TIMBER
is

or

more pleasant

to

use

one disadvantage, that of cane."

than greenheart, but it has being more brittle than split

The greenheart which comes from British Guiana is more appreciated than that which grows in Dutch Guiana, even on the Continent, where a large quantity of the latter
is

imported.

generally given as from 60 to 70 Ibs. per Two good samples, the cross sections of large cubic foot. about 71 Ibs. logs, weighed by the author, gave

The weight

is

Greenheart withstands the attack of the teredo better than most wood many engineers consider that it is only the sapwood which is attacked and that the worm only
;

in Bombay goes a couple of inches into the log. Even where the teredo is particularly voracious, greenwaters, heart dock gates stood without serious damage for nearly

ten years and then only required slight repair ; pine timber would be destroyed there in a few months, and

The attack of the sea worm on greenteak in a few years. heart, that of the limnoria especially, is very slow in
Great Britain
fectly
;

unprotected greenheart piles

stand per-

sound after being in a situation for over twenty years, where unprotected pine timber would have been destroyed in half the time. The most decisive evidence that greenheart piles are not proof against the teredo has

come

to the writer's notice

lately.

large pier in the

Mediterranean, with the construction of which he was associated, was built of this timber twenty years ago, and
is

so seriously damaged replaced with ferro-concrete.

is

now

by the worm that

This
is

it is

being

the teredo

particularly

in a locality where destructive. The greenheart

decking which was on this pier is in such good condition after twenty years' exposure that it is intended to replace it on top of the new concrete piles. Greenheart is a timber

TIMBERS OF BRITISH GUIANA

which has not altered materially in price
twenty-five years.
for the

125

last

Mora (Dimorphandrd mora or inora

excelsa),

of

which

there are three kinds, comes from the same neighbourhood It has heen as greenheart and also from Trinidad.
referred to as a poor quality of greenheart, but there can be no mistaking the two timbers, as mora is of a chestnut

brown colour, exceedingly hard, heavy, tough and and generally straight in the grain it is much used colony for boat-building and railway sleepers.
;

close,

in the

Although classed with greenheart in Lloyd's List, it is not such a good timber, but when free from sap it is very durable both in and out of water. It is not much imported
into Great Britain, although long lengths can be obtained, as it is the loftiest tree found in British Guiana, sometimes

attaining

height

of

nearly 200

ft.

Makes

excellent

sleepers, and to judge from samples it would probably make good street paving. It has stood a crushing stress of 5'33 tons per square inch.

Weight per cubic

foot about 65 Ibs.

Mora telegraph poles were inspected by Mr. C. C. F. Monckton after being placed in dense tropical vegetation
for ten years

and were found quite sound, but where young sappy wood had been used the poles rotted in less than a
vol. 39).

year (Jour, of Proc. Inst. Elec. Eng.,

The

Bullet Tree or Balata

ft.

(Mimusops balata or M.

ylobosa),

a tree of 120

in height, produces a tough, durable timber of dark red colour found in British Guiana and most of the

West India

Islands. It is used for much the same puras greenheart, saws easily, and takes a poses good polish. It is also an excellent wood for turning, most durable when
free

from

sap,

warps a good deal in seasoning, and cracks

126

TIMBER
to the sun.

when exposed
and
stored.

The ants only

off

this should be

stripped

attack the bark, the logs before they are

There are three varieties of this timber, red, and black, but the red is considered the best. Logs white, up to 50 ft. in length and 2 to 3 f-t. square can be
obtained.

From

this

tree is extracted

process the well-known Balata,

facture of

much

by the bleeding used in the manuis

machinery
it

belting,

and an extensive trade

The bleeding process affects colony. It is a the colour and texture of the wood for a while.
done with
similar
in the
of

wood in texture, weight, and colour to the Melkhout South Africa. There is another timber called balata found in French Guiana, of a yellowish colour, hard, heavy, and strong, very suitable for furniture.
Weight about 65
Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Towaronero or Bastard Bullet Tree (Humirium floribundum) produces timber with dense close grain and a resemblance to that of the bullet tree, and by some is considered superior
to greenheart

where small timber

is

required.

Logs 90

ft.

long and 20 inches square can be got free of sap.

Wallafca (Eperna falcata) is a dark red wood saturated with a sticky resin, much used for house frames, roof stands exposure well in all shingles, posts, and palings
;

It has been used largely of late years for telegraph and electrical poles in Barbados and Trinidad. May be had in 40 ft. long and 12 to 18 inches square. logs Weight about 65 Ibs. per cubic foot.

conditions, but

is

subject to attack by white ants.

Purple-heart

(Copaifcra bracteata)

is

one

of

the

tall

forest trees of British Guiana.

The wood
;

is of

a purple

colour on

all

cut and exposed faces

it

hard, durable, close

grained, and very tough,

makes handsome furniture and

TIMBERS OF BRITISH GUIANA

is

'

127

excellent for house framing,

for guns.
It

and

also used for

making

ramrods

planes fast
is

good polish.
for ordinary

The sapwood
wood-turning
of

and well and takes a a dirty white. It is too hard

It is

mora

or bullet tree.

not so plentiful as The Indians use the bark for making

tools.

wood-skin canoes
itself.

considerable

size,

fifteen or sixteen people,

It

and

"

"

dug-outs

accommodating from the tree

Some

would probably make satisfactory street paving. purple-heart veneer is used in the cabinet trade.
of

The purple-heart

Trinidad (Peltoyyne paniculatd)

is

small tree producing timber of the same colour as, or rather a browner tint than, that of Guiana, and is probably one of the woods known as " Zapateri." Pao Eoxo or

Guarubu,

of

Brazil

(P.

macrocarpus)

(which

see),

is

similar timber.

Weight about 61

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Houbooballi (Mimosa guianensis), a beautiful wood of light brown colour variegated with vertical veins of black and

brown, grows plentifully in the Essequibo forests of It makes handsome furniture and panelling, Guiana. and in bottoms of boats will outlast most others. The

sapwood is about an inch thick, white and clearly defined. Saws easily and well, turns well, and takes an excellent polish, and is altogether an excellent material to deal with. It can be obtained in logs up to 50 ft. long and 20 inches " " It is probable that the Zebra wood used for square.
furniture

the produce of this amongst other trees. Weight about 56 Ibs. per cubic foot.
is

Crabwood (Carapa guianensis) is another of the excellent timbers from this part of the world. The wood is reddish
brown,

much resembling mahogany,

turns well, and makes durable furniture

takes a fine polish, an excellent wood

;

128

TIMBER
it is

for flooring boards or partitions,

also used for

masts

and spars. from 30 to 50

It is usually supplied in the colony in logs of

ft.

long and 12 to 18 inches square. The tree grows to a height of 120 ft. and 2 to 3 ft. diameter. Weight about 39 Ibs. per cubic foot.

Suradanni (Meliacefs cedrela), a dark red coloured wood with black streaks which takes a fine polish, used for

making dug-out canoes, planking of boats, wheelwright work, and furniture. A hard substance in the wood, something like the mineral found in teak, rapidly dulls cutting
tools.

Weight about 53
Cirouaballi

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

(Nectandra sp.), of which there are two brown and yellow silverballi and siruaballi is another of the many hardwoods of British Guiana, and can be got in very long lengths up to 80 ft. and 16 to 30 inches square. It is used for the planking of boats and vessels, masts and booms, is insect resisting, works and turns well, and takes good polish.
varieties,

Weight about 49

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Simarupa (Picrcena
is called

officinalis),

which grows in Northern

West India Islands, Maruba and Acajou blanc in Guadaloupe. It is a most useful wood for partitions and other inside work, resists the attacks of wood ants and other insects, but will
Brazil as well as in Guiana and the

weather the colour is a light saws and planes well, takes good polish, and is yellow cheap and plentiful in Guiana and may be had in logs up to 2 ft. square. It is a similar timber to, and scarcely
;

not stand exposure to

;

it

distinguishable from, the very bitter quassia or Bitterwood (P. excelsa) from which the so-called bitter cups are made.

Weight about 30

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

TIMBERS OF BRITISH GUIANA

129

Guiana.

Cedar (Idea altissimd) is also found in British and French A reddish brown wood, most serviceable and

not so plentiful as the variety known as white cedar, which is very durable in the ground as foundation timber.
is

valuable for cabinet-making, which long lengths up to 2 ft. square. It

may

be

obtained in

Locust (Hyniemea courbaril)

the river forests of Guiana
;

is
it

abundant in some parts

is

of

also

common

in

the

West India Islands, and yields, by tapping, the gum animi of commerce which is largely used in the manufacture of varnish. The wood is heavy, of a streaky brown colour somewhat resembling mahogany, but harder the
;

sapwood

is

a dirty white and often 4 inches wide

it

is

and tough, saws and planes readily, and is much stronger than English oak in all ways. It is used for furniture, mill engine beds, makes good treenails for timber quays, and is not liable to shrink or warp. The Indians make wood-skin canoes from the bark. To be
close grained

obtained in large logs up to 18 inches square. Variable weights are given, from 33 to 59 Ibs.per cubic foot.
Kakaralli
districts as
(Lecytliis
ollaria),
is

greenheart and

which grows in the same said by some to be more

durable and to resist the teredo very well, produces a very heavy wood of a light brown colour, close grained arid
tough,

with a smooth surface and a feel like ebony. Should make a useful timber for wharves, dock gates, etc., but cannot be got in lengths exceeding 40 ft. and 10 to 14 inches square.

Weight about 61

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

is

Waibaima (Nectandra sp.) species abundant in Guiana.

to
T.

another of the greenheart Logs of great length and 20

28 inches wide can be obtained.

For

ships' planking

it

130

TIMBEK

considered the best wood in the colony. It is very dense though coarse of grain, and feels cold to the touch The heartwood is dark like greenheart and boxwood.
is is sharply denned from the reddish brown sapwood, which is generally about an inch wide. Weight about 57 Ibs. per cubic foot.

green shading to brown and

Ducalliballi, a

hard timber of a beautiful reddish brown

colour and capable of taking a fine polish, has been used as a furniture and ornamental wood in the colony for many

The medullary rays are very close, and the pores, most of the hard timbers of this part of the world, The author a short time ago came large and conspicuous. across a hewn log about 30 ft. long and 12 inches square in the London Docks which had come over with greenheart, but he cannot find that it is used in Great Britain, and indeed it is but little known. The botanical species is not
years. as in
defined.

some
is

Letterwood or Snakewood (Brosimum aubletii) is found in of the West India Islands, but chiefly in Guiana, where

the vernacular

name

is

si-to-oh-balli or bourra-courra.

It

exported in short lengths 4 or 5 inches in diameter. The heartwood, which is the only part used, is of a nut brown
the
colour spotted with black, very hard and heavy, one of most beautiful of woods. Chiefly used for small

ornamental turnery, cabinet inlaying, walking-sticks, Indian bows, etc., it often sells at about eightpence per pound. The amount of sapwood is considerable, it is fairly hard, of the same colour as box, and might be used

same purposes. This tree is closely allied to the breadfruit tree and is becoming scarce.
for the

Weight about 77

to

83

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Lignum Vitae (Guaiacum officinale) or guaiacum wood. The chief supply comes from the West India Islands,

TIMBERS OF BRITISH GUIANA

131

some from Guiana and other parts of tropical America, and at one time it was very plentiful in the Mauritius. The
dark green or greenish black good deal in thickness, is of a dingy yellow hue and very distinct. It is one of the hardest, heaviest, and toughest timbers known strong, close and wiry in grain, the annual rings are scarcely distinguishable, and the fibres of each layer cross one another diagonally, making it a very difficult matter to Mr. John split the wood, although it is easily planed. saw an old post of lignum vita3 in West Indian Calvert waters in the shape of a cross, said to have been placed there by the Spaniards hundreds of years ago it was not decayed in the water and very little affected between wind
colour of the heartwood
is
;

the sap, which varies a

and water (Min. of Pioc.

Inst. Civil Eng., vol. 24).

The wood

contains about 25 per cent, of

which is used as powder, pill, used as a medicine. The amount of sapwood on the timber is considerable, but is equally as good, tough, and There is nothing to equal durable as the heartwood.

gum resin called guaiacum, and tincture. The bark is also

lignum
50
to

vitae

for

block

sheaves, cog wheels,

shafts,

and

footsteps
It is also

for vertical shafting in

pumps.

Sheaves after

60 years' wear have been found to be perfectly good. much used for mallets, plumbers' mandrils, etc.,

and in the Bahamas for hinges and fastenings of doors by the sea shore, where ironwork quickly corrodes. The wood is imported in the round state in lengths of 3 or 4 ft., which are usually under 12 inches diameter, although in the
Isthmus
it is

of

Darien
7 15s.
is

it is

said to

grow 5

to 6

ft.

in diameter

sold by the ton, and at a recent sale prices varied from

4 15s. to
Its

weight

with 12 per cent, of water about 731bs.

per cubic foot. An inferior substitute for lignum vitse, and with which it has nothing in common and which is much

K 2

132

TIMBER

comes from Guayaquil. There is also a timber found in Cuba guayacancillo which resembles lignum Sizes about 10 ft. vitse and is used for similar purposes. Some inches square. long and upwards and 6 to 10 " " katchina vitse was recently brought from Jamaica with
lighter,

the true lignum

vitae.

Hackia (Siderodendron triflorum), with which the true in lignum vitse is often confounded, grows abundantly
British Guiana
it is an equally hard, close-grained, heavy and both are used for the same purposes and both wood, It can be got 65 ft. long and are about equally durable.
;

16 to 18 inches square without sap. Weight 50 to 60 Ibs. per cubic foot.

Souari-pikea or Butternut Tree of the genus Caryocar is it yields a tough crossplentiful on the Essequibo river grained timber, hard to saw, and will not smooth in places " " as the grain picks up very difficult to split. On it grow the souari or butternuts.
; ;

There are
of

many

British

Guiana, but the

other excellent hardwoods in the colony difficulties of climate and

transport, lack of railways, etc., prevent their being brought into the European market, and greenheart is the

only timber which

is

exported in any quantity.

BRAZIL.
Paroba Aroeira Brauua Parda Brauna do Sertao Folha de Bolo Balsamo Candeia Cedro Canella Goncalo Alves Cabui Jacaranda or Eosewood Vinhatico Angico Ipe Icaranda Pegui Guarubu Sicupira Assu.

Paroba Vermelha (Sapota sp.) is the finest timber in the province of Minas Geraes for general purposes. It is red

TIMBERS OF BRAZIL
in colour

1:33

close grained for surface or

and in some ways resembles pencil cedar. It is and comparatively easy to work, and good underground work either in or out of water. Logs are to be got roughly squared up to 200 cubic feet. Weight about 48 Ibs. per cubic foot.
Paroba Branca (Sapota gonocarpa) is also a useful wood, but inferior to paroba vermelha, and the obtainable logs The wood is of yellowish colour or are not so large.
It is nearly white, of close grain and easily worked. stronger than teak and used on the Brazilian ironclads,

and

is

indeed one of the chief woods used in shipbuilding

Ibs.

in Brazil.

Weight 50

per cubic foot.

Aroeira, Aroeira do Sertao in Bahia (Astroniumurunduera), a tawny coloured wood with red markings, one of the It stands variation of temperaheaviest timbers known. ture and wet and dry well, is used for general construction,

and

is

valuable for

all

wearing surfaces such as brake

small.

blocks.

The
woods

logs
of

are

One
it

of

the
life

first-class

sleeper years.

Bahia,

where

has a

of

sixteen

Weight 79

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Brauna Parda (Mdanoxylon brauna), called parda to distinguish it from Brauna Preta, which is nearly black and
not such a good timber,
a tawny or grey wood, exceedingly strong, nearly three times as strong transversely as pitch pine good for uprights and wall plates of framed houses, stands wet and dry weather, and is much used for
is
;

timbering in mines. It can be had in logs 60 to 70ft. long and up to 40 inches square. A first-class sleeper wood.

Weight about 66

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

134

TIMBER
,

Brauna do Sertao* (Buttinum fernujineum) a red coloured timber, is used for general construction in Bahia, and is one of the two most valuable woods for sleepers aroeira being the other both having a life of over sixteen years

on the San Francisco Eailway, Bahia.

Folha de Bolo (Vermellta)
is is

wood

of red colour, the

long and fibrous, and fairly good to work. It is grain useful for general purposes, and may be depended upon either on surface or underground and either for wet or

dry situations. Weighs about 55

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

is

Folha de Bolo (Branca}

and

is

an excellent timber
It

closer in grain than the above, of nearly white or light brown

feet.

colour.

can be got in large logs up to 130 cubic Weight 56 Ibs. per cubic foot.

brown

Balsamo (Myroxyloii), a scented and useful wood of reddish colour, only to be got up to 50 ft. cube, is rather uncommon. As sleepers it has a life of over ten years.

Weight about 59
Candeia
is

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

;

a very tough and durable timber the maximum length in which it can be obtained is 20 ft. with a diameter of about 7 inches at the butt the colour is nearly white. It
;

is

much used
Weight 63

in mines.
Ibs.

per cubic foot.

is

one

Cedro (Cedrela brasiliensis), of brown or reddish colour, of the many cedars found in Brazil and other places,

a valuable

scented

wood, used in

its

native district

for

doors, ceilings, windows, furniture, patterns, clothes chests,

an Indian term meaning " far west." " The traveller is always aproaching the Sertao and yet hears that it is still some days off." Burton's " Highlands of Brazil."
'

Sertao

is

TIMBERS OF BRAZIL

135

and other purposes. It is about the same strength as and logs can be obtained in long lengths. Until pitch pine, 1890 it was the only timber used for patterns in parts of
Brazil.

Weight 39

Ibs.

per cubic
is

foot.

Canella de Velho

a tough
is

wood

of

brownish colour,

sometimes nearly white, and chiefly used for pick and hammer handles, for which purpose it is split, not sawn.
It
is

only about six inches in diameter, and the section

split off easily.

shows three wings which

Canella Preta

(Cu'inamodendrvn oxillarc), a grey coloured wood, is one of the first-class sleeper woods on the Bahia railways, and
Canella Parda (Mespilodaplic opifera) is another for sleepers.

w ood used
7

Weight about 50

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

Goncalo Alves (Astronium fraxinifolium) is a strong, durable, hard timber, used for uprights and cross pieces in constructional work. It is of a white colour with red
It streaks, sometimes nearly black, striped with brown. can be got in large logs. for sleepers in Bahia, Used where the life is over eight years it is also used for
;

furniture.

names

for

Goncalo do para " Zebra wood."

Ibs.

is

one

of

the

Portuguese

Weight 69
Cabin
is

per cubic foot.

a nice grained, hard wood, similar in appearance

Ibs.

to goncalo alves.

Weight about 59
Ipe
is

per cubic foot.

a hard, strong timber of green colour with dark markings, and has been found very useful as blocking

pulleys for wire rope transmission plant. It is got only in small, rather crooked logs, and is only used for small work.

Weight 63

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

136

TIMBER

Icaranda is of more uniform quality than ipe, of a tawny colour with black specks and dashes, an excellent wood where strong wearing surface is required, one of the best in the country for the teeth of mortise wheels.

Weight 62

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Angico (Acacia colubrind) is a fine, dense, smooth wood, found in parts of Brazil, and used for turnery, cabinetmaking and ornamental work, also for sleepers. The logs
are roughly squared

up

to

10 inches a

side.

It

is

often

confused with sabicu. and various kinds of rosewood. The colour is a reddish or dark brown streaked with black, and
the timber contains medical properties. tanning.

The bark is good

for

Jacaranda

is

the Brazilian

name

for various species of

Dalberyia and allied trees. It is the continental name for rosewood, and from these jacaranda trees and similar species comes the Brazilian rosewood of English commerce.

Amongst them

are Jacaranda

Cabiuna (Dalbergia
articles

nif/ra),

used for furniture

and

turned

as well

as

for

timbering in Brazilian mines and sleepers. It is hard and durable, stands wet as well as any wood, of a colour
reddish brown and black in streaks and patches. Weight about 63 Ibs. per cubic foot.

Jacaranda Preto (Machari'um incorriiptibili) of Bahia is a first-class black furniture wood, and is also used for general construction and sleepers. Jacaranda Rozo (M.
excellent sleepers.
legale),

brown wood which makes

In the Argentine the jacaranda is a small tree which " Palisander produces logs 15 ft. long by 9 inches square. used chiefly for pianos, is probably the produce of wood,"
these trees.

TIMBERS OF BRAZIL

137

Brazilian Rosewood, as stated above, is the produce of In the English market various jacaranda and allied trees. it goes by the names of the ports of shipment, Rio and

Bahia

the

former
is

is

usually

considered the

best

for

figure. brought from various parts of the but now chiefly from the East Indies. The timber world, is hard and durable, takes a fine polish, and out of its native district is exclusively used for cabinet work, furniture, and decorative purposes. The colour is a dark chestnut brown and the timber is subject to heartshake and hollowness in its centre. Mahogany is often worked up to resemble rosewood, being cheaper. There is now but little trade in Brazilian rosewood. There was none in stock in the Liverpool Docks in 1906, but 911 pieces were imported and sold in 1907. Rosewood is generally sold as veneer and can be got up to 2 ft. wide, either knife-cut or saw-cut, at about 4s. 9d. per 100 super, feet.

Rosewood

Weight about 60

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

Vinhatico (Eclurospenumu?n batshasaii) is a very common yellow or reddish yellow wood of light open grain and a good deal of sap, used for doors, windows, etc., and for
furniture. That sold as Vinhatico kind and beautifully marked. Weight 42 to 52 Ibs. per cubic foot.
raj ado is

the

better

Pegui (Canjocas brasiliensix) is a yellow or brownish yellow wood, straight in grain, porous, fairly heavy and It is used for general construction and for the strong.

planking of ships. Weight 64 Ibs. per cubic

foot.

violet colour, pores

Guarubu (Pcltogyne macrocarpus) a fine grained wood of very numerous and filled with a white lime-like substance. Excellent for axles of carts and tubs,
,

138

TIMBER
It is

and

is used for general building work. timber to the purple-beart of Guiana.

a similar

Sicupira Assu (Bowadichia rergeliridcs)

and Sicupira Merlin

(B. minor) are grey coloured woods of straight grain used for beams and planking in shipbuilding, cart axles, and are
of the first quality

amongst Bahia sleeper woods, having

life

of over ten years.

Ibs. per cubic foot. Brazil possesses a very large variety of valuable timbers, M. de Teive e Argollo, excellent in quality and durable. has been good enough to send the author M.I.C.E.,

Weight 55

particulars of over fifty species of

only some

of

wood from Bahia alone, which space has allowed him to include. The

following are a few

more
sp.),

Aderno (Astronium

a red coloured wood.

and
of

Pao d'Arco (Teconia speciosa), or arch wood, very crooked of dark yellow colour. Brazilian Indians make bows
it.

Batinga (Astronium speciosa}, of a red colour.

Cabraibaand Oity (Moquilia tormentosa), of a red colour.

Cana
fistula

(Cassia fis tula), of a

brown

colour.

Jatoba (Hynocura courbaril), light yellow in colour. The above are used for general building and construction

work, and most of

them make

excellent sleepers.

Pao Paraiba (Simaruba

light.

rersicolor),

Used

for doors, ceilings,

white in colour and very windows, and cigar boxes.

Tapioca, light yellow in colour

and

light.

Used

for doors,

ceilings, windows, cigar boxes, and for furniture.

ARGENTINE TIMBEBS

139

sleepers,

Pao d'Oleo (Copaifera guianensis), used for furniture and as well as in general construction and in the
oil.

extraction of copaiba Ked in colour. ships.

Also for yards and masts of

Weight 56 In Parana

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

forests of

to the south there are extensive

Araucaria (A. brasiliensis), called Brazilian pine, somewhat akin to the Chili Pine (A. imbricata) or Monkey Puzzle of

English lawns. turpentine, but

It
is

produces a valuable timber, fruit, and not yet a commercial commodity.

The

difficulty in describing the

is

timbers of Brazil

is

that

the same wood

districts
;

known by

different

names

in different

timber,

"

an engineer from the East says of their the spelling is a matter of taste," and another
as

English engineer in Uruguay speaks of the Brazilian hardwoods " whose names can neither be spelt nor pro-

nounced ";

names
by

the same timber, too, goes under different in the Argentine, Paraguay, and Bolivia from that which it is known in Brazil. The botanical names are

also very uncertain.

AEGENTINE TIMBERS.
Quebracho Lapacho Guayacan Curupay Urunday Palo Blanco Pacara Quina Quina Horco Cevil Horco Molle Cuhucho Tatane Tarco Eoble del Pais Tipa Colorado Algarrobo Palo Cruz Cedro Lanza Mistol Nogal Naiidubay Strength of Argentine Timber Paraguayan and Bolivian
-

Timber.

One

of

the

characteristic

features

of

the

trees
;

of

Argentina is their small stature and large diameter not many of them grow to a greater height than 30 ft., and
the majority do not reach this, so one of the drawbacks to the many excellent timbers which this part of the

140

TIMBER
is

world produces
lengths.

that they are only obtainable in short

Quebracho, of which there are two varieties, and of which Quebracho Colorado is the most generally useful, best known, and most largely used of the timbers of the republic. It
is

a dark reddish coloured

wood

of fine, close grain,

dense

and heavy, and has a bright surface, is appreciated and much used for heavy constructional, piling, and submarine work, and is almost invariably used for bridgeIn Uruguay it superbuilding and sleepers in Argentina. seded steel sleepers, to which it is superior, but owing to the
recent great increase in price other sources of supply are It is worked as easily as the best being looked for.

much

European woods and

better

than most of them.

The

timber lasts equally as well in wet as in dry ground and stands changes of temperature well, but until properly seasoned all sawn surfaces should be protected from the sun
to prevent the

wood from

splitting.

It

becomes darker with

age.

The shortness of grain in quebracho is its greatest drawback, as in rough handling it is liable to break. Its great durability is due to the quantity of tannin it contains,
amounting
heartwood.
to as

much
;

The

as 19 per cent, to 22 per cent, in the quality of the timber varies somewhat in

different districts the best

comes from the eastern zone of the Chaco within the province of Santa Fe, and is conveyed by rail to the shipping ports. Large quantities are sent in to Europe and the United States for the manufacture log of tannin; the larger proportion of the trade is now done with the latter. In 1906, 256,822 tons of this timber were exported from the Argentine for tannin extract in rough The logs are got in lengths up to logs called rollizos. about 25 ft. and 18 inches or 2 ft. a side, and sometimes of larger scantling they were formerly cut roughly square
;

ARGENTINE TIMBERS

141

with the axe, but now for sleepers many of them are sawn. The main use to which the wood has been put besides for tannin extract is for sleepers, and over 7,000,000 have
lain in the track

been used on the Argentine railways, many after having for fifteen or twenty years being still " sound. Fencing posts which have stood for perfectly

more than

a century have been found in a perfect state of " (Mcmoires de la Societe des Inyenieurs Civil preservation

de France, 1899).

Weight varying from 77 to 87 Ibs. per cubic foot. The white kind, Quebracho Blanche, which contains little The name tannin, speedily rots it is a much softer wood.
;

axe breaker," is significant quebracho, It is liable to attack by an of the character of the timber.
insect

which means

"

which bores holes half an inch in diameter right through the tree. This timber in both kinds is also found
in

Paraguay and in parts are getting scarce, and

considerably increased.

of Brazil

the available supplies

of
late

the

price

years

has

Lapacho (Talebnia jiorescino)

is

small tree found in

;

abundance in the northern provinces it also grows in Bolivia and Paraguay, and furnishes an excellent timber not unlike greenheart, of a greenish brown colour. It is tough and heavy, used for purlins, rafters and roof trees,
framing of railway cars, boat-building, spokes of wheels, beams, etc., and is more costly than quebracho. The tree grows to a height of about 30 ft. and has a diameter of 18 inches. It is one of the most largely used timbers of
Argentina. Weight about 63
Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Guayacan (Ccesalpinia melanocarpa) is one of the hardest timbers in the country, of rich brown colour with close

142

TIMBER

grain and very heavy, used for door frames, wheel hubs,
well.

spokes, shafts, pulley blocks, etc., and resists moisture It is only to be had in lengths up to 20 ft., for the

tree only grows to a height of 15 to 20 ft., with a diameter A small sample has been tried for of 12 to 18 inches.

paving in Liverpool. Weight about 72 Ibs. per cubic

foot.

the only native timbers lapacho Guayacan which rival the quebracho, but they are not so plentiful.

and

are

Curupay and Urunday produce a very similar class of timber, which has been a good deal used for piles and jetty work in the Argentine and in such situations has In some situations Curupay has lasted over 30 years.
lasted twice as long as Urunday or even Quebracho ; neither is, however, so stiff as Quebracho. Curupay is a hard red wood of great strength, stands damp well, and a good deal
of
it

is

used for masts and some for sleepers.

Curupay-

the heavier kind, but rather inclined to split when exposed to the sun. The tests show Curupay to be rather a
ria' is

stronger timber than Quebracho Colorado it is particularly These two timbers come chiefly strong in tensile strain.
;

from Paraguay,
it

to the north of Argentina, which furnishes with a considerable quantity of timber. Weight about 60 Ibs. per cubic foot.

Quebracho, Lapacho, and Curupay are the timbers most used in Argentina.
Palo Blanco (Calycopln/Uum multiflorum) is a tree of 20 to ft. in height and about 2 ft. diameter. The wood is

30

almost white
close

the
is

name means

"

white

wood"
Used
for

with a

grain and

rather expensive.
Ibs.

beams,

scantlings, planks, etc.

Weight about 62

per cubic foot.

Palo Amarilla

and

Palo Santo are other kinds used for sleepers.

ARGENTINE TIMBERS

143

Pacara (Enterolobium timbonva) is found in Tucuman and Maximum size of logs 15 ft. by 2 ft. square. the north. The wood is light in colour with loose grain, is not strong,

and

used for furniture, door frames, Weight only about 35 Ibs. per cubic
is

etc.

foot.

Quina is a cabinet-makers' wood of fine, smooth, close Lengths grain, somewhat like light coloured mahogany. It is not well known. available, 15 ft. by 11 inches square.
ftuina

Weight 54
Horco
in the
it.

to

64

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

cevil or

same

districts as

Horco molle (Piptadinia commnnis) is found quina quina and somewhat resembles

Close, dense,

and smooth in
box.
It is

grain,

it

is

of about the
logs, 15
ft.

same hardness as
by 2
ft.

Maximum

dimensions of

used for beams, scantlings, flooring also for cabinet-making and ornamental wagons, work, but is not suitable for damp situations.
square.
of railway

Weight 56

to

69

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

is

Cohucho (Zanthoxylum cocoa)

carriage-building
grain, but

another furniture

and
close

wood
to

of

light

brown colour with

is liable to split

in the sun.

Weight from 32

40

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

sp.) is a handsome dark brown, well wood, only found in the extreme north and but little figured known. It is used to a small extent for cabinet work and

Tatane or Talane (Acacia

the panelling of railway carriages.

Guayibi, probably the

same

as the

guarubu

of Brazil, is a

hardwood used for and pick handles.

furniture, carts, shafting, boat-building,

Weight about 49

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Tarco or Talco (Thoninia weinmannifolia) produces wood it is of a very fine ivory white colour and well figured
;

H4
sometimes called
"

TIMBER
white ebony,"
is

extremely beautiful, and

in great demand for the panelling of railway carriages and It grows in the north of the for cabinet work generally. the maximum sizes obtainable are about 14 ft. republic, and

long by about 10 to 11 inches square.

Roble del Pais (Fapus batuloides) is only found in any quanto a height of 26 ft. with a tity in the north, where it grows
a handsome wood and in grain and resembles American oak hence, doubtgeneral appearance less, the name roble, which is Spanish for oak. It is easy to work, has nicely marked grain, and is extensively used for

diameter of 2J

ft.

It is

railway carriage panelling, etc. Weight about 85 Ibs. per cubic foot.

Tipa Colorado or Palo Mortero (Machcerium pseudo tipa), one the other of the northern timbers, is the best of two kinds
;

is

the white tipa. Only to be had in lengths of about 10 ft. by 10 inches square, it is used for beams, and spokes of
wheels.
It is

easy to work, has a

Ibs.

fine,

even grain, and

is

of

a light red-brown colour.

Weight about 47

per cubic foot.

for
its

Algarrobo (Prosopis nigra and P. alba), the Spanish name locust, is found all over the Argentine, but attains
greatest

the

carob tree

and
to

It is identical with perfection in Cordoba. of the Eastern Mediterranean region, the seeds were taken by the Spanish conquerors

South America. There are two kinds of algarrobo, namely, Colorado and blanca the former is the heavier. The timber is very tough and stringy, with fine, compact grain, and in appearance resembles American walnut it is a hard and handsome wood. The tree seldom reaches a greater height than 8 to 10 ft. with a diameter of 6 to 10 inches. It is used a good deal in the Argentine
;

ARGENTINE TIMBERS
for street paving,

145

as well as for general carpentry A tree of the railway carriages.

and by cartwrights for felloes of wheels, work and the framing of same name grows in the
Ibs. to

Hawaiian Islands. Weight from 42

Mistol

59

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

about 10

(Tizyphu* mistol) is only to be had in sizes of ft. by 10 inches. It is a wood of a whitish

colour with a fairly close grain, used in carpenters' work, though chiefly for making charcoal. The axemen make
their axe handles of this

wood

if

it is

available, as

it

does

not heat the hands like other wood.

The weight

is

given as high as 77
is is

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

Cedro (Cedrela brasilieiisis)

It is

one of the

many

cedars.

used for furniture, but

seldom

hence most of the furniture made

better class of cedar grows in

ever seasoned, in Argentina warps a

if
;

Paraguay and

is

used in the

Argentine. Weight about 43

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Nogal or Nogal Turcoman (Juylans australia) in colour resembles European walnut, and is straight in grain and easy to work. It is much used for inside work of railway
It is a carriages, and for doors, windows, and furniture. useful wood, but the maximum size of log available is only

about

by 18 inches square. Weight up to 45 Ibs. per cubic

1

ft.

foot.

Lanza (Myrsine
wrights'

c/risebachii) is

close grain, used for

beams

in

a kind of lancewood of fine, house construction, wheel-

and the shafts of carts. It is a tough, with long fibre and capable of resisting wood, The colour is a light brown. considerable strain.
work,
elastic

Weight about 46
T.

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

I.

146

TIMBER
all

Nandutay was the wood used for before quebracho Colorado was used for
said to be quite as lasting.

this

hardwood posts purpose and is

Weight up

to

64

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

and

Palo Cruz (Talebnia nodosa) produces a good class of wood is found over a large stretch of the northern part of the country. It is light yellow in colour, and is used for

wagon frames, axe handles,

about 10 to 11
ft.

etc.

The

sizes available are

by 10 inches square. For particulars of many of these Argentine timbers the author is largely indebted to an interesting article by Mr. Geoffrey Bansorne in The Timber Trades Journal for
March, 1907, but as showing how
prolific parts of the are in varieties of timber, Mr. Charles A. Trery, country

M.I.C.E., has been good enough to send him particulars of more than 160 different kinds of wood, with their weights

and the stresses of many of them, which space does not permit his including. There is such variation in the tests quoted of different specimens of Argentine timber and such a want of definiteness in

many of the particulars given by various authorities that the author has reluctantly decided not to include
particulars of their strengths. Paraguay and Bolivia produce
of the

some excellent hardwoods found in Brazil and Argentina. Those of Paraguay, besides curupay and urunday, previously referred to and which also grow in Bolivia, are Peteribi, of which there are two kinds, a light and a dark wood. It is something like teak and is much used
same
varieties as are
for

panelling of railway carriages, and the darker kind for masts. It takes a good polish, makes handsome
furniture,

and

is

highly scented.

It is

very

light, excellent

for indoor work,

and not attacked by boring

insects.

WEST INDIA ISLANDS AND CENTRAL AMERICA

Palo
Santo,

147

found in Paraguayan Chaco and used for and furniture, is one of the tallest and commonest turnery of Paraguayan trees.
Inviraro
split.
is

It is

not unlike oak in appearance, but does not used by natives for hubs and felloes.

is the chief wood of Paraguay and is much superior the Argentine cedar, being richer in colour and more durable.

Cedar

to

Amongst Bolivian woods

varieties,

muruday,

of white,

are lapach, of different coloured yellow, and black varieties,

very suitable for sleepers, and corupan, a very durable wood used for hydraulic work, but these are evidently the same timbers with slightly different names which have been " described under Argentina."

WEST
Poui

INDIA ISLANDS AND CENTRAL AMERICAN TIMBER.

Gyp Yokewood Avocado Maiichinoel Tapana -Olivier Eustic "Waterwood Eiddlewood Dogwood Galaba Angeliu Sabi cu Lan ce wood Degame Jucaro Prieto Quiebra- ha sha Babia Jiqui Comun Mahogany Cedar.
(Tecoina scrratifolia) is of the hardest and

Poui or Ebony
Trinidad.
It
is

one

abundant in most durable

timbers of the colony, where it is largely used for posts. There are two varieties, the green and the grey. The wood
close, even grain and will take a fine polish, and may be had in lengths of 30 ft. and upwards and 2 to 3 ft. in
is of

diameter.

Cyp or Princewood (Cordia gerascanthus), grown in Jamaica, is a light, useful timber of a uniform brown colour with darker zones used for shingles on roofs and
;

largely for turning.

One

of the best timbers of Jamaica.

L 2

148

TIMBER

This as well as the wood of Hamelia ventricosa is " Princewood." probably what is called by cabinet-makers about 43 Ibs. per cubic foot. Weight
Chinette
is

hard,

heavy

timber

which

somewhat

resembles boxwood.

Yokewood (Catalpa longissima), a light brownish grey wood somewhat resembling walnut and very durable excellent for boards and scantlings.
;

Weight 70

Ibs.

per

cubic

foot.

Crushing

strength

2'09 tons per square inch.

Avocado (Persea gratissimd)

Indies and

is

common tree
the

in the

known

for its

fruit,

avocado pear.

West Tbe

timber

is hard, uniform in texture, of wavy grain, and reddish in colour. It is called palta in Peru and is found

from Mexico

to

Peru and also in Brazil.

Manchineel (Hippomane manchinella) is a tawny yellow coloured wood somewhat resembling maple and has an odour of lavender. Being very close grained, hard and
durable, it is highly prized for furniture and ornaments in the West Indies and is also suitable for outdoor work.

In felling the trees great care has to be taken to avoid contact with tbe very poisonous juice, which is a powerful
irritant, raising blisters

on the skin and injuring the sight

per cubic foot.

should

it

enter the eye.

Ibs.

Weight about 50

Tapana (Hieronyma alchorneoides) is a wood of handsome dark reddish brown colour, straight in grain, and hard.

The

tree only

grows about 20

ft.

high.

Olivier (Bucida buceras) is a rapidly-growing tree which attains a height of 30 to 50 ft. with a diameter up to 4 ft.,

WEST INDIA ISLANDS AND CENTRAL AMERICA

something like greenheart and excellent for shingles.
not flame.
Angelin

149

in colour, very durable in water, It is difficult to burn and will

(Andira

cabbage
full

tree,

sometimes known as the inerniis), which grows in Brazil and tropical America

as well as the

West

Indies, produces a fine timber

varieties, the red

when

and the white. It is strong, moderately hard, lasts well in water, and is suitable for piles. It is used for building and engineering work generally, and in St. Lucia for treads of steps, also for cabinet work and turnery. The wood has a brown
grown.

There are two

and
in

streaky grain, resembling the wood of the cocoanut palm, is coarse but even in The bark, which is known grain.

England as "worm bark," or bastard cabbage bark, is a narcotic drug. Can be got in logs 20 to 50 ft. long and 12 to 20 inches square.
Weight 48
to 57 Ibs. per cubic foot.

Angelin Coco (Andira stipidacea), of grey colour, is used in Brazil for general building work, also for sleepers, where it lasts six years. Another of the same class, but a better
" The Partridge wood wood of one of these andira and sticks.

sleeper timber, "

is

Angelin amorgoso (A. anthelumthica).

of
;

commerce

it is

is probably the used for umbrella handles

Fustic (Chlorophora tinctorid) which lives in almost any a bright soil, is a good-sized tree producing timber of
,

canary colour, and in lengths up to 20 ft., but which is generally seen in pieces of 2 to 4 ft. long and up to 8 inches
diameter.
the
chiefly used as a yellow dyewood under Old Fustic," but is a handsome cabinet and turners' wood, and is found in tropical America and
It
is

name

of

"

150

TIMBER
West

Indies, and several thousand tons are exported from Jamaica. annually Weight up to 46 Ibs. per cubic foot.

the

Waterwood (Chimarrhis cymosa) is a valuable joiners' wood, the produce of a tree 50 to (50 ft. high, found in St. Vincent. In Dominica the same timber goes by the name of Bois Biviere.
Fiddlewood
is

of
for

much used

Barbados (Citharexyliun melanocardium) carpentry and wheelwrights' work, also

for posts, etc.

It is light

brown

in colour.
(Piacidia erythrina) is
ft.

Dogwood

of

Grenada and Jamaica

used chiefly in building. The tree is only 15 to 30 Weight about 56 Ibs. per cubic foot.

high.

Galaba, the Galba of Trinidad (Calophyllum calaba), also known as Santa Maria, is an excellent and durable timber

reddish colour, which has few knots, is fairly hard, and does not shrink or split much in seasoning. It is easily worked, and may be considered a fair substitute for the
of pale

plainest
to

Honduras or Mexican cedar. It stands exposure weather very well, and has been used in English ships This timber is also found in for beams and planking. Honduras and Central America.
Weight 54
Ibs.

per cubic

foot.
is

Sabicu (Acacia for mosa)

found in Cuba and other

W est
7

Indian islands.

It somewhat resembles mahogany, is of a dark chestnut colour, and is easily mistaken for it, but is darker and often well figured. Close in grain, it stands the weather very well. It may be got in lengths of 30 to 40 ft.

and up
but
is

to

36 inches square.

Used

for shipbuilding in

Cuba,

not suitable for engineering work, as the fibres of the timber are often broken during the early stages of the

WEST INDIA ISLANDS AND CENTRAL AMEEICA

151

tree's existence, and the defect is not noticeable until the for this reason it is seldom used for wood is cut up loads. Some sabicu planks were laid on beams carrying
;

the roadway of St. George's landing stage at Liverpool a short time ago, but were not found suitable for
vehicular

months.
of

and had to be taken up after six was used as steps in the Exhibition building 1851, and the same steps were in use in the Crystal
traffic It

Palace at

Sydenham nine
jarrah,
It is

years after.

Sabicu
other

is

classed
in

with

karri,

blue

gum, and

timbers

Lloyd's List.

used by cabinet-makers and turners in Great Britain, and one sometimes sees an advertisement asking for small pieces of this wood.

The wood and strong.

is

heavy, about 59

Ibs.

per cubic foot, hard,

Lancewood (Guatteria virgata) is imported chiefly from Jamaica in the shape of spars 4 or 5 inches in diameter, and
in large quantities. It is used for the shafts of dogcarts, also for fishing rods. The tree is only about carriages, etc., The grain is close 9 inches diameter with the bark on.

and

straight,
is

and the wood wiry,

;

flexible,

colour

greenish to yellowish, between the heart and sapwood

Ibs.

showing
it

and tough the no difference

;

is

often confused with

degame wood. Weight 52 to 63

per cubic foot.

Degame (Calycophyllum candi/lissimum) grows plentifully in Cuba to a height of 40 or 50 ft., and logs may be got about 12 inches square. The wood is of pale yellow colour, very fibrous and close grained, somewhat resembling boxwood it is strong and elastic, easily worked, almost free from Used knots, takes a good polish, and is very durable.
:

extensively in house framing and joinery

joiners in its

152

TIMBER
;

it is a native districts prefer it to almost any otlier wood good turners' wood, and is also used for carriage-building Some of it comes to Great Britain of ships. and the

yards along with lancewood spars from Jamaica. Weight about 56 Ibs. per cubic foot.

Jucaro Prieto (Bucidce) is another Cuban wood which can be got in logs about 36 ft. and 16 inches square. The

dark brown, somewhat resembling black walnut in colour, is free from knots, of fine grain and very hard, is easily It weathers well, strong, tough, and elastic.

wood

is

worked, and takes a good polish.

Cuba

for

Used a good deal in shipbuilding and heavy work, piling, and dock
;

construction

also extensively by millwrights.

Ibs.

Weight 62

per cubic foot.

(Copaij'era liumenaifolid)
to
is

ftuiebra-hacha

Cuban

tree

which produces logs up

square.

The colour
;

is

long and up to 24 inches similar to that of the darker kinds of

50

ft.

mahogany very hard but not difficult to work excellent it is used for all kinds for use underground and in water of posts, sleepers, poles, deck beams, and framing for heavy
;
;

machinery. Weight about 78

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

to a height of

Babia (Cordia gerascanthoides) grows in Cuba and Jamaica about 60 ft. with a diameter of 18 inches.
is

lighter sapwood, strong

dark greenish brown colour, with and durable, is used for framing, carriage-building, and general house fitting. Weight about 48 Ibs. per cubic foot.
of

The timber, which

Comun (Bumelia nigra), a tree of 50 to 70 ft. in and which produces timber up to 18 inches a side, height, is one of the hardest woods known, of fine and very
Jiqui

WEST INDIA ISLANDS AND CENTRAL AMERICA

15:3

compact grain. It is of rosewood colour, becomes harder and darker with age, and when very old becomes almost Good for piling, black, and is very difficult to work.
telegraph posts, sleepers, gate-posts,
etc.

Mahogany, a tree of the order of Cedrselacse,

is

found in

various tropical and sub-tropical climates, in the West There is also Indies, Central America, and West Africa. the so-called Australian mahogany, some of which is
eucalyptus, and of which only small samples

come

to the

English market. Fifty years ago mahogany only came from Honduras and the West India Islands, Cuba and

The so-called Spanish mahogany, Hayti, or St. Domingo. which was the most prized, came from the seaboard on the
south of Hayti, more than 10
botanical

and was hardly ever obtained in logs of long by 20 to 24 inches square. The The Honduras mahogany was often called "bay wood."
ft.

name

of

the

West Indian
is

tree

is

given as

Swietenia mahogani, but this Of late years the mahogany

a disputed point. trade has quite changed,

and

now much

the greater portion of the timber imported into Great Britain comes from the west coast of Africa from

Cape Lopez in French Congo to Cape Palmas. It is known by the names of the ports of shipment Lagos mahogany, which in colour and silkiness is very like the Tobasco shipments of Central America Benin, of excellent texture It also comes under Sapeli, which is scented like cedar. the names of other ports, whilst under the name of "African mahogany" large quantities are brought from Assinee and Axim, which are of good colour but softer in texture than other African wood, and more or less liable to cross fractures, which are only seen when the wood is opened out Sekondi, Grand Bassam, and other places on The logs of African mahogany are of the same coast.
:

154

TIMBER

from the West larger size than those which come Indies or Honduras. They are roughly square and vary

much

[From photo

lent by

McNeil, Scott

&

Co., Liverpool.

FIG. 25.

Felling a

Mahogany
18
ft.

Tree,

West Coast

of Africa.

in length

from 12

to

and even up

to

25

ft.,

and
;

36 inches and occasionally up to 50 inches a side longer lengths up to 30 ft. are generally of lesser scantling
to

28

WEST INDIA ISLANDS AND CENTRAL AMERICA

(Fig. 27).

155

many
one

of the

log,

weigh 8 or 9 tons, and Last year figured logs bring fancy prices. ft. long and 31 inches deep at the butt end, 29|
"
of these big logs "

Some

was sold at 6s. lOrf. per square foot of 1 inch thick, realising Another log was sold at 7s. 9d. per square foot, and 493. a few years ago three large logs from the same tree,
24 to 27 under the
is
ft.

long, the largest being 46 by 51 inches, fell

at

hammer
like

1,600.

Mahogany, sold by the square

cedar and other timber of

that class,

foot of 1 inch in thickness, a consider-

able allowance being made by the timber measurer from the total cubic contents for waste in conversion, and the sale

measure

is

actual contents of

often 25 per cent, less than the the log. West Indian

in order to get as much as out of the log, was often cut (see possible Fig. 26) with the sides fairly squared, but

mahogany,

.,

differing in dimensions.

This

is

now not

so often done,

as the logs are

much

smaller than formerly.

is

generally identified by the btop adzing and small sizes, while the wood from Puerto Plata, on the north side of the island, is usually of larger
St.
size.
is

The City

Domingo wood

Both are subject

to serious heartshakes,

but the colour

is

darker than the Cuba wood.

The Cuba wood

known by

the white chalk-like substance or white specks which fill the pores it is of firm, silky texture, not too hard, and is very
;

cold to the touch,

and both

it

and the

St.

Domingo wood

are decidedly superior to African, and also to the Honduras wood for finished work but little is now obtainable, and
;

only in small sizes, seldom over 12 to 14 inches a side, whilst the great widths of the African wood make it
appreciated by the cabinet-maker or other user owing to the fewer joints required, and although coarser in grain, the

French

polisher,

by the help

of

"
filling,

"

works up the

156

TIMBER
so that
it is

wood

almost impossible to
is

tell

the other.

Honduras wood

of larger scantling

one variety from than the

or St. Domingo variety, but is very rarely seen over 30 inches a side, 16 to 24 inches being about the average, and 12 to 25 ft. long. It can be recognised by the black specks or lines in the grain, in contrast to the white specks

Cuba

of the

Cuba wood.

slightly

wany

logs are often of tapering widths, corners, and of a somewhat pale colour
;

The

when
not

freshly cut

the wood

is of

much

troubled by heartshake,

silky texture, but, although is distinctly inferior to

more spongy in grain, and without much flower. The Belize though straighter and Trujillo shipments are most appreciated. Mahogany is also now brought from Nicaragua, mostly in round logs of mild texture and straight grain, from Costa Rica and Grenada, and is known by these names in the market, and a very good and much appreciated, finelytextured, and good-coloured wood comes from Tobasco, in the south of Mexico, which is generally jogged in the manufacture occasionally a small quantity comes from Panama, which is rather subject to worms, and often damaged in transit, and from Guatemala, in which the
the old Spanish, being lighter and
;

heartshakes are generally serious. It is not possible by description to enable a person to distinguish one variety from another, as this is very difficult, even for experts with
it is

knowledge of the trade, and in small pieces scarcely possible even for an expert to do so. Honduras and West Indian wood have a much softer feel when rubbed with the thumb than the African wood.
a long
close

and

All
to

mahogany is of varying shades, from reddish brown dark red, and though some of the African wood is very
some
of
it

dark,

the

Gaboon wood
not

for instance

is

not

unlike the colour of teak.

joinery, furniture,

It is chiefly
;

and veneers

difficult to

used for high-class work, it is

WEST INDIA ISLANDS AND CENTRAL AMEEIOA

157

and straight in grain, shrinks but little, warps and twists less than most timber, and is very durable, especially when kept dry, and polishes and takes glue well. The
close

sap wood, like that of

all-

dark-coloured woods,

is

of a straw

[I'huto lent

by McNeil, Scott

&

Co., Liverpool.

FIG. 27.

Dressing African Mahogany.

It will be seen that

tree,

no use is made of the stump of the which contains a large quantity of the very best of the

timber. The same practice exists in cutting Central America.

mahogany

in

It was colour, sharply divided from the dark heartwood. formerly a good deal used in shipbuilding. The Victoria

and

journeys and for so

which carried Queen Victoria on so many of her many years, was built almost wholly of choice mahogany, more than fifty years ago, and was only
Albert,

recently put out of commission.

158

TIMBER

The wood was first imported into Great Britain from the West Indies in 1724, when it was brought as ballast by a Captain Gibbons, whose brother, a London doctor, wished
timber in his house, then in course of construction, but it was so hard, compared to the timber to which they had been used, that the workmen objected. As showing the difference in size of Honduras mahogany now and in Great fifty years ago, a log of this wood was landed inches deep at one end, Britain in 1844, 13^ ft. long, 48| 86 inches deep at the other, and "61 inches thick, producing
to use the

2,289 superficial feet of timber.

The total quantity of mahogany imported into Europe in 1907 was 159,830 tons, and of this quantity 121,743 tons were from the west coast of Africa, more than half of which went to Liverpool, the chief mahogany port. A very Over large portion is transhipped to the United States.
32,000 logs of African

mahogany came
is

into the Liverpool

market in 1906, and the trade

continually increasing,

being in that year fifteen times more than all other kinds of mahogany brought into the port (Figs. 25 and 27). About 25,000 tons of mahogany were exported from
Central America to Europe in 1907, and only about 13,000 tons from the West Indies, whence it comes chiefly to the London market. As regards price there is not much differ-

ence between the different varieties

" "

so much depends upon wood that the price varies very much, but the West Indian wood is generally dearer. Weight of West Indian wood about 50 Ibs., and Honduras
;

figure

in this

about 35

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

of

the

commerce, the furniture cedar, is same family as mahogany, and comes from all the countries which produce mahogany except West Africa, and lately a few logs have

Cedar.

The cedar

wood

of the Cedrela odorata, of the

WHST INDIA ISLANDS AND CENTRAL AMERICA

been brought from there.
It is

159

imported into Great Britain in large quantities as square logs from the West Indies and Central America, largely from Honduras and Tobasco, some in small sizes from Venezuela round logs have also recently been brought from Columbia, near the Isthmus of Panama. The logs are 24 to 26 inches square and up to 28 ft.
;

long.

The timber is largely used for furniture and decorative work instead of mahogany, and like mahogany is sold per superficial foot 1 inch thick and often costs quite as much. It is softer and easier to work than mahogany, and lighter.
In
its

native district as well as in

Europe

it

is

used for

internal house joinery and also for ship and boat building, and particularly in the construction of our light racing protects it from attack by narrow and reddish white, the heartwood reddish or cinnamon brown, the annual rings are wide and distinct, and the medullary rays also distinct and numerous.
boats.
Its

peculiar

odour
is

insects.

The sapwood

Weight about 37
In

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

1907 over 700,000 ft., board measure, of cedar were imported into Liverpool. Cedar is also found in New South Wales, though none is sent to the English market, and
there
is

some very

excellent cedar in

Paraguay which

is

largely used in Argentina.

CHAPTEE

VI

TIMBERS OF INDIA, BURMA, AND ANDAMAN ISLANDS

Bamboo

Babool Tamarind Jackwood Hamileel Cocoanut Tree Indian Ebony Deodar Calamander Sal Toon Palmyra Palm Padouk Mango Eed Sanders Mysore Sandal wood Vengai Satin wood Sundri Butter Tree Chittagong Wood Kumbuk Eed Eyno Jaman Sissoo Blackwood Mutti Neem Anjan Eng Gurjun Boxwood Kosum Khair Palu Pyinkado Teak Kokko Chuglan Kaita-da Lakuch Thitman Mohwa Thingan Pyinma Gangau Thitya Ingyin Cangu Che Bhotan or Blue Pine Chir Pine Khasia
Pine

Spruce
is

Silver Fir

Larch.

Bamboo

the most generally useful of

It
is

all

the vegetable

productions of India.
clubs, walking-sticks,

used for boat-building, oars,

and

for scaffolding, bridge -building,

and water-pipes

it

the thatched roofs of

forms the framework which supports houses, and from it are made the war

lance of the cavalry and the pole of the dooli. The bamboo, is really a gigantic grass, is of two distinct kinds, the small, hard, close-grained, solid variety, the male

which

bamboo, which

is

rare,

generally used for arundinacea is a very fine species

and the large hollow one which is Bambusa uprights and scaffolding.
;

Kyanhaung

(B. auric'ulata)

and Tin (cephalostachyum pergracile) are two species of bamboo which grow with the teak, also Wagok (Oxytcnanthera albociliata) they have cavities in their diameter
;

nearly one-third

of

that

of

the

culms.

Some

of

the

bamboos

attain a height of

60

to
is

8 inches in diameter.

The wood

and are about very tough and strong

80
ft.

INDIA, BUEMA,

AND ANDAMAN ISLANDS

is

161

and

carry considerable weights. Bamboo undergrowth of teak in the Burmese forests.

will

the chief

Weight from 25

to

45

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

The Babool
is

or Babul (Acacia arabica), a species of acacia,

one of the chief products of the forests of Scinde and seldom attains a greater height than 30 to 38 ft. or greater diameter than 2 ft. Called Babbar in Scinde and Keekar in
It is a rapid-growing tree, requires the Punjab. no water, and thrives in poor soil is common
;

little

or

on the

lower Ganges, in the Deccan and Carnatic, and is largely cultivated in the Punjab. There are two varieties, pale
the red and white, so called from the colours of the wood former is the most valuable, having a heartwood of light red inclining to reddish brown after exposure, and often
;

mottled with dark streaks

it

is

close-grained, tough,

hard wood of great durability. It is much used for cart wheels and ploughshares and beams for roofing, and also used for boat-building and occasionally for sleepers.

Admirably adapted for tent pegs owing to its toughness and hardness combined with lightness it resists the white In some ant, but is liable to attack from a boring beetle. districts the wood is made into charcoal. Medullary rays are fine and moderately broad and conspicuous.
;

Weight about 54

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

dry

Tamarind (Tamarindus indica), found chiefly on hard, soils, never on hilly or rocky ground, grows and is cultivated in India, Burma, and Ceylon, and is one of the The wood finest of Indian trees both for size and beauty. of the young tamarind is much used for doorways, wheels, mallets, planes, rice pounders, etc., and also for furniture,
but
is is liable to

attack from

worms

if

not well seasoned

;

it

hard and close but of crooked grain

T.

not fitted for roofs,

162

TIMBER
is

but

good

for interior work.

Its

produce
is

is

too valuable

as a fruit for the tree to be

much used

as timber, but

much

wood of of the wood, especially of its roots, The difficult to work. great beauty, extremely hard and the wood is a tree grows to a height of 60 ft. and more
a cabinet
;

occayellowish white colour with irregular dark blotches The medullary rays are very in the heartwood. sionally
fine

and numerous.
Ibs.

Weight 54

per cubic foot.

Jackwood (Artocarpus integrifolia) or Jack tree, attains a height of 80 to 100 ft., grows throughout India, and is also found in the Antilles and Brazil, where it goes by the name
,

of Jaqueira.

It is

yellowish

brown

a large evergreen producing a coarse, wood, light at first and darkening in colour

with age, sometimes

known

as Jacqueria wood.

It is

very

durable, fairly hard, and used for a variety of purposes, chiefly for the manufacture of cheap furniture, and in
etc.

Great Britain for cabinet work, backs of brushes, marquetry, Eesistance to shear along fibres 672 Ibs. per square
inch.

Crushing strength 3'4 tons, transverse strength 3'04 tons, and coefficient of elasticity 445 tons per square inch (Prof. Unwin, Impl. List. Journal, Vol. V.).

Weight about 43

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

Hamileel or Hamillila (Berrya ammonilla)

is

one

of

the

most durable and useful timbers

of Ceylon, but is chiefly

used for making casks. The medullary rays are broad, the colour varies from light to dark red, and the heartwood is well defined, hard and close it grained, but apt to split is very durable. The tree is also found in Burma and
;

Southern India and goes by the general name of Trincomali Resistance to shear along fibres 830 Ibs. per square inch, crushing strength 3*4 tons, coefficient of transverse
wood.

INDIA, BUEMA,
strength
1899).
6*8
tons,

AND ANDAMAN ISLANDS

of
elasticity
List.

163

coefficient

780'7

tons

per square inch (Prof. Unwin, Impl.

Journal, May,

Weight 50

to 65 Ibs. per cubic foot.

is

Cocoanut Tree (Cocas nucifera)

large

palm which

produces a very heavy and durable wood of a dark brown colour traversed by longitudinal black seams, and with a
fine,

dense, even grain.

used for house posts,

transverse
3 by 1

In India and the tropics and, although it has very

it

is

little

strength, for rafters and ridge poles about inches and up to 20 ft. long, it makes handsome and durable furniture. In Europe it goes under the name " of Porcupine wood." It is one of the fancy woods of commerce, and is used for walking-sticks and also as a

veneer for small fancy

articles.

It is

not hollow like so

many palms, and attains a height

diameter of 1 to 2
ft.

of

30

to

40

ft.

and a

Weight 40

to

70

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Calamander (Diospyros qufesita) is the most esteemed of Ceylon woods, but is rare and realises a fancy price. It is in appearance somewhat similar to the finest walnut, a

brown colour mottled and striped with irregular black marks, but it is superior to walnut in the extreme closeness of its grain and richness of its colour. Like
rich hazel

ebony and satinwood, calamander is chiefly used for furniThe medullary ture, cabinet work, turnery, and veneers. are fine and equidistant. rays

Weight 57

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

is

The

Sal (Shorea robusta)

the most uniformly gregarious

in the forests

of the trees of India,

and
;

where

it

grows

is

always the prevailing tree it grows in the forests along the Terai at the foot of the Himalayas, near Gaya, and in M 2

164

TIMBEE
i.e., in the gorges the sal attains a height with a clear stem of 60 to 80 ft. to the

the north-east of India.

at the foot of the of

In some places,
hills,

Nepal Tera

first

100 to 150 ft. branch and a diameter of 6

to 8

ft.

such dimensions

are, however, exceptional, and as a rule the height is 60 to 80 ft. with 30 to 40 ft. clear stem, and 2 to 2^ ft. diameter. The logs are almost straight without any knots, flaws, or cracks, but the wood dries so slowly that it continues to shrink sometimes for years after other classes of wood have become quite dry. Small scantlings and planks are very liable to warp and split in drying, but the wood is remarkably fibrous and cross grained. Superior to almost all Indian woods for strength, it is well adapted for such as bridges, etc., and for house engineering purposes and ship building and for gun carriages. It is also very much used for railway sleepers, and their life is from The timber varies in colour eighteen to twenty years. from light to dark mahogany colour, possesses great stiffness and durability, and is the best building timber in Northern India. The annual rings are only noticeable on freshlyIt is classed with greenheart, mora, and a few cut wood.

other timbers in Lloyd's List. Weight about 55 Ibs. per cubic foot.

Toon (Cedrela toona) is a true cedar and akin to the red cedar of New South Wales and Queensland. When freshly felled it resembles ash, and becomes darker with age until
it it is

resembles mahogany in colour. Does not split or warp, durable, scented, easily worked, and is the best of the

Chittagong woods of commerce. Toon makes excellent tables, chairs, and bookcases, frames and furniture of all
sorts,

and

is

also used for doors

joists

and windows, but not

it

for

beams and
and
is,

of roofs,

as
It

moreover, costly.

is

not strong enough, a close-grained timber,

is

Phot "

[Henry Irving, Horley.

FIG. 28.

Deodar (Cedrus deodara}.

166

TIMBER

beautifully veined,

and takes a high polish. It is a good boats deal used for making tea chests, and in Assam good but is troubled It is not attacked by ants, are made of it. a borer. Formerly known as Moulmein cedar. by Weight about 31 to 35 Ibs. per cubic foot. C. serrata, a large evergreen, produces the same kind
of

wood of rather lighter weight. C. microcarpa, another of the species, is a larger tree than C. toona ; the timber has the annual rings distinctly

marked

all

are used for the

same purposes.

is

Deodar (Cedrus deodara), or Himalayan cedar (Fig. 28), one of the most beautiful trees in India and grows in

great quantities in
ft.

4,000 to 10,000 down the Eavi, Jhelum, and Chenab rivers in logs 20 to 60 ft. long and 2 to 12 ft. girth. The tree sometimes It is a attains a height of 150 ft. and a diameter of 8 ft. The wood is light variety of the cedar of Lebanon.
yellowish

above sea

the Himalayan forests at heights of level, and the timber is brought

brown in colour, of great strength, stiffness, and durability, and is thus well adapted for engineering purposes and for general constructional work The annual rings it is the chief timber of Northern India. it has a distinct are uniform, and the medullary rays fine
hardness,
;
;

fragrance, takes a long while to season

it

is

never well

enough seasoned for joinery work under eight or ten years, but for engineering purposes where large beams are used is sufficiently seasoned in three years takes
a high polish but does not take paint or varnish well, and is rather brittle to work laths from it burn like
;

candles.
in

It

is

extensively
its

Northern India, where

used for sleepers, especially life is about fourteen years,

It is

rather liable to attack from white ants.

coarse

turpentine

much used

in the

East

for medicinal purposes,

INDIA, BURMA,
as well as for tar

AND ANDAMAN ISLANDS

pitch, is obtained

1(57

and

from the trunk.

Chir pine is often palmed off as deodar on the unwary, but the latter possesses no resin ducts. Its durability is
of the

shown by its having existed for hundreds mosques and in old bridges. Weight 37 to 45 Ibs. per cubic foot.

of

years in some

Indian Ebony (Dlospyros ebenaster), a tree of medium height and seldom more than 8 to 12 inches in diameter,

found in great profusion in Bengal, Coromandel, and Ceylon. It is the chief ebony-yielding tree, and the only one giving a black wood without other markings, although The rings occasionally it is striated with lighter markings.
is

The are scarcely recognisable, and it takes a high polish. wood, which is of a dingy grey colour, is a good deal sap
used for door frames.
ture,

The heartwood

is

made

into furniit

and

also for the axles of carts, for

its

which

is

admir-

extreme hardness, toughness, and strength. ably by Besides being used for ornamental furniture it is also used
fitted

for ceilings,

wood carving, etc., and in Europe for turnery, cabinet work, keys of pianos, and rulers. It comes into the market generally as logs, and is sold by the ton.
Weight often exceeding 70
Ibs.

per cubic foot.

India,
in the

Palmyra Palm (Borassns flabelliformis) grows in Burma, and Ceylon, and is the only timber growing

Jaffna district, of about 400 square miles in area, in the north of Ceylon. The tree grows to a height of about

almost perfectly straight and of uniform diameter circular from 10 to 14 inches a few feet above perfectly
ft.,

60

the ground

the

wood

is

very dark.

Although consisting

largely of pith, it is sufficiently strong to stand driving as piles in bridge-work, and was used for this purpose

many

years

ago

by

Mr.

H. Byrne, M.I.C.E.,

instead

168

TIMBEE
bringing other
1

of

timber

to

the

site

at

considerably
ft.

greater expense.

Logs can be obtained 30

long.
it

The
stood

timber has a

fair life, the first bridges built

with

for sixteen years without repair, and in favourable situations Mr. Byrne considered their life to be twenty-five years.

Some

trees contain

much

less pith
ft.

have absolutely none for 20

specimen the woody portion is at half the height it is very hard and almost black. This Palmyra palm and the T. paroijiora of Jamaica, the trunks of which are said to be suitable for piles and marine work and to stand well in water, are, so far as the author
;

than others, and some In a good the diameter about one-third

of their length.

knows, the only palms which have been used for constructive work, but it is probable that many others might be
used for similar purposes if required. Weight 63 to 72 Ibs. per cubic foot.

Palms in hundreds of varieties are to be found in tropical and sub-tropical regions but except that they are often used for light construction work and for basket work, etc., few of them produce timber of commerce, although most of them yield products useful to man.
;

The Kiziuba Palm (Ceroxylon exorrhiza), a native of Central and South America, yields wood in small quantities which is used for flooring, umbrella sticks by the natives,
and musical instruments, whilst the Raplda ta'digcra, one of the most beautiful and singular of palms, which is found on the banks of the Amazon, is made into wooden blinds and
baskets by the Indians; and the Attalea funera furnishes the whalebone-like fibre much used for making brooms and

brushes.

The so-called malacca canes are furnished by the stems of the Calamis seipionum, which grows in Sumatra, from whence the canes are exported to Malacca.
1

Min.

of Proc. Inst. C.E., Vol.

XXII.

INDIA, BURMA,

AND ANDAMAN ISLANDS

169

Padouk is a majestic evergreen which grows in India and Burma, and is the most valuable timber found in the

Andaman
wood.

Islands.

It is generally

Pterocarpiis

P. dalberyioides the
the

known as Andaman redthe Burmese tree and Andaman tree. The timber of the'
indicus
is

Burmese tree is of lighter colour, and though this is more ornamental tree, the Andaman tree furnishes the better timber and is what is known in commerce. It is a wood of rich red or crimson colour, streaked
with black, of
great beauty, close grained, moderately hard, and takes a fine polish there are soft bands running through it, making it rather difficult to work. The sapwood
;

is of

there

a straw or yellowish brown colour, and in some trees The timber may be had in is a good deal of it.
ft.

lengths up to 25

and 4

ft.

square
is

it is

in every direction, lasts longer, furniture wood, and does not

much handsomer

stronger than teak as a

warp in seasoning. It is appreciated for railway sleepers, but is expensive, and in some districts has taken the place of sal in the Andamans

much

it is

used for boat-building.

For gun wheels and carriages

it

and

for ordinary carriage-building

is

a material of the

finest quality, is the rival of

mahogany

for cabinet work,

and

can scarcely be distinguished from it when polished. It is more costly to work than mahogany, and has, owing to this,

been abandoned by one well-known firm of English shopfitters, but in one establishment in the Bigg Market, Newcastle-on-Tyne, it has been in place for fifteen years, has weathered very well, and looks handsome. The Burmese
is used chiefly in that country or exported to but quantities of Andaman padouk are regularly brought into the London market, generally in planks 3 to 8 inches thick, and are used for furniture, internal

padouk
India,

and railway carriage work. It has been laid as a ball-room floor in tbe house of a member of the Council
fittings,

170

TIMBEE
One drawback
is

at Simla.

to

padouk

is

that

it

does not

take glue well.

Whilst this

being written the Government of India

are advertising as desirous of leasing for fifteen years the padouk timber available in the Andaman Islands. Padouk
trees have

been found with a clear stem of over 60 ft. in and 5 ft. in diameter the wood of the root is closer height grained, of deeper colour, and more beautifully marked than that of the stem. The trees are girdled in the same way as teak, and left from three to five years to season. The medullary rays are fine and very numerous, the This timber is known as pores scant and of moderate size. Mai Pradoo in Siam.
;

Weight about 48

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Mango (Manc/ifera indica) grows all over India it is also found in Brazil and the Mauritius. Generally of coarse and open grain, an inferior wood, it is nevertheless useful for common doors and door-posts, window frames, and for The wood is of straw planking when well seasoned. colour, light, strong but brittle, and durable when kept dry, but it rapidly decays under exposure. The true heartwood is small, very dark and distinct. The timber is much attacked by worms and ants. The fruit is the most valuable part of the tree. In India timber may be had up to
;

ft.

6 inches in diameter.
Ibs.

Weight about 40

per cubic foot.

Red Sanders (Pterocarpas santalinus), also known as red

sandalwood, is of dark reddish brown colour, extremely It is used a good deal hard, and but little inferior to teak.
for building

and

it

is

blinds and weather boards, and

a good timber for exposed Venetian much in request for carved

INDIA, BIJEMA,
door-posts.

AND ANDAMAN ISLANDS

it.

171

dye was formerly extracted from

Ked

sanders

a very pretty tree with dense foliage. 70 Ibs. and over per cubic foot. Weight
is

The wood

Mysore Sandalwood (Santalum album) is a small evergreen. is exported both in small round billets about 3 ft.

long and 5 or 6 inches in diameter and in roots and chips. The best quality sells at about sevenpence per pound. The

sapwood, of which there is little, is light in colour the heartwood is of a brownish tint and is hard, and has a
;

Sandalwood is of the natural order the East Indies and tropical islands of the Indian Archipelago, of which the common kind is this white sandalwood, very suitable for and a good deal used in workboxes, desks, and small ornaments
very
fine,

even grain.

of

santalacse, natives

of

it

specimens,

history Other fragrance is fatal to insects. are found in the Sandwich and Fiji Islands and species New Caledonia and are now brought into commerce, and
as
its

is

much

appreciated

for

preserving natural

much
where

of

it

is

the produce of

S.

cygnornm
sticks,

of

Western

Australia (which see).

it

There

is

a large export to China,

etc.

is

used

for

carvings, joss

The

deeper the colour of the wood and the nearer the root the better the perfume obtained from the oil, which is extracted

from the
basis of

root and which forms the The annual rings are distinct, many perfumes. the medullary rays fine. There is a Burmese sandalwood
called

heartwood and

kalamet which is not yet an article Weight 56 to 63 Ibs. per cubic foot.

of

commerce.

Vengai (Pterocarpus marsupiuni), a large deciduous tree,

is

after teak

trees of
well,

and blackwood one of the most important Southern India. The wood is durable, seasons and takes a fine polish, and the heartwood is full of

172

TIMBER
resin.
It is

gum

used for doors and window frames, posts,

carts,

beams, furniture, agricultural implements,

and in

It is largely used in boat-building, and also for sleepers. The heartwood is a yellowish brown with darker Mysore. are streaks, the sapwood is small, and the medullary rays very fine and numerous.

Weight averages about 55

Satinwood
is

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

the most valuable of light-coloured furniture wood. There are two kinds known in commerce, both being somewhat similar in appearance. The satinwood of India and Ceylon is the produce of a moderate-sized deciduous
It is allied to the mahogany tree (Chloroxylon swietenid). In India it is tree and might be called yellow mahogany.

used for building and agricultural implements as well as for furniture, and sleepers of this timber have a life of to hear twenty years in Ceylon. It is sometimes startling of timber of this character, so valuable in other parts of the world, being used in their native districts as we use fir

and pine in England and America. A bridge at Peradeniya, near Kandy, with a single arch of 205 ft. span, was built at entirely of this timber, and it was used for piling Colombo many years ago. The West Indian satinwood is considered the best and is most largely used; it comes from St. Domingo, Porto Kico, and the neighbouring districts in lengths up to 19 ft. and 12 to 20 inches a side, also in planks. Both East and West Indian varieties are much the same in appearance, somewhat like box in their yellow or cream colour with inner wood darker than outer, and no distinct heartwood, and of a fine satiny lustre. The

wood has the smoother and

anything the West Indian both kinds are hard and close grained, take a fine polish, and can be cut Their into small mouldings better than most wood.
annual rings are
distinct.
If

finer grain, but

INDIA, BURMA,

AND ANDAMAN ISLANDS

173

this

peculiarly feathery figure is very beautiful, and a log of character sometimes sells for 10s. per square foot.

Not so much used as formerly for furniture, it is chiefly cut up into veneers, and is largely used as panel work in passenger steamers. The timber is called yellow wood in the Bahamas. Porto Rico satinwood is most fancied, and
is

or in short lengths by the price varied in one sale from 51 per ton, and from Wd. to ISd. per square foot 1 to 1 inch thick, and one log sold at 150 a ton, nearly Is. 5d.
sold either at per square foot

weight.

Some time back

A few logs of Benin satinwood from West Ib. Africa occasionally come over with the mahogany, 14 to 19 ft. long and 23 to 27 inches deep, but are not much
a
appreciated.

size

Sundri (Heritiera minor) is an evergreen tree of small producing a heavy, tough, hard, durable timber, used

for

beams, buggy

shafts,

planking,

furniture,

etc.,

but

chiefly for boat-building.

is

Extensively used in Calcutta, it the chief timber of the Sunderbund forests, the sundri
of

forests

which are some

of

of

the

most valuable

of
of

the the

Government properties
timber
is

India.

The

colour

a dark reddish brown.

Ibs.

Weight about 67
Butter Tree or

per cubic

foot.

tree

Mahwa (Bassia latifolia), a large deciduous high of the tropical genus Sapotacte, comes The wood is of close, from the North- West Provinces. even grain and very hard, of a reddish colour, something
40
to

60

ft.

like jarrah, but lighter.

The annual rings are indistinct, Though one of the most of Indian forest trees the wood is not much important used. Seasoned wood is used for house- building, furniture, and naves of wheels.
the medullary rays numerous.

Weight 62

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

174

TIMBER

Chittagong Wood, a name somewhat vaguely given by cabinet-makers to various kinds of timber which come

from the

district of that

name, on the east

of the

Bay

of

Bengal, is usually the wood of the Cliickrassia tabularis, a tree of the cedar family which is a native of this district. The timber is hard and varies in colour from yellowish

brown
is

to reddish

brown with a

beautiful satiny lustre

and

much

is

valued in India and Europe for cabinet work. It tough, may be obtained up to 15 inches diameter, seasons
well,

and works up
is

and the sap wood

a

a fair-sized

tree, attaining

lighter colour. height of about 70

is of
it is

It
ft.

Besides being

common

in the Chittagong hills

found

in Assam and Eastern Bengal, and after jarul the chief tree in the forests of Burma and the

is

probably

Andamans,

A fine furniture
cedar.

wood, it is also used for pianos and carving. " " bastard In some parts of India it is called cedar or

Annual rings
is

distinct.

Cedrela toona
the

another of the woods which come under

Ibs.

name

of

Weight

of C. tabularis

Chittagong wood. about 49

per cubic foot.

Kumbuk (Tenninalia ylabra) is a Ceylon timber with reddish white sapwood about an inch thick, and browner
heartwood sometimes of the colour of walnut and sometimes almost black. It is apt to split in seasoning and not easy to work, but is hard and close of grain. The boring

worms

It has been used for get right into the heartwood. sleepers in Ceylon. Medullary rays are fine and numerous.

Weight 48

to

54

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

Red Eyne (Soymida febrifugn) is a Guzerat forest tree, but not plentiful. The timber is red in colour, hard and heavy, and considered by natives one of the most durable
is

of

woods,

therefore

much

used in the construction of

INDIA, BURMA,
temples.'

AND ANDAMAN ISLANDS

somewhat

175

The timber

is

cross grained like sal,

but

is

not

much

attacked by ants.
is

generally found red along river banks, produces a hard, close-grained, dark wood, rather liable to warp, but which is not much attacked by worms, and is used in native buildings and for agricul-

Jaman (Eugenia jambolana), which

tural implements, in durable as sleepers.

Ajmere

for lining wells,

is

and

is fairly

only a small tree. wood about 48 Ibs. per cubic foot. Weight of
Sissoo

Jaman

(Dalbergia sissoo}

is

one

of

the three Indian

rosewood, D. lat/folia and D. cultrata being the One of the most valuable of Indian timbers where others. strength and elasticity are required, it is the best of Indian timbers for joiners' work. In strength it is only inferior
species of
to sal

some ways surpasses it in value, for instance it is lighter. The heartwood is greyish brown, veined; it is very hard, remarkably strong, elastic and durable, and is used for all kinds of building work in North India, and It seasons well and also for the wheels of gun carriages.
in

and

does not warp or split. D. sissoo is a beautiful tree which grows rapidly and in

any soil. Weight 50

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

Blackwood or Shisham, the rosewood of Southern India (Dalbergia latifolia), with no distinct annual rings and fine

medullary rays, is an extremely beautiful furniture wood resembling the Brazilian rosewoods, and it is also used for it is hard to work agricultural implements and carving
;

owing to cross grain and incrustations of lime in the grain. Planking rather tends to split longitudinally until well seasoned and takes a good while to season; the sap is

176

TIMBER

rather wide, clearly defined, and of straw colour. The heart wood is nut brown or dark purple with white or dark
longitudinal veins or streaks and small whitish specks. May be had in logs up to 20 inches square and is used for
is

Found over a considerable range, it sleepers in Mysore. abundant in Southern India and shipped from Cochin,
Calicut,

and other places on the west coast to Great Britain. grows in Burma. When fresh sawn the wood has an agreeable -smell. The sawdust of rosewood is manufactured into the substance called bois-durci of which beautiful ebony-like medallions and other ornaments are made.
It also

Weight 50

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

Mutti (Terminalia coriacfe)

is

common

tree in Central

and Southern India, producing a heavy, hard, tough, fibrous, close-grained, dark brown and beautifully variegated wood, difficult to work, but durable and unaffected by white ants. It is used for beams and telegraph posts, sleepers, and the
solid wheels of buffalo carts.

Weight about 60

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

or Margosa (Melia indica), a large tree common throughout India and Burma, produces a hard, close-

Neem

grained, fibrous and durable wood, very like mahogany in colour, scented and beautifully mottled, which makes excellent furniture, especially that obtained from old trees.
It is

very durable, equal indeed to camphor wood, and so

it.

bitter that insects will not attack

able trunks and chests are

made

of

it.

Practically imperishAs neem is only a

small tree, about 20 ft. high, long beams are not available. The bark and leaves are used medicinally. Resistance to

shearing along the fibres 1,326 Ibs. per square inch, resistance to crushing 2'9 tons, coefficient of transverse

INDIA, BURMA,

AND ANDAMAN ISLANDS

177

strength 5'1 tons, and coefficient of elasticity 495 tons per

square inch. Weight about 50

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Anjan (Hardwickia binata) is a large deciduous tree which produces one of the hardest and heaviest of Indian woods. Heartwood dark red streaked with black, often with purple
tinge, cross grained and very close. lasts well in the ground as sleepers

Extremely durable, it and is appreciated for

;

naves of cart wheels and ploughshares it is liable to but does not warp. The tree is getting rather scarce.
pores are well
filled

split,

with resin, the medullary rays fine

Ibs.

The and

numerous.

Weight about 82

per cubic foot.

(Dipterocarpits tuberculatus) is one of the oilbearing trees whose timber is in considerable demand for boat and house building. It is slightly reddish brown in

Eng or In

colour and of a hard nature.

It grows plentifully in India and Burma, and a small quantity of eng planks are brought into the Clyde and other British ports each year.

Weight 50

to

59

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

is

Gurjun (Dipterocarpus turbinatus)

bearing
trees
of

another of the

oil-

India.

lofty
ft., it

evergreen sometimes
gives a

attaining a height of over 200 brown colour, but the timber

wood

of a red

is

soon destroyed by the

white ants, and it is not much appreciated in India, though used for house-building to a small extent, and a few gurjun planks come occasionally to the English market, probably as stowage. The tree grows on the Chittagong hills, in

Burma, and the Andaman Islands. Weight about 38 Ibs. per cubic foot.
Boxwood
T.
(lliu'its

semperrirens)

is

a small tree found in

of yellowish

different parts of India

which yields a wood

178

TIMBER
European variety. It is used for Box grows to a considerable
per cubic foot.

colour similar to the

house-building and for canoes. size in the Himalayas.

Weight 55

to

65

Ibs.

Kosum

(Schleichera

or G-ausan, which also goes under other names trij itga) a large deciduous tree found in various
,

as in Burma and Ceylon, yields timber with a heartwood of reddish brown which is very

parts of India, as well

It is used for oil and sugar hard, strong, and durable. mills and is considered the best timber in India for rice

pounders, and also used for agricultural implements and It seasons well and takes a good polish. This is carts.
the best tree for
lac.

Rays very
per cubic

fine
foot.

and numerous.

Weight 50

to

70

Ibs.

in

The Khair or Kath Tree or Cutch (Acacia catechu) is found most parts of India and Burma and furnishes, besides
of

gum, a useful hard timber

is

dark or sometimes light

purposes,
agricultural

reddish brown colour, close and regular in grain, which

used

for

general

building

implements,

etc.

Palu (Mimusops hexandra), one of the most important and Ceylon, is a very hard, dense wood to be had in logs up to 2 ft. 9 inches diameter. The sap,
forest trees of India

about an inch thick, is of straw colour, the heartwood dark walnut, and the annual rings are very distinct.
Pyinkado (Xylia dolabriformis), called ironwood and Acle in the Philippines, is found in the Bombay district, where it goes by the name of Jambu and Errol, and it is one of
the chief

timbers of Burma (Pyinkado is the Burmese The wood is very hard, dense and close grained, name). often beautifully marked and with a wavy grain the colour
;

INDIA, BURMA,
is

AND ANDAMAN ISLANDS

or jarrah.
It
is

179

reddish brown like

mahogany

used for

house-building, bridges, and railway sleepers, but is difficult to get, so much so that sufficient cannot be obtained for

the
to

requirements of the Burmese railways.

It

is

hard
7

work and unless well seasoned is liable to split w hen exposed to the sun. The pores are filled with a thick glutinous substance which oozes out of the wood after being worked. In Siam it is called Mai deng.

Weight 58

to

66

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Teak (Tectona yrandis) (Fig. 29) grows in various parts

of

India, in Chittagong, Darjeeling, Terai, and whilst in Java there are extensive plantations it
;

Assam,
is

also

found in the French colonies of Cochin China and in the Dutch East Indies, but the chief supplies come from Burma and Siam. Latterly large quantities have been sent to the European market from Java.

The best quality is got from the south-western slopes of the range of mountains on the Burma-Siamese frontier.
The trunk
good
soil
is

straight,

may measure

90

and an ordinary full-grown tree in ft. to the first branch and 18 ft.

in girth 6 ft. above the ground, but these dimensions as a rule vary from 30 to 60 ft. to the first branch and 6 to

12
the

ft.

in girth.

One

of the tallest
to
is

measured was 106

ft.

to

first

branch.

Owing

timber of the above sizes

the difficulties of transport not often brought into the

market, and it is exceptional to see logs in Rangoon over 50 ft., and these are not of large girth for special purposes round logs 40 to 50 ft. long may be brought down, but the
;

usual lengths are 25 to 27 ft. 50 ft. to the English market.

grey colour, and the leaves

few come occasionally over The bark is thin, of yellowish are large and round in shape,

resembling a cabbage

leaf,

and about 10 inches in diameter.

Teak occurs

in small patches in large forests of other trees

N 2

[./

Photo

Ser. (retired). Oliver, Ind. For.

bi/]

Teak (Tectona yrandis) is the tree on the left, The man at foot is holding a 3-ft. walking-stick teak trees behind. caMei). the trunk. The tree on right is a Dwani (Eriolcena across cutch. of young bamboos, teak, and The undergrowth is composed

FIG 99

with other

INDIA, BURMA,
"

AND ANDAMAN ISLANDS

unknown
hence the

181

teak forests

"

as such are

difficulties

of getting the wood are great, and as the forests nearer the rivers get worked out the time and labour experienced in

cases logs have to be dragged by elephants before they reach the stream or choung which leads to the main river down which they may have to be rafted for a thousand miles

getting teak increases

in

many

for miles overland

dry for seven months of the year, and the timber can only be taken down in the rains, so that a scanty rainy season means a bad floating season and

many

of these choungs are

consequently a short supply. This difficulty in extraction accounts for the high price of Kangoon teak. An idea of the scattered disposition of teak timber may be gathered
that although in Burma alone there are 120,000 square miles of forest, according to the report of the Forest Administration (1904-5), only 218,466 tons of

from the

fact

50 cubic

feet

of forest only

were extracted in that year; each square mile produced If tons, or equal to about one tree
of

per two square miles.

The method

seasoning teak

when standing has been

;

it is called practised in Burma from time immemorial " notch is cut right round the tree and as low girdling." as possible, through the sapwood and about an inch into the

heartwood, so as to completely sever connection between bark and sap it is then allowed to stand exposed to the action
;

wind and sun for three years or longer before it is felled. No tree under 6 fc. girth is allowed to be girdled. From the day the tree is girdled until it is lifted on to the saw bench at Rangoon or Moulmein four and a half years are always allowed to elapse, and in some cases a much longer time. The felling and seasoning arrangements are supervised by an officer of the Forestry Department. Teak is strictly preserved by the Government and either cut by them, or
of

the different forests are leased out to timber firms for a

182

TIMBEE

period of years. There is probably no timber so unsatisthe heartwood is generally factory in conversion as teak
;

rambling, i.e., not straight, very much shaken, and often hollow and rotten for a considerable distance, and a large insect called the "bee hole-borer "plays havoc with the outer

This insect is really the larva of a moth (Duomitus layers. allied to the goat moth of Europe which is so sp.)
destructive to the willow.
trees

Damage

is

also caused to the

by parrots, woodpeckers, and wild animals which make wounds forming centres of decay. In consequence of these frequent defects it is not possible to run teak through the mill in the same way as fir or pine, each log having to be carefully examined by the sawyer in order
that
it may be broken up with the least amount The ordinary market sizes are approximately

of waste.

as follows

Squares, 12 to 30 ft. long, 9 inches to 24 inches square. Slabs, 6 to 24 ft. long, 9 inches to 24 inches wide, 2 inches to 8 inches thick.
Scantlings anything under the above.

Teak, when fresh sawn, is light brown in colour and smells rather like tan. After exposure to weather it turns
grey, but

when kept under cover it turns a reddish brown which gets richer with age the wood is of an oily texture, and the annual rings are distinctly marked. It is moderately hard, strong, clean and straight in grain, though rather coarse and open, is fairly easily worked, but contains a
;

metallic substance like phosphate of lime, which blunts the It does not split, crack, shrink, or alter its shape planes.
after being cut like so
less

many

due
it

to the careful
is

other timbers, which is doubtseasoning which the timber receives

before

iron with which

superior to

Teak does not corrode comes in contact, being in this respect oak, and is much used as backing for armour
put on to the market.
it

plate in ironclads, the oil contained in the timber probably

INDIA, BUKMA,

AND ANDAMAN ISLANDS

183

Teak is the chief acting as a prevenfcative against rust. in most parts of India for engineering structures, timber used
temples, and heavy work, and is one of the few timbers which resist the white ant. It lasts fairly well in sea
water, and the teredo will not choose it in preference to other timber in the same neighbourhood. Its durability in tropical climates is extraordinary instances are known of teak beams
;

thousand years, and it is one of the few really having durable Indian timbers. It is a good deal used for sleepers, and half-round timbers of jungle teak have been in the track after at least twenty-five years' service in Bombay and The Burmese use it a good deal for carving, but Gujarat. owing to the grain it cannot be very finely worked. Some of the internal woodwork of Truro Cathedral is of teak it is largely used for ships' decking, handrails, exposed doors and fittings all over the world, for boat and house building and for furniture in India, and for doors, windows, and first-class joinery work in Great Britain. It is too costly
lasted a
;

for use out of India except for special work, being the dearest timber with the exception of mahogany imported

in

any large quantities into Great Britain. It is stronger and stiffer than English oak, although the structure of the wood is somewhat similar. The price of Kangoon logs in 6 10s. to the English market varies from 9, flitches or slabs from 9 10s. to 12, and planks from '14 5s. to 19 35s. per load of 50 cubic ft., and for good ships' decks it will sometimes run up to nearly 30 a load. From what has been said as to the risk in cutting up
teak logs it will be evident that for planking or thin stuff it is advisable to buy teak cut as required and not in the log.

A large quantity of Java teak is now imported, but it is not nearly of such good quality as Rangoon teak. It is not such a mellow wood, being softer, more coarse and open in
grain,

and in the log as imported

is

much more burrowed

184

TIMBER

by insects than the Rangoon timber and is not so well converted it is, however, much cheaper, not running to much more than half the cost of Rangoon, and obtains a ready market. Some of the better quality of Java teak is very
;

suitable for

certain classes

of

work where mild-natured

is

teak

is

not essential, but a large quantity of poor stuff

exported. and the price

Logs and planks are

is

much

the

same

also brought from Bangkok as Moulmein or Rangoon.

Great quantities of teak railway keys are now imported. The total quantity of teak exported from Burma in 1904-5 was 135,385 tons, as against 156,039 tons in the previous year, and of this 87,068 tons were shipped to
British India and 34,407 tons, or 25 per cent, of the total,

Rangoon teak
got
is

were exported to the United Kingdom. is not equal to the demand

quickly bought up.

The supply
;

of

all

that can be

Teak

is

classed highest of all

timbers at Lloyd's. 1

Weight, well seasoned, from 37 to 52 Ibs. per cubic foot. In connection with teak may be mentioned the curious circumstance that much emphasis is laid by different forest
officials

on the damage
is

to the

timber caused by careful

fire,

protection of
to

the forests from

which

is

in contrast

what

the case in America and shows that like causes

do not produce like effects. From much evidence bearing on this point, the following remarks made by Mr. Troup in the Indian Forester will suffice: " It is impossible by mere
figures,

terrible destruction

however accurate ... to give any idea of the which is being wrought in our once valuable moist mixed forests by prolonged fire protection. We are most certainly exterminating our teak by fire
.

Although such a large quantity of teak is used for constructive purposes in India, the author cannot find any carefully recorded series of experiments on large pieces of timber. The modulus of rupture is generally assumed as between 12,000 and 13,000 Ibs. per square inch.

INDIA, I3UEMA,
protection. in an area

AND ANDAMAN ISLANDS

185

The vigorous poles and saplings which we find which has been annually burnt over are, in the " the reason protected area, conspicuous by their absence that the young teak are suppressed and killed off by being the quicker-growing bamboos and inferior species.
;

a soft white wood which goes by many names White in colour when freshly cut it turns darker on exposure it is very soft and perishable. It is probably from the large deciduous tree Bombax malabariatm (B.

Bombax

is

in India.

insigne grows in the

Andamans

as well as in India)

it

is

the silk cotton tree,

is

and grows throughout the East.

It

used for planking, packing cases, tea boxes, toys, fishing

boats, coffins, lining of wells, etc.

Some planks
;

of

"

Man-

churian bombax," probably from trees of the same species, appeared in a sale catalogue some time ago they were from 10 to 19 ft. long, 2 to 6 inches thick, and 8 to 19 inches
wide, but there was difficulty in disposing of them.

The

same timber It bombax. known.

weigh 17
Ibs.

in
is

another catalogue was called Malabar one of the softest and lightest timbers
Ibs.,

Average weight about 24

per cubic
foot.

but some specimens only

Andaman Marblewood
one
of the

or

Zebra

Wood

is

from Diospyros

The sapwood is kurzii, ebony-producing the heartwood very dark and streaked with black and grey, grey in alternate layers. It may be had in sizes up to
trees.

20
to

ft. long and 9 inches square, is difficult to season, liable shrink and warp, and is used for cabinet work, furniture
}

carving, walking-sticks, etc. Weight varies from 43 to 80 Ibs. per cubic foot.

Kokko
of

names and

(Albizzia Lebbek), the Siris tree, goes by a variety in India, Burma, is common and the

186

TIMBER
The wood

varies a good deal in strength and very useful, and of late a good deal has been weight, but The "burrs" are specially sent to the London market.

Andamans.

is

It valuable and bring fancy prices. " walnut of the European market.

is

the

"East Indian
cut
ft.

Logs

in

the
;

Andamans
the

give about 50

ft.

length by about 3

a side
is

wood

seasons,

works, and polishes well, and

fairly

Used for sugar-cane crushers, furniture, well and wheel work, and in South India for boats in the Andamans it is employed for building generally, and especially for house posts.
durable.
curbs,
;

Weight 40

to

60

Ibs.

per cubic
,

foot.

Chnglan. (Myristica irya) called

Maloh

in

Burma, Chuglan

It is a being the Andaman and Iriya the Cingalese name. moderate-sized evergreen, producing a dark olive green, hard, handsome wood, which seasons well and takes a good

polish.

In the

Andamans
Ibs.

it

is

chiefly used for furniture.

Weight about 52

per cubic foot.

Kaita-da (Artocarpus chaplasha), an

is

Andaman wood which

also

found in Assam and Bengal, called

latter district.
it

Sam

in the

former and Chaplash in the varies from yellow to brown

grained, durable, and seasons

The colour
it

is

moderately hard, even

well.

Good

for furniture
;

looks

when

polished like coarse

satinwood

it is

also used

and general building. This wood neither cracks nor warps in seasoning, and is not much attacked by white ant. Weight about 30 to 35 Ibs. per cubic foot.
for doors, door frames,

Lakuch

(^4.

lakooclta)

is

white,

soft,

and perishable

timber of yellow colour, turning to dark brown on exposure. Much used for building in the Andamans, it is in some places
highly prized, but
is

more important

as a fruit than timber

INDIA, BUEMA,
tree.

AND ANDAMAN ISLANDS

187

Can be had

according to the jack tree.

Both Lakuch and Kaita-da, Colonel Drury, would appear to be a species of

in large logs.
Ibs.

Weight about 40

per cubic

foot.

Thitman, or "Prince of

Woods" (Podocarpus

neritfolia),

close produces a wood of light yellow or yellowish grey, esteemed in Burma even grained, and fairly hard. Much

importance in the Andaman Islands, it is excellent to work, and is used for general carpentry, also for oars, spars, and tea boxes. Logs may be got The medullary rays are to 35 ft. and 15 inches square. up very fine and numerous. Weight 39 to 42 Ibs. per cubic foot.

and

of considerable

Mohwa (Mimusops littoralis), Andaman bullet wood, is used for general building work and house posts in the it is red in colour, Islands in Burma it is called Katpali
;

smooth and

close

grained,
is

but

apt

to

split.

In the
seasoned

Andamans
like teak
is

it is

also used for bridges.

The

tree

is

girdling," difficult to cut or saw

Ibs.

by

"

not attacked by white ants, but

into.

and drive nails

Weight 64 to 72

per cubic foot.

Thingan (Hopea odorata), which is a lofty tree, attaining a height of 200 ft. and sometimes 80 ft. to the first branch,

grows in the tropical moist forests of Burma and in the Andaman Islands, where it is called Kimda. It is the chief timber of Southern Tenasserim, and is a good deal used for gun carriages and general carriage work. It furnishes a beautiful, valuable, and durable wood of yellowish brown colour, hard, close and even grained, and boats made of it are said to last twenty years. Half a dozen logs of thingan were in a London sale catalogue

188

TIMBER
July
last.

for

Logs 40
as
Ibs.

ft.

obtained.

Known

Mai talden

long by 2 ft. a side can be in Siam.

Weight about 50

per cubic foot.

Pyinma (Lyt hracce flos rcglnce) is the chief timber tree of Assam, Eastern Bengal, and Chittagong, and one of the most important of the trees of Burma. The above is the

Burmese name

it

is

called Jarul in Bengal.

It gives a

good useful timber, but much of it grows twisted and there is a good deal of waste in conversion.
for shipbuilding, boats, carts,

and knotty,
It is

used

gun carriages and gun

;

stocks,

also for building

in colour,

work and roof shingles

the

wood

varies

some being redder than other. equal to teak for resisting the teredo. The medullary rays are very annular rings marked by belt of large pores. Called fine Mai tabak in Siam.
It is
;

Weight 40

to

45

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

G-angau (Mesua ferrea) is a small tree about 20 ft. high which grows amongst the teak in Burma this is the Burmese and Andaman name, but it is known under
;

various other

names

in different districts, as, for instance,

Nahor
in

Assam, and Assam ironwood. It grows plentifully the Andamans, where it is used for general building
in
etc.
;

work, bridges, gunstocks, tool handles,

hard, heavy and strong, and
difficult to

it

is

very

probably the reasons why it is is dark red, and the pores are
Sleepers
of this

work, and these are not more used. The wood

filled

with yellow resin.

wood are

said to be as good as those of

Ibs.

pyinkado.

Weight up

to

74 and 76

per cubic foot.

Thitya (Shorea obtusa) is found in the forests of Burma to a height of 2,000 ft., a large tree, sometimes 50 ft. to the first branch the wood is the colour of sal, but more

up

INDIA, BURMA,

AND ANDAMAN ISLANDS

180

even-grained. It is a very hard, durable timber, used for canoes and building, and also for tool handles and planes. Sometimes called Itchwood owing to the itching caused

when

its

Weight 56

chips or bark are rubbed against the skin. to 64 Ibs. per cubic foot.

found amongst the teak in

Ingyin (Pentacme suavis or P. siamcnsis) is a large tree, Burma and other places, which

yields a heavy, very hard, close-grained timber, somewhat resembling sal in structure and colour, and much prized for
its

durability.

It is

used for building.

Weight 54

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

It
is

is

Cangu (Shorea tumbuggaia) also goes by other names. found in the South Deccan, and after the red sanders

the most valuable and useful tree of the

Cuddapah
;

forests

and

specially appreciated for house posts it is harder than sal, though of similar structure and much smoother.

Weight 66

to

70

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Che (Semecarpus pandurata) is the Burmese name of a deciduous tree, common in the upper mixed forests of

Burma.

The wood is soft, greyish brown in colour, often with yellow streaks, and shows no annual rings it contains an acrid juice, which causes swelling and irritation,
;

of

and timber-cutters object to it comes in the shape

felling

Occasionally some of planks into the English

it.

market.

Weight about 37

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

In the Himalayas are to be found a profusion of fine pine timbers, amongst which are the following
:

The Bhotan Pine or Blue Pine (Pinus excelsa) is not unlike the P. strobus of North America and grows to a height of
100
ft.

The heartwood

is

of reddish colour, very

compact

190

TIMBER
;

and durable, and contains much resin it is the most valuable timber of the districts in the Himalayas, where it
is

found from 6,000 to 10,000 ft. above sea level. It is largely used for building and engineering work in Cashmere and the Punjab. For planking, doors, windows, and furniture it is better than the deodar, as it is not so brittle and
does not contain the
oil

which in the deodar so readily

absorbs dirt

it is

also used for tea boxes.

Ibs.

Weight 28

to

30

per cubic foot.

Long-leaved Pine or Chir Pine (P. longifolla}. is not such good timber as the blue pine, being softer, but is used a

good deal in building, for shingles, tea boxes, in greater profusion than the blue pine. "Weight 28 Ibs. per cubic foot.
Khasia Pine P.
(P.

etc.

It

grows

khasya)

has

much

the appearance of

sylvestris, and is the chief soft wood for building in the Khasia hills, where over a large area it is known as Tinya, and attains a height of 100 ft. with 3 ft. diameter. It is It is moderately hard, pale brown also found in Burma. in colour, and very resinous. The white, soft, and easily worked wood of the Spruce Eir

of the

Himalayas, a tree similar to European spruce, is used in Simla and neighbourhood for rough joinery, largely and the Silver Fir, which sometimes has a planking, etc.
;

trunk rising 40

ft.

before sending out a branch, produces

is

a similar timber, but one which

work, nor is it in much demand found in its neighbourhood.

not suitable for exposed if the deodar is to be

Larch, somewhat like the European larch, and Cypress, which yields a brown hard wood, are used for building and

other purposes.

CHAPTER

VII

TIMBER OF THE STRAITS SETTLEMENTS, MALAY PENINSULA, JAPAN, AND SOUTH AND WEST AFRICA
STRAITS SETTLEMENTS Tembusu Tembaca Daru Balau Keledang Kulum Naito Balam Penak Chengai Kranji Sepan Teng Mang Tampenis Chainpak Meranti Bintangor Eengas
:

Manau
Tring

Djati

Billian

Kajoe Bessi

Kariskes

Possi

Possi,

Merabau Molave Lauan. Shiron Gashi Aka Gashi Shira Gashi JAPANESE TIMBER Honoki Aka Matsu Kuro Hinoki Onara Sugi Keyaki Matsu Ash. Katsura. Yellowwood Ironwood Milkwood SOUTH AFRICA: Sneezewood Stinkwood Els Ash. Assegai Wood Cedarboom Kajatenhout Ikusi Mlange Cedar Iroko Opepe Oganwo Ekki
:

Greenheart.

TIMBER OF THE STRAITS SETTLEMENTS AND MALAY

ARCHIPELAGO.

NOTWITHSTANDING
useful

that

there

are

timbers in these

districts,

quantities of they are not

hard,
easily

obtainable.

Tembaca .(Fa greed spcciosa) is found in the Malay States, Sumatra, and other places, where it grows to a height of 80 ft. and 5 ft. diameter with straight, unbranched trunk for a considerable height. The timber is yellowish white, hard, compact, resinous, and very durable and has little or no sap. The annual rings very distinct and close. This timber is used for beams in bridges,
house-building, planking, etc.

Tembusu

192

TIMBER
of

is

Sumatra. There hard and heavy, somewhat resembling Balau, of yellowish colour, with fine, It is now scarce except in small sizes about distinct rays.

Daru is a fairly large tree, a native no sapwood noticeable the wood

;

is

6 inches square.

It is
Ibs.

used for general building purposes.

per cubic foot.

Weight about GG

Balau or Hallow (Parrnarium oblongifoliuni) is now rare. The wood is yellow when freshly cut, but becomes orange

and eventually dark brown, is not unlike little lighter in colour, and has some
qualities.
piling,
It
is

billian,

though a
excellent

of
is

its

a good, useful

and

beams, and sleepers in one of the best timbers for resisting the teredo. Often called Johore teak.
is

employed for Singapore and other places,

timber,

Keledang (Artocarpus lanceofolia) is a good-sized tree with straight trunk and fairly common. The sapwood is light, the heartwood yellow, becoming dark red with exposure a good, useful timber, of even grain, hard and it is a favourite wood for heavy, with conspicuous rays Chinese coffins, durable underground, bends easily, and is
; ;

not unlike. mahogany in appearance.

Kulum (Scordocarpus

Iwnieenses), a

common
;

tree of the

Malay Peninsula, yielding a first-class timber of deep brown the annual rings colour, resinous, heavy, and fairly hard are narrow and wavy. It is used for bridge and house building and other general purposes.

Weight about 62

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Naito Balam (Payena lucida), another common tree of this district, which sometimes attains a height of 100 ft., produces a fairly hard red timber, with moderate-sized pores

STRAITS SETTLEMENTS
in short radial lines,

AND MALAY ARCHIPELAGO

193

and very fine medullary rays. used largely for plunking. Weight about 45 Ibs. per cubic foot.

It is

Penak Chengai (Balanocarpus maximus) is a very large the wood is yellowish tree, which is found also in Johore brown, but darkens with age, and is hard and durable. The It is excellent timber for general rays are very distinct. There are several building work and boat-building.
;

varieties of the tree, but this is considered the best.

Weight 59

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

The Malay name Kranji Sepan (Dialum platysepalium}. covers the seven species of Dialum found in the Kranji
Malay Peninsula, all of which yield -very hard, durable timber. The heartwood is of dark brown colour, like mahogany, the sap of light colour the wood is heavy, tough, and extremely durable, with a close grain. Used for The best of it is now ship and house building in Borneo. rare. Laslett tested a piece which proved equal to a crush;

ing strain of 10,920 Ibs. per square inch. Weight 67 Ibs. per cubic foot.

Borneo,
often

Teng Mang (Dryolalanops aroinatica), the camphor tree of is also found in Sumatra and elsewhere. It
ft.

attains a height of 150

with 3 to 4

ft.

diameter, and

with
is

straight unbranched trunk

for

80

ft.

The

timber

a deep red in colour, tough, close in texture, and often cross-grained the sapwood is light in colour, but in
;

the larger trees there is very little of it. The wood darkens with age, and has a strong smell of turpentine, due to the
oil of

camphor contained in the resin. It is one of the best Malay hardwoods, very durable, and when polished resembles mahogany. It is used for general building
of

work.
T.

Laslett tested small pieces

inches by 2 inches

194

TIMBER
of 6,790 Ibs. per square inch. He transverse stress which gave 8,884 Ibs.

which stood a tensile strain

also

made

six tests for

per square inch, whilst the crushing stress on cubes 2 inches by 2 inches gave an average of 5*33 tons per square inch. Camphor is found in small crystalline masses in natural
cavities in the wood.

Chinese, but

This is very much prized by the not the camphor of commerce. Weight about 47 Ibs. per cubic foot.
is

60

Tampenis (Sloetia sideroxylon), a well-known tree from to 80 ft. high, which produces one of the best timbers of

these parts, with yellowish white sapwood, and heartwood dark reddish brown, is hard, resinous, and durable, and

and termites. It has somewhat broad, but distinct rings, and the irregular, dark, trunk is unbranched for the greater part of its height.
is

said to be proof against fungus

Weight 67

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Champak (Magnolia champaca), the Malay name for a tall producing a hard, durable, and ornamental wood of yellowish brown colour and even grain, is largely used in India for planking, panel, carriage work, and furniThe tree is much cultivated round about Jain and ture. Hindoo temples, and the wood made into beads and neckIt is called Titu Sepa in laces, which are sold to pilgrims. Assam. Resistance along fibres as tested by Prof. Unwin 753 Ibs., crushing stress 1'57 tons, and transverse stress
evergreen
3'48 tons per square inch.

Weight about 41

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

a straight trunk 3
in

Meranti (Hopea meranti) grows to a height of 100 ft. with ft. in diameter. It is also fairly abundant

Malacca and Perak.

The stem and branches when cut

yield a quantity of damar, a kind of gum, of considerable commercial value at Singapore. The timber is a soft red

STRAITS SETTLEMENTS
wood,

AND MALAY ARCHIPELAGO

195

for planking, furniture, and box-making, occasionally imported into England in the shape of planks 2 to 4 inches thick. The annual rings are distinct.

much used

and

is

Weight 55

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

of

Bintangor (Calopliyllum inopliyllnm), a beautiful evergreen small size, which usually grows near the sea, and does not

thrive inland, yielding a close-grained colour, variable in character, but a

sleepers, is much in demand well as for piles and scaffolding,

smooth wood

of red for

good deal used

for the sternposts of ships, as

and

is

an excellent cabinet;

There are some thirty species this is considered the best. In Bengal it goes by the name of Pinnay, and in Ceylon Penaga. In the Andamans it may be had
makers' wood.

up to 25 fr. and 18 inches square. Probably one of the trees from which the poon spars were obtained. Weight 42 to 59 Ibs. per cubic foot.
in logs

Rengas Manau
Straits

mahogany,
;

(Melanorrhoea maingayo), often called is a fairly hard, dark red wood, coarse in
it

quality

the caustic resin

contains often causes Eengas

poisoning amongst those working at the timber. Rengas is the Malay name applied to various trees of this species.
or none of this timber exported from the but there is a good local demand in Singapore Malay States, and other places. It is also found in Borneo, where it is

There

is

little

called

Borneo rosewood.
is

It

has very distinct dark rings.

of shipment,

name for teak. Sourabaya is the port and it is sometimes called by this name. It is a kind of teak which grows in Java, and is the only wood used there for sleepers, for which purpose it is very durable and gives great satisfaction, as white ants never attack it
Djati

the Malay

when used
trains, but

for this
it

purpose owing to the shaking of the

to

is

liable

attack

when

the sleepers are o 2

196

TIMBER
It is

stacked.

imported into Great Britain in the shape

of

planks, and is probably, as a rule, the same timber which goes by the name of Java teak, and of which there are

extensive plantations in the island.

foot

Weight with 1'2 per cent, of moisture 41 and 37 Ibs. when perfectly dry.
Billian or

Ibs.

per cubic

Ironwood (Ensideroxylon

zirac/eri),

a very hard,

heavy brown coloured timber suitable It piling, comes from North Borneo.
;

for shipbuilding
is

and

not to be obtained

in large quantities or in long lengths the largest sizes run from 25 to 45 ft. long and about 10 inches by 10 inches
It is one of square, and it is obtainable also in the round. the few timbers which are practically impervious to the

teredo.

was bolted to the jetty at Port Darwin or Palmerston, on the northern coast of the colony of South Australia, by Mr. J. W. James, M.I.C.E., on 2nd November, 1886, and it remained intact until examined in December, 1889, when no trace of the teredo could be found in it, and this of several timbers tried was the only one which withstood the teredo, and that in a locality where it is so particularly voracious that the piling of the jetty, which was of Karri timber, bad to be encased with Muntz metal. Billian was afterwards used to replace Karri for chafing pieces between high and low water on this same Billian was not proof against attack by white ants, jetty. but was not materially damaged in twelve months, and
log of this timber

hereabouts the white ant is as destructive as in any part of the world. There are two varieties of this timber, Billian
best, is of a

Chingy and Billian Wangy. The latter, which is much the brown colour, and has a structure not unlike greenheart. A small quantity of Billian comes into the
English market. Weight about 70
Ibs.

per cubic foot.

STKAITS SETTLEMENTS

AND MALAY AECHIPELAGO

sp.),

197

Kajoe Bessi (Erytliroxylon

another of these so-called

neighbouring islands, is used by the Government for building bridges, piers, It is very hard, has a long life, and can be houses, etc. obtained in lengths of 60 ft. and a foot square.

ironwoods of Borneo and the

much

Kariskes (Mimusops

the

same
1 foot

locality,

from sp.), is another very hard wood which can be got in lengths up to 90 ft.

and

diameter.

Possi (Sonneratia acida) or Malay river willow, not a true willow, can be obtained 60 ft. long and though 1 foot diameter.
Possi

There are two mangrove trees known by the name Tring (Bruguiera and RkizopJiora) found in the Celebes and also in Australia, from which logs 120 ft. long can be got, but only 9 inches in diameter. Mr. James also tested these timbers (Kajoe Bessi, Kariskes, Possi Possi, and Tring) at Port Darwin, and found that Kajoe Bessi, Kariskes, and Tring were attacked by the teredo in eighteen weeks, but all four
timbers resisted better than either Karri or Jarrah.

They

were

all

partly destroyed

by white ants

after being buried

in the

ground

for twenty-five weeks.

Merabau or Miraboo (Afzelia bakeri), one of the most important timber trees of the Malay Peninsula, is fairly abundant in Perak and Selangor, and extends as far north as Siam. The timber is dark brown in colour, hard, and very durable. It is one of the best for sleepers, and also takes
a fine polish. The medullary rays are fine. 55 Ibs. per cubic foot. Weight

Molave (Vitex geniculata), probably allied to the Milla of Ceylon, is a tree found in the Philippines, which yields a

wood extensively used

in

the

islands,

of

very durable

198

TIMBER
close

grained, and of straw satinwood. resembling Weight about 50 Ibs. per cubic foot.
quality,

colour,

somewhat

Lauan (Dipterocarpus thurifera) is another Philippine wood which was at one time much appreciated for shipbuilding for the reason that it had the merit of not splintering when
struck with shot.

JAPANESE TIMBEE.
Notwithstanding the extensive forest area of Japan, amounting to about 28,000,000 acres, containing much very
valuable timber, it is extremely doubtful if any great A people quantity will ever come into the foreign markets. with so keen a business instinct is unlikely to follow the
of other nations and denude the policy country of such a valuable asset. The Government has for some time past taken up and studied the question of forestry

shortsighted

which represent about half the forest resources of the kingdom, and not only does Japan husband her own natural resources, but she is actively engaged in
in the State forests,

planting foreign species of timber as well. Large quantities of American timber have been imported in the past, but

Japanese expect soon to be able to do without. Japanese hardwood was largely used for Chinese railways, especially along the Gulf of Pechili, where timber is very scarce, and i'200,000 worth of hardwood sleepers were
this the

exported from the island of Hokkaido in 1904, but, with the exception of oak and ash, the author is unaware of any

Japanese timber being imported into Great Britain.

Japanese Oak, of which there are many varieties, much resembles in texture and quality the American oak, and is
attracting the attention of

wagon builders and

others,

owing

JAPANESE TIMBER
to the

199

high price and scarcity of the latter. Unlike the American wood, the Japanese oak sent over is most accurately sawn.
Shira Gashi (Qaercus glauca) is a hard, close-grained, brown wood, traversed by numerous fine medullary rays, elastic

and durable.
wheel work,
does not
to frictional

It is

much used
all

for shafting, tools, vehicles,

etc.,

and in

situations

where

it

is

exposed

It native mill machinery, etc. attain sufficient size to be generally useful in

wear, as in

engineering works, the girth being seldom more than 3

ft.

Aka Gashi
of

(Q. acuta) is another

which
;

is

hard and

of great

Japanese oak, the timber strength, dark brown in

used for shipbuilding and for machinery and Shiron gashi is used for similar carriage-building.
colour

purposes.

Recehtly a shipment of several hundred logs the of Japanese oak was landed at the London docks
;

timber was square, sound, and in fair lengths and excellent it was a mild-looking wood and of good texture. The sizes shipment also comprised a quantity of planks and boards
;

of the

same.

In the northern island the oaks grow to a

considerable size, but owing to the difficulties of the ground

large sizes cannot be got out.

Onara (Q. crispula) has recently been in the European " market under the name " Nara in lengths up to 16 ft. by 8 inches by 3 inches.

Keyaki (Zclkowa keald) is the most important of Japanese hardwoods and is allied to the elm. The wood is light brown in colour with the annual rings distinctly marked, and in strength and appearance it resembles teak. A
strong, durable, close-grained timber, often knotty, easily worked it is procurable of sufficient size for all kinds of
;

200

TIMBER
work.
It
is

construction

also

durable

in

situations

work and alternately wet and in the best class of structures, and may be seen sound and in good condition at a very great age in some of the temples, a sufficient proof of its durability when properly
dry, used for piles in bridge

The main beams of the wooden lighthouses erected along the Japanese coasts by English engineers
seasoned.

many years back were of keaki up to 28 ft. long and 12 inches square the keels, sternposts, and stems of lightwere made of the same timber, and the outside was ships keaki planking 2 inches thick. It is a handsome wood,
;

takes a high polish, and

is

much
when

and

carvers.

Chiefly felled

prized by cabinet-makers about 4 ft. in girth, in the

temple groves and alongside the main high roads specimens are nevertheless to be seen upwards of 12 feet in girth.
It

can be had in lengths up to 30

is

ft.,

but above 20

ft.

the

price experienced by higher. foreigners in using Japanese timber in the past has been the slight attention paid to seasoning, much of the wood
offered for sale being full of sap.

One

of

the difficulties

Average weight by three observers 56^, 53, and 43^ Ibs. per cubic foot; the variation is doubtless due to some of the pieces being more seasoned than others.
is a tall straight-growing tree, compact, durable, easily worked, and has a silky lustre when planed, of a straw colour and free it is valued as mast timber, and is from knots and winds

Hinoki (Cupressus obtusa)

the

wood

of

which

is

very similar to yellow pine.

when
in

fairly seasoned

it

damp

situations.

It

Light, tough, and elastic, does not warp, and is very durable is the favourite softwood for doors,

windows, uprights in house construction, and is also used for railway sleepers and boat-building, and extensively for
pattern

making and cabinet work.

Temples and chapels

JAPANESE TIMBER
are usually built of

201

it. Can be had in lengths up to 30 ft. good scantling. The upper decks of some of the Japanese lightships were laid with this timber 2| inches thick. The Japs call this the " Tree of the Sun."

and

of

Sugi (Cryptomeria japonica),

commonest

of

Japanese

trees,

one of the largest and found in nearly all parts of

the empire, grows exceedingly straight and to a height of 100 to 120ft. The heartwood is of a ruddy brown, the
it is a soft, feeble, coarse-grained sapwood straw colour and perishable timber, but being very straight grained
;

this opposes considerable resistance to longitudinal stress renders sugi timber useful for uprights in houses property
;

of light construction,

though

it is

most generally employed

The tree in the characteristic scaffoldings of the country. is felled at about thirty-five years of age, having then an average girth of 3 to 4ft., but for poles it is felled much
sooner.
trusses,

Both sugi and matsu have been used

floor joists,
etc.,

for the

Japanese lighthouses. The annual rings are distinctly marked, and the wood is scented " like cedar, and the tree is commonly called the Cedar
of of

Japan."

somewhat resembling Canary wood, wooden shoes, pencils, and charcoal.

Honoki (Magnolia hypoleuca), a hard, handsome wood is used for tables,

Aka Matsu,

also called

Me Matsu
is

(I'iniis
;

densijiora), is

easily distinguished
literally red pine.

by

its

reddish bark

hence the name,

The wood

yellowish, slightly resinous,

with distinct annual rings, straight of grain, easily worked,

strong and
It is

durable, especially when immersed in water. extensively used in roofs of good class for beams, and
for
floors,

also

railway

sleepers,

and

carpentry

work

202

TIMBER
ft.

It can be got in lengths up to 30 generally. also been used in tunnel works in Japan.

It

has

Kuro Matsu,

also

called

Omatsu (Pinus

tJiunberyii),

is

another of the Japanese pines, a great variety of which grow in the country. It is of a hardy nature and a common tree of the hill forests. Although coarser and loss
resinous than aka matsu
latter for
it

is

works in dry

situations.

frequently used with the The above pine timbers

are inferior in strength to their European prototypes, as, owing to the climatic conditions of the country, they are
of

more rapid and exuberant growth.

Ash, of which there are something like twelve varieties, has recently been sent in large quantities to the English markets. It has come in the form of planks ranging from

1^ to 8 inches thick and 6 to 19 inches wide and up to about 30 ft. long, most accurately sawn and practically free

from heart knots and shakes, straight grained and of good It is not so dense as English ash, but compares texture. very favourably in quality, texture, and price with Quebec wood, has a nice figure, and is well fitted for light carriage
work.

A large quantity called "tamo" was recently shipped to the Continent, particulars of which were given in the Timber Trades Journal of October 12th, 1907. Yachidamo
is

the correct name, and the botanical name is given as Fraxinus mandschuria, showing that the wood is considered

be a species of ash, although, seeing that it does not quite resemble any species of commercial wood hitherto
to

known
its

in Europe, and has many features and oak, there have been differences elm

in

common

with

of opinion as to

classification. It is very beautifully figured, soft and easy to work, but nevertheless strong and heavy, and will

JAPANESE TIMBER

203

doubtless be appreciated by cabinet-makers. Its chief fault the Japanese have never had lies in want of seasoning

any idea
It
is

of seasoning

fairly

free

wood and some pieces from knots, but some of

split badly.

the

knots

are dead.

There are two kinds of tamo tamo-moku, a beautiful curly-grained wood, and tamo-chichinii, which has a wavy grain. Both are used for carriage panels in Japan. " " Sen is a species of white ash, softer than American ash,

which shows a beautiful figure it is only got in lengths of 10 to 12 ft., though up to 17 inches diameter. Quantities " " " and " tamo are being used on the Chinese of both sen and Manchurian railways and largely in Japan for railway sleepers, for which the latter, at any rate, is said to be well " " suited. Sen is largely used for furniture in Japan and
;

is

well adapted for that purpose

is

it

takes good polish, does

not warp,

hard, and lasts well.

Katsura (Cercidophylluni Japonicu/m), of which there are several kinds, attains a height of 80 ft. Red katsura is said to be well adapted for making cigar This timber is obtained in good widths and is used boxes.
for furniture.

and

It has quite a silky appearance when planed, considered by the Japanese one of their best woods for fine, neat work.
is

"

maple, one a beautiful bird's-eye," known as itaya-moku, and another with flowery

There are several varieties

"

of

grain called

known commercially, although a few of the excellent timbers which grow in Japan. only Doubtless one reason why such little attention is paid to
The above are
seasoning or preservative processes is that fire and tempest, and not decay, generally determine the existence of the
light Japanese structures.

hana-itaya." the best

Paint

is

seldom used, but wood

204
is

TIMBER
of the per-

sometimes stained with shibio, the juice

ashes,

simmon darkened by lampblack and

and

this

is

some protection from the weather, and does not prevent seasoning as paint would do if used over unseasoned wood.

SOUTH AFRICAN TIMBER.

Although the
tities of

forests of

various kinds of
available

South Africa produce large quantrees, only a few have so far been
for
:

found

and

suitable

constructional

work.

Amongst

these are the following

Sneezewood (Pteroxylon utile) is the best-known native timber in Cape Colony for durability, whether used for piles
in water, superstructures of bridges, or other engineering works it is heavy, hard, tough, strong, close grained, and
;

more difficult to work than teak. It is found in Kaffraria and Pondoland. It is seldom possible to cut a log with
sharp edges up to 12 inches square, neither is it obtainable in long lengths, as the tree only grows to a height of 30 to 50 ft. Of a yellowish colour, somewhat resembling satin-

wood in the grain, and is sometimes nicely figured. The Dutch name for this wood is Neishout. Besides being the
chief timber for

heavy work, it
It derives

is

and carpentry.

its

employed in cabinet-making name from the irritating

nature of the dust produced by sawing or working the wood, which causes sneezing. The price is high in Cape
Colony.

Weight about 68

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

is

Milkwood (Miniusops obovata) grained wood.

a fairly tough, close-

Red Pear (Scolopia

grained timber.

ecklouii) is also a useful hard, close-

SOUTH AFRICAN TIMBER

205

Hard Pear (Olini'a cymosa) is a very hard, tough, yellowish wood, and in common with red pear and milk wood is used for wagon construction and wheelwrights' work generally,
but they are only used to a small extent, as they cannot be obtained in large section or in any great quantity, and none
of

them

are quite reliable or satisfactory for heavy work.

is

Ironwood

common name

for

The wood different parts of the world. in Cape Colony is Sideroxylon inerme.
Melkhout.
decking even when
It is largely

many hardwoods in known by this name The Dutch name is

used for boat-building, and for the

of bridges is

considered practically indestructible, to excessive heat or damp, but being exposed

it is

excessively hard

difficult to

work and

too expensive for

ordinary use. The colour varies from light to dark brown, with black streaks, and the proportion of brownish sap wood
is

often large.

Weight up

to

73

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

of

Yellowwood or Geelhout,

which there are two

varieties,

the upright and ordinary, is found in large quantities of The ordinary variety (Podogreat length and diameter.

carpus elongate), of light yellow colour, is only suitable for indoor work unless artificially treated with creosote or other preservative, and even after careful treatment it
is

liable to

bend and warp.

is

The

uprigtit

yellowwood

(Podocarpus thunbergii) stronger arid more durable, but so far, owing to absence of roads and railways, the cost
of transporting large trees is too great.

much

The

colour

is

brownish white, the grain close and even and of smooth surface. The larger portion of the timber felled is used for railway sleepers, but even for this purpose the supply is
insufficient
It
its
;

it is

has been but

also used for ceilings and flooring boards. little used in constructional work, so that

true value has not yet been ascertained.

A timber

bridge

206

TIMBER

near Worcester has been constructed with this timber, " launders or shoots, chiefly as an experiment. Suitable for
' '

it

must, however, be cut at the right time, when the fruit

ripe.

is

Weight from 29

to

37

Ibs.

per cubic
is

foot.

Olivewood (Oha verrucosa)

largely used

up country

for

posts, wagon-building, and other purposes. Weight 68 Ibs. per cubic foot.

or

Stinkwood(0cofca bullata) sometimes called Cape mahogany Cape walnut, is another important South African tree,
,

growing from Cape Colony to Zululand. It is an evergreen, 60 to 90 ft. high and 3 to 5 ft. diameter, and a fairly quick-growing tree. The wood is of a dark brown colour
resembling dark walnut, heavy, hard and strong, fairly It makes elastic, tough and durable in contact with ground.

handsome

furniture, but

is

doors and windows, railway

chiefly used for planks, beams, sleepers, and for all kinds of

wagon-building except the spokes. Weight 53 Ibs. per cubic foot.

red birch, and

Eed Els or Elder (Cunonia capensis) somewhat resembles is used for posts, palings, wagons, and White ordinary carpentry, and is excellent for turning. is used for palings, posts, and Els (Platylophus trifoliatus) general farm work. Weight of Red Els about 46 Ibs. and White Els 38 Ibs.
per cubic foot.

Cape Ash or Essenhout (Eckebergia capensis), a tough and useful timber, not unlike elm and close grained, is used for

common

furniture.

sides of wagons, and occasionally for grows in Cape Colony and Natal and can be got in logs up to 18 inches square. Weight 48 Ibs. per cubic foot.
floors,
It

SOUTH AFBIGAN TIMBER

Assegai

207

Wood (Curtisca faginea), or Cape lancewood, is a wood of light red colour, used for shafts, wheel spokes, tough
assegai shafts, turnery, etc.

Weight 56

to

60

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

Cedarboom (Widdringtoniajuniperoides),^ kind of cypress, has a grain not unlike Havannah West Indian cedar, hut of
lighter colour.
;

Used

for floors, roofs,

and other building

does not, however, stand exposure. purposes 48 Ibs. per cubic foot. Weight
it

Kajatenhout (Pterocarpna angolensis) is much appreciated in the Transvaal and Cape Colony for furniture. The
colour
is

a yellowish

brown and it

often has a pretty pattern.

is a most serviceable and durable mining purposes and impervious to the white ant. Weight about 57 Ibs. per cubic foot. The ikusi forests of Matabeleland cover some 2,000 square miles and are densest between the Umgaza and

Ikusi or native teak

for

wood

Ingusa

rivers.

N'Ishibi resembles ikusi, but

is

not so heavy.

The Mlange Cedar (Widdringtonia wliytei} is one of the most valuable trees in Nyassaland and attains a height of 150 ft. It yields a valuable timber, easier wrought than deal and much more beautiful. It is fragrant, close grained, and stands damp well. Posts fixed in the ground for thirty years, exposed to damp and drought, were taken up
practically
intact.

The supply
is

exhausted.

This

of trees is being rapidly one of the few conifers indigenous to

South Africa.
Mahogany, which is practically the only timber as yet exported from Africa, has been referred to in another place, but there is little doubt that in years to come, when the

208

TIMBER

country is opened out, great supplies of other timber will be brought from West Africa.. The great Congo Forest,
the

"

dark forest

"

compact square

so ably described by Stanley, covers a area of over 320,000 miles and contains
all

immense

supplies of

kinds of valuable timber.

Amongst
:

the following, extent

the timbers of Nigeria and the Gold Coast are none of which are as yet exported to any

Iroko, a dark
is

brown timber

of

uniform colour
It will
it

straight, but coarse and open. finish, as there is a tendency for

the grain not take a fine

;

to

"pick up" under

the plane. A good-sized log of this timber, containing 78 cubic ft., was recently sold at Wd. per cubic foot in This is probably Chlorophora exceha. Liverpool.

Weight about 39
Opepe
is

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

to

an excellent wood
Ibs.

work and easy

to polish.

Weight about 47
Oganwo
is

per cubic foot.

a kind of cedar, very like

Axim mahogany.

Ekki (Lophira procera) is the African oak, some of which has come in small parcels to the English market. It is very hard, dense, and deep red in colour. The pores are filled with a white deposit. It is a first-class fancy wood. There is a timber called greenheart which comes from
Sapoli, in colour

something

like

mahogany.

AUSTKALIAN TIMBERS
The Eucalyptus
Area
:

of Forests

Peculiarities of Trees.

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

Jarrah

Karri

Tuart

Wandoo

Yate

Red

Gum

Sandal wood
:

Blackbutt.

NEW

Ironbark Narrow and Broad Leaved Bark SOUTH WALES Red Ironbark Tallow Wood White and Red Mahogany Blackbutt Spotted Gum Grey Box Brush Box Red Box Grey Gum Murray Red Gum Forest Red Gum Sydney Blue

Gum White Stringy Bark Woollybutt Turpentine Cedar Rosewood Red Bean Onion Wood White Beech Moreton Bay Pine Brown Pine Cypress Pine Black Bean Tulipwood Muskwood Native Teak Blueberry Ash Red Ash Coachwood
-

Miall, Brigalow, etc.

TIMBERS OF VICTORIA

Gums and Ironbarks Bairnsdale Grey Box Yellow Box Blackbutt Silver-top Ironbark Cypress Pine Blackwood Evergreen Beech.
: :

TIMBERS or QUEENSLAND

TIMBERS OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA.

AUSTRALIAN TIMBERS.
The Eucalyptus, a genus of Myrtacese, which includes about 150 species, forms the characteristic vegetation of the
Australian and Tasmanian forests.

These trees frequently reach the enormous heights of 300 ft. and over, rivalling, or even exceeding, the giant Sequoia sempervirens of California. Their leathery glaucous leaves, which turn vertically with their edges to the sun and thus cast little or no shadow, and their frequently
T.

210

TIMBER

rugged bark and aromatic odour give them a peculiar and unmistakable character.
The Eucalypti of Australia and Tasmania are
for

known

in

Europe high reputation as hygienic agents in districts infected with malaria, and have been tried on the
their

Italian

Campagna with

satisfactory results.

The growth of the trees is rapid, E. globidus, the Tasmanian blue gum, having attained a height of 26 ft., with
a

mean
50
ft.

circumference of 26 inches in a

little

over four

growth attained and 3 ft. in circumference. Mr. H. N. Draper, to high M.E.I.A., has grown them in the neighbourhood of Dublin
years in Italy.
of eight years'

Other trees

to a height of
five years.

26

ft.

with a circumference of 22 inches in

to survive a temperature which below 23 Fahr., but on one occasion in Italy, when the thermometer fell to 20 Fahr., half the plantation

They appear

does not

fall

was destroyed.

Now that the forest areas of America and the regions round the Baltic are being denuded of their best timber and, so far as regards America, we can see within a comparatively short period a dearth in timber supplies from that region it is pleasant to know that we have the immense virgin forests of our Australian colonies to fall back upon for part of our future supplies, districts in which the felling industry can be carried on all the year round, where there are no icebound ports, so that the timber can always be shipped, and where there is no difficulty in
obtaining labour as is the case in fever- stricken climates, such contingencies as seriously trouble timber importers in

many
come.

of

the regions

from which our present supplies

Little is yet
of

known
only
a

in the timber

Australia,

few

of

market of the timbers them having as yet been

AUSTRALIAN TIMBERS

211

exported to Great Britain, and those only within recent years. They are to be found in great profusion, and, so far as
in

regards hardwoods, furnish a supply and quality unequalled The extent of merchantable timber in the world.
;

Western Australia is approximately 20,000,000 acres New South Wales, with only one-third the area, has 15,000,000
acres,

which,

however,
;

are

not

so

concentrated as in
;

Western
toria,

Australia

Queensland,
;

40,000,000 acres

Vic1

South Australia, 3,800,000 acres. 11,000,000 acres The true forest area of Australia lies in a belt along the
coast-line,

where the average annual rainfall varies from As the area of rainfall decreases further inland the trees become of a poorer quality and a softer
35
to

40 inches.

nature.
It

with other evergreen trees, the heart

should be carefully noted that with the eucalyptus, as is the weakest portion,
is

contrary to the general rule, and especially in the case of conifers, and an experienced tirnberman considers

which

that all eucalyptus timber used for piles should have the " heart boxed." All scantlings should be clear of the pith or centre of heart by at least 3 or 4 inches, and in some

more, and as the wood invariably shakes in the of the medullary rays and across the annual all scantlings should be sawn on that quarter. Thus rings, it will be seen that in the conversion of this class of timber
cases
direction

(See Figs. 31 and 32.) Mr. Charles Dearden, Government timber inspector for " I am at a loss Tasmania, writes thus on June 20th, 1905
there
is

a considerable waste.

understand engineers and others in their inquiries from our merchants for quotations specifying that heart will be
to

accepted, thus showing the necessity of making our timbers better known to foreign inquirers who are more in touch
1

As

previously stated, the total area covered

by

forest in Australia

is

about 173,500,000 acres.

p 2

212

TIMBER

[Hi/

permission cf the (iorernment of Western Australia.

,'W.

FTG.

Jarrali Forest.

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

213

with deciduous grown timbers where heartwood is always accepted, and so contrary to the nature of evergreen trees,
including blue

gum and

stringy bark."

Spikes and

nails are not easily driven into Australian

hardwoods.

WESTERN AUSTRALIA.
Jarrah (Eucalyptus margiiiata) (Fig. 30)
is

the principal

hardwood of the colony. The tree attains a height of 120 ft. and over and sometimes 50 ft. to the first branch. Something like 8,000,000 acres adjacent to the coast from Albany to Perth are covered by jarrah forests. The best timber is grown on hill ranges. The wood is very like a red brick when newly cut, but darkens to a reddish brown colour. It is hard, dense and strong, generally very straight in the The annual rings are close grain and with but little sap.
and, as a rule, clearly defined. third list of shipbuilding timbers.
It is

classed in Lloyd's

the colony for most kinds of lightness is not a consideration.

for roofs,

The timber is used in substantial work wherever It makes excellent shingles

which

last

many

rot

when

built into

masonry

Not liable to suffer from years. or let into the ground, it is

considered the best timber in the colony for telegraph poles, having a life, under favourable circumstances, of from
twenty-five
to

thirty
it

years.

It

makes

excellent

street

has been largely used in Great Britain, and much piling and timber quay work has been done with this timber at Hartlepool, Great Yarmouth, and other places, and it has proved very satisfactory. Owing to its long life
paving, for
is an excellent timber for railway sleepers a plank examined after being in use on a bridge for forty-three years was found to be still in good condition.
it
;

which

The term "gum" is generally applied eucalypti with smooth bark.

1

in

Australia

to

those

214

TIMBER

As showing the density of the timber, a paving block which had been lying in a room nine or ten years and
weighed 3 Ibs. 14 ozs. only absorbed 2 ozs. of water after an immersion of twenty hours, and this was not increased after the timber had been kept in water for a total period
of forty hours.

According to Indian. Engineering, i&rr&h has recently been used in place of teak on some Government buildings, as it was cheaper and found quite as
satisfactory.

Weight about 68

Ibs.

when

dry; 55

Ibs.

when

per cubic foot when cut, and 48 Ibs. The paving block fairly seasoned.
Ibs.

above referred to weighed 50

per cubic

foot.

Karri (K. diversicolor) is a taller tree than jarrah, being sometimes branchless for 100 to 120 ft. in Warren River district it has been met with 300 ft. high and 180 ft. to the first branch. The forests cover 1,000,000 acres from Cape
;

Hamlin
but
is

to Torbay. The timber is of reddish brown colour, hard and dense, fairly elastic, and closely resembles jarrah,

not so easily wrought. It is not well suited for damp situations, and when used for telegraph poles it decays at the ground-line. It is used for much the same purposes as
jarrah,

and can be had in logs up to 100 ft. in length and planks of great width. Specimen planks nearly 5 ft. wide have been obtained. Karri makes excellent wearing paving
blocks, but
it

is

shrinks

not so much used much more. It

for this
is

purpose as jarrah
it

much
piles

wagon frames.
elastic.

For very long

will

appreciated stand hard

for

driving better than jarrah, being larger in fibre and

more
Ibs.,

Weight when cut 72 Ibs., when fairly seasoned 63 and when dry 50 Ibs. per cubic foot.

Although jarrah and karri are easily distinguished when growing by the difference in the barks, the former having

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

215

a rough broken deep-coloured bark, whilst that of the latter is smooth, clean, and of light colour, yet when seen in the
log they are so similar in appearance that it is difficult to distinguish them, although karri has a rather more wavy

FIG. 32.

FIG. 31. Showing the opening out of a section from a

The same

section

Eucalyptus log after lying in a dry place for four months.

Eucalyptus log as shown in Fig. 31 after being in water

of
for three weeks.

The cracks

have mostly closed up, but the right-hand top corner broke off

when being
water.

lifted

out of the

A fairly reliable and easy test is by grain than jarrah. the ash. A splinter of jarrah when burnt gives a firm black ash, whilst one from karri gives a woolly white ash.
of the colony will, howthe purchaser, have the timber branded ever, required by with a distinctive mark at a small extra cost. The sapwood
if

The Woods and Forests Department

in

jarrah and karri

is

light

red colour,

but

is

not

generally

more than an inch in thickness. Notwithstanding what has been claimed

as to jarrah

and

216

TIMBER

karri

being capable of withstanding the teredo, neither timber will do so in situations where the worm is very active, and in some marine works in the Australian colonies

and elsewhere has had only a very short

life.

Jarrah

is

superior for resisting the sea worm to karri, pool and other places in Great Britain jarrah has withstood the attacks of the limnoria for ten to twelve years in a

and

at Hartle-

situation where pine timber would have been destroyed, but at Singapore jarrah piles were nearly eaten through in eighteen months. Both timbers are liable to shrinkage,
all hardwoods, and those of Australia and they require long seasoning. Many of particularly, the jarrah and karri logs set to the English market this split very badly at the ends unless kept in water, and timber. (See Figs. applies more or less to all Eucalyptus 31 and 32.)

the trouble with

a cream-coloured wood of and hardness, often interlocked in great strength, density, The supplies grain, has its annual rings close and distinct. It are small and it is not much known out of the colony. is used in the framework for railway wagons and buffers, where it has proved satisfactory also for shafts, felloes, and wheelwrights' work generally, and where great strength and hardness is necessary. Not much definite information

Tuart

(E.

gompliocephala),

as to

its

durability
ft.

is

obtainable.

Grows

to a height of

150

ft.

and 3

diameter.
foot

Weight about 70 Ibs. per cubic and 60 Ibs. when dry. Wandoo (E. redunca)

when

fairly

seasoned

(Fig. 33), better

known

locally as

white gum, grows to an average height of 60 ft. to 80 ft. The timber is brownish red in colour, very hard, dense, The annual rings close arid distinct, strong and durable.

WESTERN AUSTRALIA
the grain
sleepers, is

21?

It ranks equal to jarrah for railway wavy. used for short piles in wharves, for bridge and

/;// 1 a'

i-

mission of the Government of Western Australia,.

FIG. 33.

Wandoo

Tree.

wharf planking, fencing, wheelwrights' work, etc. Of 150 wandoo sleepers laid on the Newcastle line, and which had heen in the ground for over seventeen years, 90 per cent.

218

TIMBER
of

were hard and sound, and specimens

tested

some

of these

when

only gave cross-bending than

per

cent,

less

thoroughly

average strength in seasoned and unused

seasoned

timber.

Weight when just cut about 79 Ibs., when 70 Ibs., and when dry 60 Ibs. per cubic foot.

fairly

Yate (E. cornuta), though but little known, is probably one of the heaviest and strongest timbers in the world, one piece bearing the enormous tensile stress of 17^ tons
per square inch, or nearly as much as wrought iron. \Yeight 79 Ibs. when first cut, 71 Ibs. with 12 per cent,
of moisture,

and 64

Ibs.

per cubic foot

ritte.

when

dry, or only

slightly less than lignum

Red Gum (E. calopliylld) Salmon Gum (E. scdmonopldoia) Morrel (E. longicorids), and York Gum (E. loxopldebd) are others of the hard, dense, reddish coloured timbers of this
, ,

part of the world, which exist in great quantities, but none

These gums which often impair gum The their stability for important and permanent works. is a valuable product which is used medicinally and gum
of

which

are, so far, exported to

any

extent.

are

much

intersected with

veins,

for tanning.

now exported
the other

Sandalwood (Santalnm cyynorutu), in large quantities, is to China and Singapore in competition with

sandalwoods of commerce.
ft.

small tree, 12
diameter,
colony.
it

to of

18

ft.

Although only a high and 8 to 10 inches in

is

one

Its

colour

is

the most valuable products of the a yellowish brown streaked with

is of

dark

lines.

The sapwood
Ibs.

a lighter colour and sharply

defined.

Weight about 36

per cubic foot

when

perfectly dry.

So-S

.,

2 3

CH

O
c-3

i '

55g

Ig^iljl

220

TIMBER

Blackbutt (E. patens) attains a height of 120 ft. and is found scattered over the jarrah and karri areas. It produces timber light in colour, hard and dense, and so tough
that
it

will not yield to

annual rings are

fairly clear

ordinary splitting processes. and rather wide apart.

The
It is

suitable for sleepers, street paving blocks, piles,

and main

timbers of bridges and wharves. Largely used for wagon building, it is rather expensive to work, and has proved very durable in damp situations. Fence posts have been in the

ground fifty years, and railway wagons built of blackbutt were in excellent condition after ten years' rough wear.
TIMBERS OF

NEW SOUTH WALES.

The forest area of New South Wales resembles that of Western Australia in that it lies largely along the coastline, and the hardwoods are chiefly eucalypti.
Ironbark, of which there are four varieties, the hardwoods of the colony.
is

the best of

The timber
drying,

White or Grey Ironbark (E. paniculate) ranks most high. is pale in colour when cut down, darkens on

is the hardest of the ironbarks, is rather difficult to work, and cuts almost like horn. Telegraph poles of this timber have remained fairly sound after being erected forty
1
;

years their average life is between thirty and forty years. It has stood in some cases for fifty years in bridge timbers
in the colony,

and in many cases thirty-five years (Mins. of Proc. Inst. C.E., vol. 128). Ironbark may be had in lengths of 60 or 70 ft. It has a certain gumminess in working.
Weight, when green, 76 seasoned about 71 Ibs.
1

Ibs.

per cubic foot, and

when

None

of

the Australian telegraph poles or other timbers are

artificially treated.

TIMBERS OF

NEW SOUTH WALES

221

Narrow-leaved Bark (E. crebra) and Broad-leaved Bark (K. This timber is of deep red colour and is nidcrophloia). white or grey variety. All three of the above inferior to the
varieties are used extensively in bridge construction, for beams in buildings, and wherever great strength is required,

also for railway sleepers, posts,

and

for

wagon and carriage

building.

Red Ironbark (E. sideroxylon)

much softer wood, and

is

is the deepest in colour, a the least valuable of the ironbarks; it

employed in general building and also for railway sleepers and posts. It grows to large dimensions and is rather

liable to ring shakes.

A common

defect in all ironbarks

is

the round holes

made by

the larvae of the

when

these touch the heart of the log

wood moth, and decay and rot set in

rapidly.

Tallow Wood (E. microcorys) is a canary colour when fresh, drying to a pale brown. The least liable to shrink of all Australian hardwoods, heavy, dense, close in grain, strong

and durable,

fairly free from gum veins, it planes and turns well, though not easily, does not easily split, and is, after ironbark, considered the best of the hardwoods of the

For carriage and colony. other native hardwoods and

in

wagon building
is

it

excels

all

used for this purpose even

New
is

Zealand.

It is

often used for flooring, especially

for ball-room floors,

name
best

derived,
it

and wharves woods amount was

where its greasy nature, whence the an advantage. For decking of bridges stands first, and it is considered one of the
is

in

the

colony for street paving.

small

laid in the city of Lincoln,

England.

Bridge, over 600 ft. in was laid with this timber, and it is considered to length, have a life of thirteen years in such situations. Tallow
flooring of

The

Wagga-Wagga

wood

is liable to

attack from a small insect which bores at

222

TIMBEE

most wood right angles to the grain, as distinguished from which follow the grain. The life, used as telegraph borers,
poles, is grows in

about the same as ironbark.

This timber also

Queensland. Excellent for turning and carving. Weight, seasoned, about 63 Ibs. per cubic foot.

tallow

White Mahogany (E. acmenoides) somewhat resembles wood in colour, but is of much more open grain and
seasoning.
It
is

shrinks considerably in

very durable,

tough, strong, and excellent for posts, building purposes, and good for paving.

piles,

and general

all

Red or Forest Mahogany (E. resiniferd) building work except beams.

is

also suitable for

Blackbutt (E. pilnlaris}, also called mountain ash, is a similar tree to one of the same name in Queensland.

Sometimes quite interlocked

split
;

in grain, but not difficult to

twists and it is rather subject to gum veins and It ranks next to tallow wood amongst shrinks in seasoning. the hardwoods, and is a first-class timber of khaki colour

and enjoys great

popularity
it

with

architects.

Used

as

decking only on bridges,

is

considered one of the best

timbers in the colony for street paving, and has been much used for this purpose. Mr. E. W. Richards, city surveyor
of

Sydney, and formerly of Melbourne,

"

said, in 1897,

with

reference to street paving, that

jarrah and karri are good

timbers, but

cannot compare with the blackbutt of New South Wales." 1 Some was laid down in the city of Lincoln in 1897, and a small quantity in Westminster. It is largely
used for sleepers. Weight 61 Ibs. per cubic
Spotted
foot.

Gum

pale yellowish
1

(E. maculata), a lofty tree which gives a brown timber, often with a pretty wavy
and
Co. Engineers, Vol.

Proc. of the Assoc. of Municipal

XXIII.

TIMBERS OF

NEW SOUTH WALES

223

grain, polishes well, is very tough and durable, and bends easily, and for this reason is largely used for coachbuilding

and wheelwrights' work.

seasoning. blue gum.

It is liable to twist

and shrink in

gum is similar to and often sold as was at one time used for street paving in Sydney, but was discarded as unsatisfactory, owing to its
Spotted
It

liability to rot.

Weight, seasoned, about 60

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Grey Box (E. hemipkloia), a tough, hard, cross-grained wood of great strength, yellowish white or pale brown
colour, is used for the naves

and cogs

of wheels, large screws,

mauls, shaft handles, poles of drays, etc., and also for railway sleepers, and bears a good record for durability. It
is

sometimes called Canary or

common Box.
is

Brush Box (Tristania conferta)

durable timber obnoxious to the white ant.

another strong, tough, Pale in colour,

sometimes brown,
difficult to

it

turns grey on exposure.

used for mallets, chisel handles, planes, season, and great care has to be exercised or
etc., it is,

good deal however,

Often called Red Box or the planks will warp and crack. Bastard Box. The darker coloured varieties from the

Northern rivers are the

best.

True Red Box (E. polyantliema)

is

a timber of the jarrah

class, rich red in colour, close in grain,

which works

easily,

is very durable, and becomes, with age, as hard as ironbark. It is used for paving, fencing, and general building work.

fifty years in perfect preservation in John's Church, Paramatta. It resembles the woollybutt, which in strength and durability ranks next in order to

This timber lasted for

St.

blackbutt and blue gum, but has the defect of twisting and shrinking whilst seasoning. Weight, seasoned, about 72 Ibs. per cubic foot.

224

TIMBER

Grey Gum (E. propinqua) is very like red ironbark, but can be detected by its brittleness a chip of grey gum bent between the fingers will snap instantly it is, however, very durable and much appreciated for piles and
;

girders
sleepers.

of

bridges,

etc.

It

also

makes

good railway

Weight, seasoned, about 65

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

of
is

Murray Red Gum (E. rostrata) is the common river gum New South Wales, Victoria, and Queensland. The timber in colour of various shades of red, and is said to resist
its

white ants, but of

opinion.
It
is

difficult

general qualities there is difference of to work, but is used for general

engineering and building work and for street paving. Its average hardness, according to tests made by M. Kudeloff, It is close and interlies between ash and hornbeam. locked in grain and liable to gum veins, but is considered
the

durable wood

of

Victoria.

The New South Wales

variety shells badly and shrinks unevenly. Weight about 56 to 60 Ibs. per cubic foot, seasoned.
Forest Eed Gum (E. tereticornis) is of a deep red colour, hard and inlocked in grain, and suitable for the same

purposes as Murray red gum.

Sydney Blue Gum (E. salignd) produces a timber of pale red colour, straight in grain, easy to work, and which as a
appreciated by carpenters and joiners or warps after drying, but is short in grain, it rarely splits and under some conditions decays quickly ; for instance, blue gum telegraph poles have a life of only eight or nine

hardwood

is

much

years, years.
of

and

in

swampy

districts will only last three or four

most widely used wheels, and it is also useful

It is
Ibs.

in the colony for the felloes

for furniture

making.

Weight about 66

per cubic foot.

TIMBERS OF
All the above

NEW SOUTH WALES

timbers
are used in

225

red

gum

general

building work, railway sleepers,

shipbuilding,

and wood

paving.

White Stringy Bark (E. eugenoides) is one of the most durable of Australian timbers and does not split at the ends when exposed to the sun like most of the others. Much
it

used for fencing and posts, though owing to large gum veins does not make good sleepers, planking, or scantling it is
;

proof to
is

some extent against white ant. The same timber found in Queensland. The colour is a warm brown.

class

Woollybutt (E. longifolia) is another timber of the jarrah and colour somewhat like red ironbark in appearance,
;

but deficient in

strength and elasticity.

It

is

used for

house-building, fencing, and wheelwrights' work generally. The tree attains a height of 100 to 150 ft. and 3 to 5 ft.

diameter.

Weight about 63
Turpentine

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

,

height of
for piles "

(Syncarpia laurifolia) a tree which attains a 150 to 200 ft. and a diameter of 3 to 5 ft. Used on rivers and harbours infested with the teredo, or
it is

cobra," as

called in Australia, often with the bark

on

any water where the sea worm is active. 1 Quite recently Mr. H. D. Walsh, M.I.C.E., has stated that turpentine was the only Australian timber which resisted the teredo at all. 2 Either in dry or wet state this timber is shunned by the white ants in most situations, and it will not readily burn. It quickly dulls the teeth of saws. The timber varies in colour from
is,

this protection

nevertheless, only temporary in

According to ah

article in the

Railway Aye for January

turpentine withstands the sea creosoted oregon.

2

worm

31st, 1908, in the Philippines better than

The Engineer, October

llth, 1907.

T.

226

TIMBER
to dull red.

brown

The sapwood

is

of a light colour.

It

polishes well.

shrinks badly. seasoned, about 57 Ibs. per cubic foot. Weight,

Warps and

Cedar or Eed Cedar (Cedrala australis) somewhat resembles Honduras mahogany, but is lighter. It is easily worked and durable and used for the better kinds of furniture, house joinery and cabinet-making, and extensively for panels
in railway carriages.
It is

one of the best

of the native

softwoods for panelling and interior work.

Some

of the

wood

handsomely marked. Weight about 28 Ibs. to 35

is

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Rosewood (Dysoxylon fraserianum) is a similar timber to red cedar, of reddish colour, and obtains its name from the odour of the wood when freshly cut. It is used for similar
purposes to cedar, but is heavier. Weight about 50 Ibs. per cubic
foot.

Red Bean (Dysoxylon muelleri) is a similar wood to, and often sold as, cedar. Of a uniform deep red colour, it is a good furniture wood, and can be used for the same purposes

any of the softer mahoganies. When freshly cut the timber smells like a Swede turnip, hence it is sometimes
as
called

Turnip wood.

Onion

Wood (Owenai

cepiodora) derives its

name from

the
It

smell of the wood, which, however, does not last long. is often sold as bastard cedar.

White Beech (Gmelina leichkardtii), a tree of 100 to 150 ft. high and 3 to 5 ft. diameter, furnishes timber which can be put to use soon after being cut, although it is better

and is in common use for ordinary carpentry it is also purposes, roof-stocks for carriages and wagons used for vats and casks, and for some classes of coopers'
for seasoning,
;

TIMBERS OF
work
is

NEW SOUTH WALES

;

227

said to be better than oak

It
is

it

is

not, however,

wood with a tinge of brown, rather close grained and durable, works up well, but is very brittle and cannot safely be employed where much strength is required. An excellent wood for carving.
abundant.
a whitish

Weight, thoroughly dry, 36

Colonial or

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

Moreton Bay Pine (Araucarla cunninghamii) is the principal softwood of the colony and is also to be found
in the adjoining colonies.

150

ft.

The tree grows to a height and over and has a diameter of 2 to 4 ft.
not a high-class timber,

of

It is

much
it

inferior to the pine

is

timbers of Europe and America, but

for packing cases,

used extensively
is

ceiling linings,

etc.,

and

of a pale

colour.

Weight 30

to

33

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

Brown Pine (Podocarpus data} is somewhat similar to Moreton Bay pine, but harder and more durable, fairly free from knots, soft, close grained, and easily worked.
Weight about 45
Cypress Pine.
Ibs.

per cubic foot.

this

Under

name

is

included the

Red

or

Black Pine (Callitris calcarata) and the Murray or White Pine (C. verrucosa). It is a well-known, much used, and It has considerable powers well-distributed colonial wood.

and teredo, and is one of the in this respect, although its best of Australian timbers The resisting powers in one district may fail in another.
of resistance to the white ants

author has been told by more than one Australian engineer that this is the only timber which will resist the teredo,
but it is little used in situations infested by this pest. (See statement by Mr. Walsh, p. 225.) Owing to its freedom from attack by the white ant, which will, however, strip the sapwood from it, this timber is the only kind suitable for
Q 2

228

TIMBEE

buildings where these pests are prevalent, but it is very brittle and will not stand heav}^ shocks or severe transverse
strains.

The prevailing colour

is

brown
into

of various shades.

nail

can hardly be driven

the

wood without

previous boring for fear of splitting it. It is frequently found growing spirally, and for this reason is not generally

Black cypress pine well adapted for planking. used for panelling in railway carriages. times

is

some-

Weight 50

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

There are a variety of oaks, or so-called oaks, Casuarina and other species. The She Oak, Silky Oak, Eed Silky Oak, are varieties of these. The two former are used for coopers' work, wine casks, and butter kegs the latter, a red
;

variety, for furniture, veneers, gunstocks, picture frames,

and turnery.
of

There are two species

of

Honeysuckle, both

a reddish colour, which are used for knees in boatbuilding, bullock yokes, wood screws, and turnery.

Black Bean (Castanospermum australe), also known as Moreton Bay Chestnut, is the usual substitute for walnut in this colony and also in Queensland. It is darker than walnut, of finer grain, and takes a good polish, but will not readily take glue; tough and durable, of a greasy nature;
it

shrinks very

much

Weight 40

Ibs.

in drying. cubic foot. per

50

Tulipwood (Harpullia pendula) is a small tree only about ft. in height, which yields a tough close-grained timber

beautifully

marked with
is

black, which

cabinet work.

different shades from yellow to durable and much esteemed for fairly It somewhat resembles olive wood in
is

appearance.

It

said to be the best

wood

in Australia

for lithographers' scrapers.

Weight, after long seasoning, 62

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

TIMBEES OF
Muskwood
(Olearia

NEW SOUTH WALES

is

229

argopliylla)

made

into

beautiful

veneers, but requires long warps and twists badly. It

Victoria.

and
is

careful seasoning, else it found also in Tasmania and

Weight about 40

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

the is a large tree hard, heavy, and difficult to work, but durable in and out of the ground. It is used for railway and other

Native Teak (FUndersia bennettiana)

is

timber

buildings and for ceilings, flooring, lining boards, etc. Some small parcels have recently been sent to Great Pale yellow in colour and often handsome grain. Britain.

Weight 63

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Blueberry Ash or Pigeon Ash, sometimes called mountain

ash and sometimes whitewood,

ture, staves, oars, etc.,

The sapwood is Weight about 55

is good for bedroom furniand makes good handles and poles. white, the heartwood of darker colour.

Ibs.

per cubic

foot.

Red Ash (Alphitonia cxcdsa) is not much used, but is worth noting because of the peculiarities in its colouring. When a log is first cut it resembles ordinary ash in colour, and for some time no change is perceptible after a time it gradually assumes a reddish colour, which deepens during two or three years, at the end of which time it has assumed a fiery red appearance. This colouration is superficial and be removed by the plane, but the same depth of tint may returns with time. It is very ornamental.
;

Weight, thoroughly dry, 53

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

of the Saxifrageae,

Coachwood (Ceratopetalumapetalum], one

is

a light,

soft,

colony

for coachbuildiug,

close-grained, tough timber, much used in the and is also said to make good

d
to

w
^'

fi

Remarks.

232

TIMBER
of

sounding boards for musical instruments. The height the tree is 50 to 70 ft. diameter 12 to 24 inches. Weight 42 Ibs. per cubic foot.
;

Miall, Brigalow, and other Acacias are hard, heavy darkcoloured woods used chiefly for turnery, but also for

Some presentation mallets, draughtsmen, and chessmen. has been recently selected by the Ordnance Department
of

Great Britain for the manufacture of spokes

for

gun-

carriage wheels.

TIMBERS OF VICTORIA.

Many

of the

timber trees

of Victoria are

indigenous to

the adjoining colony of

New South Wales and have been

already described, and also to Tasmania, although they are sometimes marked by different botanical names.

Such are the Red Gums found

Wales.

in the

the Murray River, which divides Victoria from

neighbourhood of New South

The Eed Ironbark

gum

(E. leucoxylon), which is called blue in South Australia, as it is somewhat like a gum in

appearance, is a red ironbark of

dense, durable
piles,

much more substantial timber than the New South Wales, and is really a hard, timber, much used for bridge beams and
for sleepers.

and ranks with grey box as a material

Blue Gum, which has the same botanical name as the gum of Tasmania, but is not nearly such a large or valuable tree, although the timber is strong and durable, is
blue

used for railway sleepers and upper timbers in

jetties.

The Spotted

Gum

(E.

goniocalyx)
for

is

very similar in
often sold,

appearance gum, used for the same purposes.

to blue

which

it

is

and

is

TIMBERS OF VICTORIA

233

Messmate has the same botanical name as the Stringy

Bark

of

Tasmania (E.

obliqud)

and furnishes good and

durable building material.

Grey Box (E. keinipJdoia)

is

a similar
;

wood

to that of the

same name

a pale brown or grey colour with inlocked grain, heavy, hard, and durable. Both it and the timbers mentioned above are much used
in
it

New South Wales

is of

red

for railway sleepers, especially grey box, red ironbark, and gum ; the latter has a life of from eighteen to thirty

years in the track.

The above, and Stringy Bark,

;

to a

small extent, are also

used for telegraph poles in each case the bases for 5 to 6 ft. up being charred and coated with a mixture of gas tar,

Stockholm

tar,

and slaked lime.

Bairnsdale Grey Box (Eucalyptus bosistoana), a tree which

attains a height of 100 to 150 ft., produces a very valuable and durable piling timber for wharves and jetties and may

be obtained in lengths of 60 or 70
railway

ft.

it is

also 'used for

wagon frames, fencing posts, spokes and felloes of wheels, and for sleepers.
Yellow Stringy Bark (E. mnelleriana) is employed for the as Bairnsdale Grey Box.

same purposes

over the colony

grain.

Yellow Box (E. melliodora) is found in scattered belts it is a fairly durable timber with inlocked
;

Used

for piling

and beams.

Blackbutt (E. amy-ydalina reynans) is the tallest tree of the Victorian forests, attaining a height of over 300 ft. It is a different wood to the blackbutt of East Gippsland,
Victoria,

which

is

the

and

it

differs also

same as the New South Wales variety, from the Western Australian blackbutt

234

TIMBER
is

(E. patens\

The timber when properly appearance

rails

something

like
is

seasoned, and

English oak in used for ordinary

building material and a good deal for palings, shingles, and mining timber.
Silver-top or Bastard Ironbark (E. sieberiana), also

known

mountain ash and sometimes as white ironis also called mountain ash in New South Wales and wood, ironbark in Tasmania. There is another variety known as
as Gippsland

woollybutt. Neither is durable in contact with the ground, but both furnish building material of fair quality.

of

The Cypress Pine (Callitris verrucosa) is the same as that New South Wales, as it comes from the Murray Eiver district, which forms the boundary between the two colonies. Blackwood (Acacia melanoxylon} produces the valuable fine-grained timber which has been described in the section
dealing with Tasmania.

Evergreen Beech (Fagus cunninghamii)

is

also

found in

Tasmania (which

see).

Other smaller timber trees or brush timber, such as sassafras (used for saddle trees and boot lasts), box olive

and other timbers, which furnish woods

It

of beautiful grain

for veneers, carving, etc., are also indigenous to

Tasmania.
region
of

may

be said generally that the forest

Southern Victoria corresponds to a considerable extent with that of Tasmania, whilst in the northern part of the colony the trees are of a kind common to New South Wales.

TIMBERS OF QUEENSLAND.

districts.

The most valuable woods are to be found in the coastal The ironbark and other eucalypti, as well as
(^4.

Moreton Bay pine

cunninghamii), are most plentiful

TIMBERS OF QUEENSLAND

235

between the New South Wales border and the town of Gladstone (Tropic of Capricorn), but supplies are now having to be brought from further inland, and the district between Bockhampton and Ingham, a distance of 250 miles, has to depend for its supplies from the southern district. Northward of Ingham there are large supplies of red cedar, kauri pine, similar to the New Zealand timber, and black or The cypress red bean, similar to that of New South Wales.
pine grows in large quantities in the south-western part of the colony. Many of the finest timbers of Queensland, such as ironbark, gums, blackbutt, turpentine, bloodwood, red
cedar, black bean, etc., are

and have been referred

to

common to New South Wales, under that and other colonies.

,

Woollybutt (E.

l)otryoides)

a red coloured, close-grained,

tough wood, useful for wagon work and large beams, is a similar timber to the New South Wales tree, with a
different botanical
is

name.

the second largest timber-covered colony of Queensland Australia, though large portions have but little timber, and
it

on the coastal regions where the rainfall is highest is most plentiful. Its native timbers are, however, inferior to none in Australia. The Balonne Eiver Bridge, St. George, 480 ft. long, was
is

that the timber

constructed wholly of Bloodwood (E. corymbosa) the piles were 17 inches in diameter, exclusive of sapwood. Abridge
;

over the
of

Eiver, Tiaro, in this colony, was constructed Queensland grey ironbark, and some of the timber

Mary
to

ranged up

18 inches in diameter.

and spotted

gum

were used in
at
ft.

Ironbark, blue gum, the construction of the

Mary Eiver Bridge

diameter and 43

Gympie.
long,

Ironbark piles, 18 inches were used at Eockhampton

Spotted

Suspension Bridge in 1890, and this timber furnishes the

best timber for telegraph poles in the colony.

gum

236

TIMBEE
piles

and ironbark

were used in a railway bridge over the

Fitzroy River, Rockhampfcon, and the sleepers were of The roadway curbs of the Herbert River timber ironbark.
bridge, Gairlock, were of

Moreton Bay ash. Swamp Mahogany, somewhat resembling the West Indian
is

wood,

hard and close grained and suited

piles.

for

underground

work or

The Paper-barked Tea

Tree (Melaleuca leucadcndroii)

is

also

valuable for underground work and piling.

Gldgee or Gidia (Acacia lionialophyllon)

is

a small tree

producing prettily-marked wood, and

for briar pipes.

is

used as a substitute

TIMBERS OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA.

Although the second largest in area of the Australian colonies, South Australia has by far the smallest forest area; with an acreage nearly equal to that of West Australia it
has only one-thirtieth
extent a treeless State.
of its forest

area

it

is

to

a large

There are some tracts of the Red Gum (E. rostrata), the Blue Gum (E. leucoxylon], the Sugar Gum (E. corynocalt/x)
,

and Grey Box (E. hemiphloia), all useful for railway and general purposes, and the Sugar Gum for piling. Peppermint (E. odorata) is a useful hardwood for ordinary purposes, and Blackwood is also found in some districts. The She Oak, as in New South Wales, and the Tea Trees (melaleuca and leptospermuni) are to some extent valuable because of the durable nature of their wood, which is close grained, hard, and heavy, when used underground or in water. The native pines make fairly durable telegraph otherwise poles, lasting from fifteen to seventeen years they are of little value except for fences and fuel.
;

TIMBERS OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA

Honeysuckle
in Tasmania.
is

237

sometimes used

for cabinet work, as

it is

The
of the

same kind

trees in this colony are much smaller than those in the other colonies, the eucalypti not
ft.

exceeding 100 to 120

The Sandalwood
is

tree

in height. grows in

abundance on Yorke's

short in stature, produces solid and strong Peninsula, does duty as firewood, and is a deadly enemy DO wood,

mosquitoes
to

camp

any one, indeed, who. has had the misfortune a Sandalwood fire in the bush will admit that by
;

the mosquitoes

show good judgment

in keeping

away from

such objectionable fumes. South Australia is spending a good deal of money on planting the various eucalypti of the neighbouring colonies, as well as foreign trees, but will not
be an exporter for

Amongst

years, if ever. trees successfully tried is the foreign

many

American

ash (Fraxinus Americana), the timber from which has been used in coachbuilding work and compares well in quality
with timber of the same kind imported from America.

CHAPTER IX
TIMBERS OF

NEW ZEALAND AND TASMANIA

NEW ZEALAND

Kauri Pine Totara Black Maire Kimu Matai Kahikatea or White Pine Silver Pine Puriri Beeches Miro Rata Honeysuckle. TASMANIA Blue Gum Stringy Bark Ash or Swamp Gum Gum Top Stringy Bark Ironbark Peppermint Black wood Huon Pine Celery Top Pine King William Pine Beech or Myrtle
:
:

Tea Tree Honeysuckle Leatherwood, Lancewood, Government Specification for Eucalyptus Timber.

etc.

Oaks

NEW ZEALAND
New Zealand

TIMBERS.

Kauri Pine (Agatliis australis) is the best known of the timbers and is indeed the chief timber of the

It is yellowish white in colour, straight in grain, colony. with a silky lustre on the surface, and is easily worked. It
is light, fairly

amongst the pines it is only exceeded strength by pitch pine and Baltic redwood. It is generally remarkably free from knots and It defects, and may be obtained perfectly clear of them. can be had in planks nearly 3 ft. wide in the colony a
;

strong and elastic

in

piece has been got 20

of knots

ft. long by 5 ft. wide absolutely clear and shakes, and only recently pieces were to be had in the London market 18 ft. long and 50 inches wide and practically perfect. The timber requires to be seasoned

before being put into use, as it shrinks considerably. In one case where it was used on the deck of a vessel it

had

in

twelve months

shrank considerably both longi-

tudinally and cross ways.

Good

for all classes of joinery

NEW ZEALAND
and inside work,

TIMBERS

239

it is especially adapted and much used church work. As sleepers it is stated to have a life of fqr There is a good deal of resin fifteen years on the track. in the wood it is very inflammable and very durable. Kauri pine brings a good price in the London market, and
;

owing
lire,

to the great use

amount exported, and

fifteen years.

still

made of this timber locally, the more the amount destroyed by

the kauri forest will probably be extinct in from ten to

to

Weight 30

39

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Totara (Podocarpus totara), one of the most durable of The timbers, is a tree of rapid growth. timber is useful in marine work, resisting the teredo much

New Zealand

better than jarrah in

bridge work
rich red.
in

Auckland Harbour. straight, smooth, close and

Used largely
silky in grain,

for
it

resembles pencil cedar.

The colour

varies from

brown

to

There

most

trees.

a good deal of sap wood of a straw colour It is considered equally durable as kauri
is
;

pine in house construction, but more difficult to work it is usually employed in the colony for patterns. It is also said
to

make good paving blocks, as it is not slippery and wears down evenly, and is admirable for heavy construction work and for railway sleepers, furniture, etc. The heart of totara
exclusively used for telegraph

is

poles

in

New

Zealand,

which have an average life of about twenty years. The Maoris used it for dug-out canoes. Some of the timber has beautiful markings, and a large trade is done in
veneers.
Its price in the colony
is

little

more than
is

that of kauri.

good deal of this timber, in planks, now being imported into Great Britain. Weight about 35 Ibs. per cubic foot.

close-grained,

Black Maire (Olca cunningliainii) is a hard, dense, tough, and very heavy timber of a deep brown colour

240

TIMBER

It is very useful thrust blocks, etc., but is not easily for scarfing timbers, obtained in long lengths ; it makes good durable sleepers, make capital wood for piles, and fence posts, and is said to large engraving blocks if properly seasoned, as it does not

with the heartwood streaked with black.

wear and bears high pressures.

time to season.

The timber takes a long

Weight 72

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Red Pine (Dacrydium cupressinuni) can be had It is a in logs up to 45 ft. long and 30 inches square. useful and ornamental wood of handsome deep red coloured Solid and clear of heart with light streaks or markings. grain, its chief drawback is its liability to decay under the Much used in house framing and influence of wet. for furniture, and especially for the carpentry, largely

Rimu

or

panelling of railway carriages, interior of public buildings, etc., as some of the timber is handsomely marked, and it takes a fine polish and costs less to polish than mahogany
or walnut.
It is a favourite

timber for

all

kinds of wagon

building in

the

island

Australian tallow wood

except the framework, for which is preferred. It is very slow in

growth.

small amount of this timber

now comes

into

the English market

some

tests

made

it

form would appear

in the

of to

wide planks, and from have little tendency to

shrink and warp in seasoning. Weight 34 to 40 Ibs. per cubic foot.

Matai or Black Pine (Podocarpas spicata) produces a brownish coloured hardwood of smooth close grain and silky texture, and is almost universally used for flooring in New Zealand, in which position it possesses excellent wearing qualities. The annual rings are clear, distinct, and close. It is also largely used for general outdoor work, general
building material, and occasionally for bridge-building and

NEW ZEALAND
sleepers.

TIMBEES

241

The worms get into the sap wood, which is defined and of light colour and about an inch clearly A refreshing and intoxithick in a 3 ft. diameter tree.
cating
bark,
is

drink

when

obtained by boring a hole through the " the liquid issues in a sparkling stream." It
is

stronger than Totara but less durable.

feet.

The

tree attains

a height of 70

Weight 35

to

49

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Kahikatea or white pine (P. dacrydioides) is a tree which attains a height of over 150 ft. and sometimes a diameter of 5 ft., and is often unbranched for nearly 100 ft. The timber

ordinary yellow deal or Canary whitewood in appearance and has a large proportion of sapwood. It should not
is like

for inside

be employed in outside situations or in damp ground, but work is considered as good as American yellow

and some consider it superior. In some of the larger trees, and those grown on dry situations, the core of bright yellow wood is very strong and shows fair endurance in damp and exposed situations. Used for flooring and also by furniture makers to a small extent, it is also well
pine,

insects

adapted for making doors. Eeadily attacked by boring in the colony, but probably not more so than imported timber it is used a good deal for butter boxes
;

its freedom from acids, oils, or resins likely to taint the butter. It would probably make good wood pulp. A good deal of this wood has recently been brought into the English markets in planks and can be offered in prime quality and of an average width of 18 inches some can be had even up to 40 inches wide, remarkably free from knots and defects, and of considerable lengths. It is less liable to warp than Canary whitewood and takes polish remarkably well.
;

both in the colony and in Australia, owing to

Weight up
T.

to

26 to 35

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

242
Silver Pine or

TIMBER
Western Pine (Dacrydium westlandicum) Pine (D. intermedium) both furnish a

and Yellow

Silver

dense white or yellowish white timber of great durability which is useful for inside or outside work. Some of the

wood

is

beautifully marked.

The first-mentioned

is

largely

used for bridges, jetty piles, and railway sleepers. are trees of 40 to 50 ft. in height. Weight 41 Ibs. per cubic foot.

These

Puriri (Vitex littoralis) is

known

as the

New Zealand

teak

It is the most closely related to the teak of India. durable timber in the colony and in great request for bridge piles, fencing posts, etc., whilst for railway sleepers it

and

is

woods, and is said to have lasted twenty-five years on the track. It is only found in the Auckland and Taranaki districts of the North

ranks the

first

of all

New Zealand

Island.

The colour is dark brown it is excessively hard, dense, and heavy, indeed suitable for any work requiring In order to split it, it is necessary somegreat strength.
;

times to use blasting powder or dynamite. Weight 62 to 76 Ibs. per cubic foot.

There are several beeches, the Tooth Leaved and Entire Leaved varieties being the most important the latter has more sap and decays more rapidly than the tooth leaved variety, though both are used for timber in wharves and
;

jetties, sleepers,

The wood is of red or fencing posts, etc. reddish brown colour with sharply defined light coloured
sapwood
beech
; ;

it is

usually called by colonists the red birch or

even in grain, compact, and of considerable and toughness. The Tooth Leaved variety (Fagtis strength fusca) was the only timber used for a stiffened suspension
is

bridge

200

ft.

span and 20

ft.

deep in centre

spanning

NEW ZEALAND
Chasm Creek Gorge.
1

TIMBEES
it

243

The Maoris distinguish

it

from the

other beeches by calling

Tawhai-raw-nui.

Miro (Podocarpus ferruyinea), known as Bastard Black Pine in Otago, is a reddish brown coloured wood and not
unlike Matai, but may be detected by the cross section of the dark coloured heartwood. Often star shaken and

Miro is very irregular, it is less durable than Matai. suitable for interior work it is also of considerable strength
;

and may be used

also

it has been used for It is straight and even in grain and can be got in lengths 20 to 30 ft. long.
;

for

beams carrying heavy weights piles and timber work of wharves.

Weight about 46

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

and M.

Rata, of which there are two species (Metrosideros lucida robusta), is not only useful for shipbuilding, railway

sleepers,

wharves, wheelwrights' work,

trees,
It

etc.,

but
its

may

be

referred to as a natural curiosity,

propagated on other forest 80 ft. above the ground.

until its limited supply of

insomuch sometimes
is

as

seeds are

at a height of

rapidly increases in growth

nourishment

exhausted, when,

in search of further nourishment,, the roots

grow

steadily

down

the sides of the sustaining tree until the ground is reached, after which they gradually assume the appearance

some of them 3 ft. in diameter, put forth shoots at right angles, and grow round the trunk of the supporting tree, gradually crushing it under their enormous pressure. The only tree which it fails to destroy by this process is the Puriri, which opposes greater strength and comes out
of stems,

victorious in the contest.

The wood

of the

rata
is

is of

a reddish

yellow colour, and

1

hard, dense,

brown or reddish and heavy, of great

p. 254.

Min. of Proc. Inst. C.E., Vol. 143,

R 2

244

TIMBER

strength and durability, and it grows to be a large tree of 100 ft. in height and considerable diameter.
It is to

square.

be had in logs up to 50 ft. The wood is destitute of

for cabinet-makers'

in length
figure and
It is

and 2
is

to 4

ft.

and hard
ironwood.

use.

too tough commonly called

Weight about 65

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

The Honeysuckle (Knightia excelsa) or " Eewarewa," as it is called by the Maoris, grows to a height of 100 ft. with a diameter of 3 ft. and produces a beautifully and peculiarly

marked

light brown or reddish brown wood, particularly suitable for furniture and decorative purposes such as the

saloon fittings on steamers,

etc.

It is

often used for mantel-

To produce pieces owing to its incombustible nature. these beautiful markings, the timber, as is generally the case, has to be cut on the quarter, the medullary rays being
both deep and wide. It is durable when used for interior work, but will not stand exposure to variations of weather, being indeed purely a furniture or cabinet-makers' wood.
All oily substances should be avoided

when

polishing

New

Zealand honeysuckle, as it absorbs grease and oil to the detriment of the finely marked grain, and moreover varnishIt is now found chiefly in ing is said to be a disadvantage. the North Island and mixed with other forest trees.

There are no eucalypti in

New

Zealand.

TASMANIAN TIMBER.

As

in Australia, the eucalyptus

is

the most important of

the trees of Tasmania.

The Blue Gum (E.

structures stands
first,

globulus) for heavy and important and has been known and used in

TASMANIAN TIMBER

245

so

Great Britain and abroad for

it is

many

years.

In

its earlier

a quick-growing tree and has attained a height stages of 74 ft. with a girth of 2 ft. 3 inches in twenty-one years. At full growth it will average 7 ft. in diameter at the butt

246

TIMBER
to

and 200
of a

350

ft.

lowest branch.

extreme height with 100 ft. to the The stem is very straight. The wood is
in

varying colour from cream to pink, very heavy, close and straight in grain, and of great strength. It has heen much used for piles and in wharf construction generally. Large quantities of logs were imported up to 100 ft. long

and 18

to

20 inches square for temporary staging at the

Admiralty Harbour Works, Dover, a few years ago, where, owing to the great depth of water into which the piles had
to be driven,
specific

high water, the high of great advantage with Oregon timber of the same sizes, which had compared It also withstands the to be weighted to enable it to sink. It was also attack of the teredo much better than Oregon. used at the Keyham Dockyard extension works, and a large
namely, about 60
ft.

at

gravity of the blue

gum was

quantity

is

now being used by

The

the North Eastern Railway

Company logs are not sawn, but are cut almost Cross die square with broad axes in the following manner cuts about 2 ft. apart are first made in the felled tree, and
at Hull.
:

the timber between

may

is cut off; on the logs as finished one often see traces of these cross cuts where they have

gone slightly below the intended depth. So straight and accurately is the timber converted by this method that in a log 60 or 65 ft. long there is often not half an inch The method is difference between one end and the other. shown in our illustration (Fig. 34), for which the clearly author is indebted to the courtesy of the Agent-General for Tasmania it also shows a large log already squared, and
;

gives a good idea of the tall straight trunks of a blue gum forest. It is an excellent timber for any work requiring great length and strength, and can be delivered in Great

Britain of a length of from 60 ft. and upwards at about the same price as Oregon of similar sizes. One of the objections to the timber is that it splits a good deal, being as bad in

TASMANIAN TIMBER
this respect as

247

American elm, although probably, if better seasoned before exportation, this trouble would be overcome. An excellent section of the wood cut from a log lying about on works for a long time was sent to the author and split Mr. in several lines from outside to heart in a short time.
Geo. Dudley, of Hobart,

who has used

it

very

much

for

coachbuilding and wheelwrights' work, says that it requires this special care in seasoning, and in the case of felloes
It should be ringed at the ends takes about two years. when stored, or it splits there, sometimes very badly. In

this timber, as with all the eucalypti,

necessary when converting that the heart should be cut out to the extent This tree is evidently a similar species of 3 or 4 inches.
it is

to

one of the same

it

name
to a

in

several of

the Australian

colonies, but

Tasmania, grows and the official publication says it "must not be confounded with some of those similarly named growing in the mainland States." It is a remarkably sound, clean timber; one can see logs
over 60
ft.

much

larger size in

long without a knot.

It is

largely used in the

colony for sleepers, railway wagon work, and wheelwrights' work, and has been used to a small extent in Great Britain for street paving, but has not been found so satisfactory for

In transverse and tensile strength gum compares very favourably with jarrah and karri, but can be obtained in longer lengths than either of these timbers, and in this respect will command a good market.
this

purpose as jarrah.

blue

The appearance
tests are

of the fibres after fracture in cross

bending

very similar to karri and jarrah under the same A 9 inches X 9 inches sawn blue gum log 10 ft. conditions.

between the supports was tested by Messrs. David Kirkaldy & Son and stood an ultimate bending stress of 17'6 tons with the load in the centre it failed by the top side compressing, cracked at 3 inches deflection, but bent to 5 inches
;

248

TIMBER
;

a the weight of this sample was 70 Ibs. per cubic foot Ibs. per cubic foot. Under sample paving block weighed 64^

= 79'92 square inches 380,100 Ibs. = 4,756 Ibs. per

inches

a compressive test a piece 10

ft.

long and 8*98 inches X 8'90 crushed under a total load of

square inch

the weight of

'

-Photo

FIG. 35.

Crushing Tests of Tasmanian Blue Gum.

this

sample was 71|

Ibs.

peculiar twisting of the fibres

per cubic foot. Fig. 35 shows the of blue gum under com-

These samples stood about 2^ tons per pressive stress. inch. One sample is particularly noticeable where square
the timber has opened so clean and sharp as to look like a A piece of blue gum scantling 146 ft. long and mortice.

TASMANIAN TIMBER
18 inches

249

6 incites sawn

clear of

heart

and sap was

London Exhibition of 1851, since which time great inroads have been made on this valuable timber. The average hardness of blue gum, according to tests made by M. lludeloff, is about the same as that of
exhibited at the

hornbeam. Mr. Ainslie and Mr. Forsyth, foremen of works at Hobart, report that they have taken blue gum and stringy bark timber from the wharves where it had been in use for beams and planking for twenty-six to thirty-five years in good order, and blue gum which had been in place for " good as the day it was put there." thirty years was as Blue It is classed in Lloyd's third list for shipbuilding.

gum

is

found almost exclusively in the southern portion of

the island.

but

Stringy Bark (E. nbliqua) often attains a height of 250 ft., much of the timber is rendered valueless by gum

veins and blotches.

The wood
it

straw to light brown,

is

softer

varies in colour from pale than blue gum, is not so

sound or lasting a timber, and is subject to seasoning cracks. When well seasoned, however, it is suitable and much used for flooring, dados, and internal fittings, and is more generally used in housebuilding than blue gum, as when planed it it is more easily worked and not so heavy
;

much

resembles English oak. Called Messmate in Victoria. Weight of well-seasoned samples from 48 to 66 Ibs. per

cubic foot.

Ash or Swamp Gum (E. reyuan s} greatly resembles blue gum in outward appearance, but is of much more open grain than either blue gum or stringy bark, and often It is identical with the attains a greater size than either. mountain ash of Victoria, and is useful for interior work

250

TIMBER

with only, although used for packing cases in connection The wood is of light brown colour. the fruit trade.

Weight about 53

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

is

Gum

Top Stringy Bark (E. liaemastoma)

closer in grain

than the swamp

gum

it

grows

to a considerable height,

but small diameter, the average with a height of 150 ft. being not more than 3 to 4 ft. The texture of the wood
is

about a

it is

for

stringy bark and swamp gum and found very satisfactory when seasoned house-building, flooring, and for coachbuilding and
;

medium between

largely used

wheelwrights' work. Weight about 48 to 51

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

of the island

Ironbark (E. sieberiana) is only found in the north east and in small quantities. It is used for local

requirements only and for similar purposes to blue

gum

and stringy bark. Weight 48 to 51

There are
at

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

half

least

dozen other varieties

of

eucalypti in Tasmania, but those described are the only ones likely to come into the foreign market.
(E. amygdalina) produces a good, durable used for fencing posts, and makes excellent It is only found in small quantities. shingles for roofs. 39 Ibs. per cubic foot. Weight

Peppermint

timber,

much

Blackwood (Acacia melanoxijlon), a tree of GO to 80

ft.

high with a diameter of 3 to 6 ft., is the most valuable of " the fine-grained woods of Tasmania. Black It is the
" of Western New South Wales Sally the southern part of that colony. It

and the hickory

is

of

a close, straight

grained timber of dark brown or walnut colour, varying in shade and somewhat resembling cedar the sapwood is
;

TASMANIAN TIMBER
brownish white.
It is extensively

251

used for the better class

of furniture, panelling for railway carriages, and for pianos, also for anything in connection billiard tables, and pulpits
;

with wheelwrights' work which requires bending. It is used in the colony for purposes for which teak and mahogany were formerly used, but requires to be

"It does Mr. Geo. Dudley says thoroughly seasoned. not require such special care in seasoning as some other woods, that is it will stand more exposure and will not
:

shrink so much." Some of the wood is beautifully figured. There is a small amount of blackwood imported into Great
Britain,

and in June, 1907, there were nineteen logs in

list.

one sale

Weight about 37

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Huon Pine or Macquerie Pine (Dacrydium jranldinii) is a white wood which contains but little sap, works easily, and
is

very durable.

It

is

much used

for

furniture,

boat-

building, and joinery, and is said to be superior to any of It stands the weather very well and the imported timber. is a good deal used in railway carriages and similar stock It is which is exposed to severe weather conditions. obtainable in small quantities and for local only now

requirements.
Celery

Top Pine (Pliyllocladus rhnmboidalis) derives

little,

its
;

name from
it is

the likeness of the leaves to those of the celery

a strong and lasting timber, shrinks but

this account is

much

used for

and on flooring boards and other

It is

internal housework, railway carriage building, etc. not obtainable in large quantities.

The weight

is

about 40

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

much

King William Pine (AtJirotaxis selaginoides) lighter timber than the celery top pine.

produces a

The colour

252

TIMBER

is is

It a pale pink, and the grain very straight, but open. found in limited quantity, and is largely used locally only

by cabinet-makers and
boat-building.

joiners,

and

it

is

very suitable for

Weight only about 22

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

Beech or Myrtle (Fagiis cunninghamii), of which there are two kinds, the best of which resembles in character the hardest and heaviest English beech and is of a pink colour
the freshly cut, gradually fading to a lighter shade and soft. The annual rings are distinctly other is white
;

when

marked, and the timber requires special care in seasoning.

It is

not

much

fairly

good and durable flooring

appreciated in the colony, but makes a it is also used instead of

;

mahogany for T squares, variety makes excellent

;

set squares, etc.,

and the better

used in

planes.

It

is

Great

Britain for fret saw work and carving, and should make a it has been used for piano framing. good cabinet wood It can be obtained in good lengths and up to 40 inches wide and 3 to 6 inches thick without a knot. Many of the

planks are sawn on the quarter and show the silver grain
well.

Weight about 47

Ibs.

per cubic foot.

trees of

Amongst the smaller timber

mentioned the Tea Tree
handles, fishing rods, etc.

Tasmania may be

of several varieties, used for tool

Weight about 50 Ibs. per cubic

foot.

The Honeysuckle (Banksia marginata), resembling that

New Zealand, but of small size, is much prized by cabinet-makers. Leatherwood and Lancewood, both excellent for axe or pick handles, shafts, etc.
of

wood

Box (Bursar la spinosa), a close-grained creamy-coloured used for turnery and carving, and Pinkwood or

TASMANIAN TIMBER

253

Kosewood, a heavy reddish close-grained timber used by cabinet-makers. Dogwood is a small tree with a diameter of about 12 inches, which is also a cabinet-makers' wood.

The Tasmanian Oaks, or so-called oaks.

She oak and

Bull oak are of great density and weight, and this great weight is one of the objections to their use in wagon

They are only building, where lightness is desirable. small trees 80 to 40 ft. in height and 6 to 16 inches in
diameter.

The

bull
Ibs.

oak

is

much

the

heavier timber,

per cubic foot, whilst the she oak weighing about 54 1 weighs only about 41 Ibs. per cubic foot.

Government inspection of Tasmanian eucalypti requires " free from all heartwood, sapwood, that the timber be
shakes,
defects
.

gum
.
.

veins,

large
to

or

loose

knots,

and

other

All

sleepers

be cut from matured and

sound living or ring barked trees, the logs of which are not to be less than 2 ft. 6 inches in diameter, and the trees to be felled during the period of the year between April 1st and September 30th ... to be protected at the ends and around same by a good coating of an antifriction or other
grease.
.

All

sleepers

to

be

allowed

three

months'

seasoning after being

sawn and placed

it

in the stack."

From what

has been said

will

be obvious that splitting,

warping, and shrinking are the weak points in Eucalypti timbers, and it would be well for the different Government
authorities to institute a proper system of seasoning, such as is done with teak.

Whether the same system would apply the author cannot

say, but, considering the large quantity of this timber now sent to Great Britain and the great loss which this splitting
1 There do not appear to be any real Zealand, or Australia.

oaks in Tasmania,

New

254
entails

TIMBER

upon timber merchants, something should be done. The timber arrives in much the same condition as when
Laslett

reported

unfavourably upon

it

owing

to

these

defects thirty years ago.

Eucalypti timber, planks at any rate, can be seasoned so damage to the wood, as a piece of Karri plank has lain upon the author's mantelpiece, in
as to ensure very little

various temperatures, for over six years and

is

as perfect as

when

received.

CHAPTEK X
CAUSES OF DECAY AND DESTRUCTION OF TIMBER
Decay Caused by Bacteria and Fungi
Propagation of Disease
All Timber Liable to Attack

Conditions for Decay- Timber in Certain Situations Practically Indestructible Harder and Denser Woods Less Liable to Decay Animals which Destroy Timber in Sea

Water

Terebrans

The Teredo Navalis Limnoria Terebrans Chelura The Sphseroma The Pholas All Timbers with Few Exceptions Liable to Attack The White Ant.

THE changes which take place in the structure of wood and cause decay are due to the activity of the lower forms of plant life, bacteria and fungi, chiefly the latter.
Fungi induce changes
in the organic matter of the wood,

by withdrawing certain substances from it on which they " " feed, and the term decay of timber is now understood
to

mean

pounds which
the
activity
;

a breaking down of the complex chemical comit contains into much simpler ones, due to
of

these

lower

organisms

which excrete

ferments

these dissolve out certain parts of the walls of the cells of the wood and, by so doing, destroy their

physical and chemical properties. The cells which make up the heartwood of a tree con-

The sap is the life of the tree, tain no living substance. and is confined to the outer layers. It is composed of
water holding in solution various organic substancesand their presence is the cause sugars, starches, oils, etc.

256
of the

TIMBEK

sapwood of trees being more readily destroyed by than the heartwood, as it is on these substances that fungi
the fungi feed.

The fungus threads penetrate the wood

directions

cells

in

all

and gradually destroy

them.

The

fruiting

bodies of fungi are the familiar toadstools so commonly seen on live and dead timber. Fungi are propagated chiefly

by the spores or

fine filaments

found on the lower surface

ripe, are

of the fruiting body, which,

when

clouds, float about in the air, settle

on

live or

discharged in dead timber

and penetrate into cracks of the bark or wood, where they germinate and gradually spread. When the fruiting body or toadstool appears on a tree it is a sign that the timber is already badly diseased. The
growth of this fungus stops when the tree is cut down, but then it is attacked by a number of other fungi, and the work of destruction is very similar but goes on much more rapidly on dead timber than on the living tree. In America experience has shown the curious fact that on crests of hills or where winds have a long and free
sweep the percentage of diseased timber is uniformly higher than in more sheltered areas, and that is due to the larger number of broken branches forming cavities in which
the spores germinate.
All trees and all timber are liable to attack

by fungi,

although some are more liable than others

the

for instance,

(Taxodium distichunt) and red cedar (Juniperas virginiana) of America are remarkably free from fungi and consequent decay, and so far as is known the Locust (Rubinia pseudacia) is attacked by but one fungus which destroys wood. So liable is timber to the attack of the numerous fungi that Dr. Von Schrenk, of the United States Department " of Agriculture, says I will be willing to hazard the

wood

of the

cypress

CAUSES OF DECAY AND DESTRUCTION OF TIMBER

statement that any board that
is

257

cut and brought into the from the forest is already covered with these fungi." It has been proved that the spores can be propagated by the saw of the workman if after cutting diseased timber he uses the tool on sound wood, and can even be carried on the clothes, and if, as German chemists tell us, four millions
city
of these spores

easily judge of the risk of infection.

only occupy a cubic millimetre, we can As the human being

brings with him from an infected neighbourhood the germs which in time produce typhoid and other diseases, so timber, brought from the forest, brings with it the spores of disease which only require a favourable situation to cause them to

propagate and produce decay. These spores distributed by currents of air are what so quickly destroy the timber of
dwelling-houses by what

although this is should be the object of all users of timber to bring it into such a condition as to prevent the propagation of fungi and
;

familiarly known as dry rot," a misnomer, as will be shown and it

is

"

consequent decay.

The chief " dry rot " fungus is known by the name of Mendius lacrymans, and recent German experiments have
proved that
it

can propagate

itself either

by mycelia or

spores, but principally by the latter. Moisture and a certain amount of heat are indispensable

conditions for decay of timber. Without moisture no growth of fungus can take place. Temperatures between 60 and 100 Fahr. appear most conducive to fungus life, it will not exist at freezing point, and in higher temperatures than above given appears to lose its vitality. Mr. Eichard Falck, in a recent paper in the Zeitschrift fill- Hygiene, Leipsic, has pointed out that he has been able

prove that warmth is fatal to the growth of dry rot fungus, and that in houses attacked it is possible to destroy
to
it

entirely
T.

by heating the

air to

38

C. (100 Fahr.) for four

S

258

TIMBER

its vitality in

hours, or a temperature of 40 C. (104 Fahr.) will destroy one hour. Other fungi are, however, capable
of resisting higher temperatures. Dry air is incapable of causing decomposition.
If

we

can exclude humidity from the wood it will prevent the primary cause of decay. Any kind of wood kept absolutely
air-tight will not decay, as, for instance, submerged in water.
It

wood completely

was owing to absence of air and moisture that the mammoth was preserved for untold ages in the ice of the Russian rivers, and the wonderful preservation of the wooden Egyptian coffins and statues for 5,000 or
6,000

years

is

largely

owing

to

the

dryness

of

the

Egyptian atmosphere. Timber buried in the ground has in most cases a very long life. In clay it is practically indestructible.

The

our own and other countries are in

piled foundations of the ancient lake dwellings in fair condition after

;

being in place for thousands of years the piled foundations of the great and important buildings of Venice,

Amsterdam, and other

centuries.

cities

have carried their loads for

cutting from a Memel pile recently taken out of the ground at Hull, now in the possession of the author, is as sound as when it was put down more than a hundred years ago. Another, from a small oak pile taken out of a river bed, which had probably been there a thousand years, is also quite sound. The oak foundation piles from the
soft

bridge constructed across the river Tyne by the Romans were, when taken out of the river bed forty years ago, found to be so little the worse after being buried eighteen
centuries that pieces of furniture were made from them, and a piece of cypress wood in good condition was a few

years back found in the

New

Orleans Drainage Canal,

CAUSES OF DECAY AND DESTRUCTION OF TIMBER

259

having been buried 17 ft. below the present Gulf of Mexico probably for thousands of years. Wood that is free from atmospheric changes will not
decay, nor will
conditions,
latter condition is
is perfectly dry, although this not possible of attainment under ordinary as wood has a great affinity for water and
;

wood which

absorbs the moisture from the surrounding atmosphere but most kinds of timber, if in good condition when used,

and afterwards well protected and placed where there

is

free circulation of air, will last for centuries, as witness the

great age to which furniture will keep in good condition even in a moist climate. There are two sycamore coffins

from Egypt, now in the British Museum, 4,400 years old and in such good condition that even the colours of their ornamentation are still quite bright. Pliny well knew that timber kept constantly under fresh water was less liable to decay than when exposed to variations of atmosphere, and long before his time Solomon, or his Temple architect, was aware of the necessity of having a free circulation of air round timbers built into walls so as to prevent damp, and " he made narrowed rests round about that for this reason the beams should not be fastened in the walls of the house," and all that the present-day German scientist can advise to prevent decay is the same old doctrine of the free action of air and the avoidance if possible of contact with wood and brickwork, or else the use of antiseptics. The reason why timber posts decay at ground level is
because the higher temperature at that place allows of the production of fungi. Conditions of moisture and warmth

timber so much that in the same fence a durable wood may decay before one of lesser durability. Timber should never be painted or tarred before being properly seasoned, as by so doing we bring about the best conditions for cultivating the fungi whose spores were
affect s

260

TIMBEE

already there by providing them with a warm and moist chamber, and the interior of the wood will almost certainly

be destroyed.

The human being who has contracted an

disease
is

infectious

kept apart from his fellows so as

to

prevent the
is

spread of the disorder, yet decaying left lying in the neighbourhood of

timber

too often

sound timber, the danger of infection not being realized the two cases are analogous, and decayed timber, being a very fruitful source
;

of infection

owing
it

to the risk of the distribution of the

should be removed from the sound timber or should be destroyed. neighbourhood As a rule the harder or denser woods are less liable to decay than those of a softer nature, but such is not always the case, as karri timber, which is, if anything, harder and denser than jarrah, is the more liable of the two to decay in damp situations, but both these are less liable than most of the fir and pine timbers. Sapwood is more liable to decay than heartwood, and in structural timbers is the

fungus spores

contains,

of

lirst

to decay.

has been pointed out that timber buried in the ground has generally a very long life, but there are exceptions to
It
all

rules,

and a curious instance showing the

difficulties

incurred with timber in the ground has recently come before the author. The instance consisted of pitch pine
piles with

capping pieces of the same as a foundation to cranes and columns for a large foundry in alluvial carry The timber would have deposit of considerable depth.

been creosoted were it not that there was risk of fire. As the ground was too low for shop floor level, the pile heads

and caps stood up in some cases for 3 or 4 ft. above the original surface, and the ground was filled up with mixed material, chiefly clay and sand, but there were no ashes. Although the work has only been down about seven years,

CAUSES OF DECAY AND DESTRUCTION OF TIMBER

261

level are in

the timber caps and pile heads down to original ground many cases quite decayed in some the timber
;

crumbles away beneath the fingers, being quite dry and those portions of brittle, and in other cases wet and soft
;

the piles below the original surface are quite sound the of pile heads surrounded by sand are the most portions
;

decayed. It is known that made-up ground much more than natural ground. Ashes

affects

timber

are about the

worst material in which to place unpreserved wood, and sand filling often seriously affects timber. The only safe
material in which to bed timber
is

clay, as this can be

when that has to be done made impervious to moisture and

air.

Timber bridges, formerly much useU on the United States railways, which when exposed to the weather lasted only seven or eight years, when roofed over would last
thirty years or more, and the importance of some shelter or protection for timber and of thorough ventilation,
especially in

moist climate, cannot be overstated for

life.

prolonging
It is in

its

those portions of timber structures most affected variations of temperature, sometimes dry, sometimes by wet and often damp, and in situations where there is no

current of

air, that decay first sets in. In exposed timber work, such as planking or decking of quays, dirt lies along the seams and joinings and keeps the timber in a moist condition, considerably shortening its

life

the joists on which the decking rests are liable to decay more quickly than other portions of the work, being shut out from light and air and kept damp those portions
; ;

between high and low water level which are always wet or damp last longer than the higher portions in the top bracing above tide level, even where there is no planking on the top, the upper surface of the beams, particularly the
;

262

TIMBER

edges of sapwood, decay first, and whilst the top edges are often badly decayed, the lower edges remain quite sound,
as the water cannot
lie

there.

The reason why the floors and joists in basements, or over cellars, are more liable to decay than the rest of the timber in a building is because they are more subject to damp and moisture and often have not proper air currents
round them.

The joinings of timbers, whether notched or unnotched, or where one timber rests upon another so that wet or

damp
holm

is liable to

lodge, should

tar

and pitch

have a good coat of Stockthis is an excellent put on hot

;

preservative. Some recent

theory goes to show that the calcium bicarbonate arising from the hydrate of lime in mortar is probably the chief cause in the development of

German

spores, as almost without exception the the walls of buildings is first attacked

wood nearest
by
rot.

to

When

fungus has gained access, all visibly affected parts should be cut away, as well as the adjoining and apparently sound timber for several feet round, and the brickwork should be
well cleaned

and brushed over with creosote or coated with

good

plaster.

to

destructive agent with which the engineer has contend in the case of timber structures erected in sea water is known by the general name of the sea worm.

The most

One

found in sea water

destruction.

or other of the several pests known by this all over the world and cause

name

are

enormous

" " from Navalis, often called the ship worm its destructive action on timber as a protection ships, against which they had to be copper sheathed, resembles a

The Teredo

long worm, although

it is

really a mollusc.

The animal

is

CAUSES OF DECAY AND DESTRUCTION OF TIMBER

263

produced by eggs, and is so prolific that the eggs from a single specimen may number a million in one season; they are free swimming in three hours, have a well-developed
shell before the
all
'

end

of the day, are

very hardy, and nearly

seem
to

is

Its method of operation to develop to maturity. bore by means of small and beautifully formed

I'lllltn I'll]

[A. L. Oubridge.

FIG. 30.

Worm-eaten Timber.

the latter

Pieces on left and right show the action of the Teredo is from a plank which was in Genoa Harbour for

three months.

The centre piece shows the work

of

the

Limnoria.

makes, an enamelled lining through which the animal forming can glide backwards and forwards as it expands or contracts. It commences operations from the outside by across the grain of the wood, and once a short boring distance within, it generally turns and works parallel to
.

it deposits a thin calcareous coating cut surface of the wooden tunnel which newly

shells,

and

upon the
it

264

TIMBER

the grain, but it will sometimes work right across the the tunnels are distinct from each other. grain
;

The teredo gradually increases in length and and although on the outside of the timber,

thickness,
if

closely

examined, only small holes about the size of a pin head are to be seen, yet it may be completely riddled (see An average-sized teredo is to | inch diameter Fig. 36).

and 15 inches long, but specimens up to 4 ft. in length and upwards have been obtained with a diameter of over half an inch, and quite recently, in the Transactions of the Eoyal Society of New South Wales, Mr. H. D. Walsh, M.I.C.E., stated that he had taken a teredo from timber in one of the northern ports of New South Wales 6 ft. long and nearly f inch in diameter. 1 The teredo usually passes round knots and rarely crosses a seam or joint in the wood, and must always command the entrance to its tunnel and have free and permanent access to pure sea water, otherwise it can only exist for a short time, although Mr.
M.I.C.E., mentions that he found several still living, but very weak, in timber which, after being taken out of the water, had lain exposed to the tropical sun for
J.

W. James,

two months.

The teredo works from a

little

above low

water, or say half-tide level, down to the ground, and timber 25 ft. below lowest water level has been found
attacked.
It
its

does not
is

through

body and

devour the wood, but passes it very rapid in its work. A young

teredo has been found in wood submerged eight days. It thrives best under the influence of heat, and in a tropical
climate
is

most

destructive

6-inch timber

has been

of Mexico, and piles 12 inches by 15 inches have had to be replaced after six months' service in the same district.

destroyed in six weeks in the Gulf

The Engineer, llth October, 1907.

CAUSES OF DECAY AND DESTRUCTION OF TIMBER

The Limnoria
gribble,"
"

265

and large numbers together, and in most parts

boring Terebrans, sometimes called the " in Australia the cobra," is always found in
of the world.

It is only about the size of a grain of rice, in colour light grey, and very similar to the softer woods which it frequents; the only conspicuous points of the animal are the two black

eyes.

It can swim, crawl, and jump. The limnoria differs from the teredo, as it devours the wood and its tunnel forms both food and shelter. It attacks the wood by means of its mandibles or claws, and makes a very clear cut excavation. It works on the surface of timber so that its destructive work can be plainly seen, and when the wood is bored all over to the depth of perhaps half an inch it becomes brittle and is washed away by the movement of the water, thus affording The tunnels are fresh wood for the animal to act upon.

only about half an inch in length, slightly longer than the animal itself, and are beautifully formed like those of the
;

teredo, they are usually parallel with the grain of the wood The multitude of these animals compensates (see Fig. 36).
for their small size.

work of this by 3 inches

;

Not long ago, when examining the creature on a piece of wood 10 inches square

thick, the author placed it in a pail of salt water with the intention of keeping up life, but without hundreds of these animals came out of the wood, success and the water looked just as though a couple of handfuls of
rice

had been thrown

in.

The limnoria

often works in

conjunction with the teredo, but it also infests the waters of colder seas where the teredo cannot exist, and has thus a

wider range.

It attacks

most kinds

of

wood, even light

scantlings of greenheart after a time, but prefers soft woods, and will eat pitch pine at the rate of half an inch a year on

the northern coasts of Britain.

Like the teredo,

it

also
is

works from about half-tide

level

down

to the

ground, and

266

TIMBER

most destructive at about low water level. In Hartlepool, where the North Eastern Railway Company have timber
ponds
for the storage of the large

timber trade

of that port,

pumped in to keep it below that degree which enables the animal to live. The limnoria will attack knots, but prefers softer wood, and it is curious to see in worm-eaten wood how this hard portion stands
fresh water has to be
of saltness

out in relief

when

the rest of the timber

is

eaten.

The Chelura Terebrans resembles the ordinary shrimp, is very different in appearance to the limnoria, though about
the same size or somewhat larger. It swims on its back, and is a jumper its burrow, also, affords both residence
;

the wood entirely from without, minute fragments by means of a kind of file attacking it in any part, but preferring the softer parts. Specimens one-third of an inch long have been measured.

and

food.

It

attacks

reducing
;

it

to

None

of these pests will, so far as the author's experience

;

goes, exist in sewage-laden water

some

will

not exist in
clear,

muddy waters, and they are most destructive in

pure sea water.

warm,

The Sphaeroma
animals found
It is

is

in Australian

another of these timber destroying and United States waters.

rather larger than the limnoria, and simply erodes the surface of the wood and by this means often discloses the ravages of the teredo. Unlike the others, however, it is
active in comparatively fresh water.

The

Pholas,

common

which mussel, and

is is

very similar in appearance to the a prized shell fish for food on the

shores of the Mediterranean, generally prefers boring in stone, but there is no doubt that in some situations in the
tropics
it

also attacks wood.

It

bores at right angles to

CAUSES OF DECAY AND DESTRUCTION OF TIMBER

the surface and makes a hole from

267

to f inch diameter

and about 2 inches deep. An excellent shout and interesting paper dealing with these timber borers, by Mr. Charles H. Snow, M.A.Soc.C.E., is published in the Proceedings of the American Society of
Civil Engineers, Vol.

So

far as the

XL., 1898. author knows, there

is

no wood which

is

not liable to attack by the sea worm with the possible exception of billian from North Borneo, and that has not been much used, but appears immune, and some of the

palms or similar timbers which the teredo will not generally attack, as the animal prefers a compact wood for its abode. In the paper previously referred to Mr. Walsh mentions turpentine as the only Australian timber which the teredo dislikes, and he found this timber quite sound after an immersion of thirty to forty years, although occasionally the sapwooi showed signs of attack by limnoria and sphseroma. Engineers for a long while pinned their faith on greenheart, as it was considered that the sea worm would only attack the sapwood of that timber, and greenheart certainly resists the attack of the worm for a longer period than any other timber in general use, but, as has been pointed out
elsewhere,
is active.
it is

now known

for a limited time in places

that even greenheart only lasts where the teredo or limnoria

These borers

will

not attack certain timbers

if

others

more

neighbourhood, hence the reason of the statements so frequently made to the effect that many timbers are proof against the marine worm.
Piles

to their liking exist in the

attack than

standing by themselves appear to be more open to when placed close to others.

White Ants.
all

over the world.

Boring insects of other kinds attack timber The most destructive is the termite

268

TIMBER
of the white ant

which goes by the name

deal of

and does a great

though

damage in the tropics, both to live and dead timber, particularly the latter, in dwellings and furniture.

It is this insect

which does the damage in what we usually call "worm-eaten furniture," which in the temperate zone does not usually occur until the wood becomes very old and dry but only recently the author saw these pests in great numbers destroying the framework of a piano, and that
;

not a very old one, in an English dwelling-house. They are almost impossible to exterminate, and varying solutions have been tried on timber to stay their ravages with but moderate success.

The white ants of Northern Australia are larger and more destructive than probably in any other part of the world; even lead and zinc are not proof against them. They attack growing timber as well as structural timber,
working through the heart of the trees from roots to top the only kind which resists them is the cypress pine, which, on this account, is generally used for building work in these latitudes. The two eucalypti, bloodwood and paper
;

some extent while seasoned and sugar gum sleepers have been about a quarter jarrah The timbers which resist the eaten away in a few months. white ants fairly well in one locality are quickly destroyed by those of another. Corbolineum and anti-termite have been tried in Australia and do check their ravages for a
bark, withstand the white ant to
;

time, but they soon lose their efficacy in tropical climates.

CHAPTER

XI

SEASONING AND IMPREGNATION OF TIMBER

Objects and Advantages of Seasoning

Open Air Seasoning

of Preserving

Kiln Dry-

ing
or

Charring Zinc Chloride

Artificial

Methods

Buriiettixing

Process

Boucherie's

Process

Kyanizing

Powellized

Wood

Haskyni/ing

Creosoting Long Life of Creosoted Timber Cost of Different Processes Fireproof Timber.

Open

air Seasoning.

The
is

extract as

much moisture

we have

seen, moisture

object of seasoning timber is to as possible from it, because, as an essential factor in producing

decay, and the reason why seasoned timber is not so liable to decay as unseasoned timber is that the moisture has

been reduced below the limit required for the production and growth of fungus life. But it should also be borne in

mind

that fairly-dried timber

all tests

timber
to this

show

this

is much stronger than green and detailed reference is made

point in another place, so that it is sufficient to here that the strength of well-dried wood is increased say " " considerably above that of the same timber when green
;

so that

it

pays

to

season timber both from point of strength

and longevity.
pitch pine or Baltic timber, to be used in a quay or structure exposed to the atmosphere and having plenty of

Good

fresh-^ air,

need not be seasoned before use

the timber

seasons in the work, it is usually of larger scantling than that used for interior work, and it would be no use drying timber which was afterwards to be exposed to the elements
;

but for timber inside a dwelling-house,

particularly

for

270

TIMBER

smaller scantlings and for such purposes as floors, doors, panelling, etc., where the tendency is for it to become
drier,

shrinking and consequent buckling or splitting

may

FIG. 37.

Telegraph Poles Stacked for Seasoning.

take place, unless it has been deprived of a good deal of There is also the risk of decay when placed its moisture.
in recesses of walls
of moisture,
if

it

contains any considerable

amount

SEASONING AND IMPEEGNATION OF TIMBER

271

No
it

definite

time can be stated for the seasoning of timber

of scantling,

depends upon climate, quality and size also the purpose for which it is required.
timber,

and

The thicker the

naturally the longer it will take to season, and some timbers require much longer time than others, but it should always be a matter of some months and some-

FIG. 38.

Showing Method

of Stacking Sleepers for Seasoning.

times years, and

tions
of

when we

consider the value in most situa-

thoroughly seasoned wood, time should not be

grudged in the operation. Laslett, who had a large experience, gives from four months to twenty-six months for oak in sizes of 4 inches to 24 inches square, for fir of the same sizes three to thirteen months, and for planks half to twothirds of the above time, according to thickness
;

it

is

not

272

TIMBER

at all

uncommon
months

to stack Baltic or pitch pine logs for three

or four

The

prior to treating them with creosote. seasoning of timber causes a good deal of reduction

in its weight. If a log of timber be dried for a time in

different
places,
it

and then cut across

will be

found that the amount of

moisture in the wood increases from the ends, showing that for some distance the moisture evaporates that way, being the easiest way out, but the drying, especially in large logs,
takes place almost wholly through the faces, and, as a rule, is a very slow operation (see page 304). If the log be largely

heartwood, or
will

if

the proportion of sap be fairly uniform,

in weight

it

by boiling, and it is a carious fact that placed in live steam it will lose weight rapidly, whilst saturated steam has quite the contrary
effect

dry more rapidly. Timber can be reduced

upon it. Timber after being cut should be stacked in layers, each piece and layer being kept separate so as to allow a free circulation of air, and the stack should rest on bearers or supports which will keep it at least 12 inches above the
ground.
in

This should be done in covered sheds

if

possible,

fact for all

planks and battens under 3 inches thick

covered sheds are necessary, but, as a rule, large-sized timber is seasoned in the open (see Figs. 37 and 38). On the Continent, when timber is not placed under sheds,
as for instance with railway sleepers, it is often given a slant longitudinally so as to allow the wet to escape more easily. Fig. 39 shows a common method of seasoning planks in

timber sheds, but in some of the White Sea sawmills it is stacked with many of the planks on edge, which gives the timber an excellent chance of drying, but this requires a Some have tried and recomgreat deal more space.

mended the placing

of

timber on end, but this has no

SEASONING AND IMPKEGNATION OF TIMBER

273

advantage, and is seldom practised except on a small scale in a builder's yard. The planks are almost universally laid horizontally in tiers, being often kept separate by laths, and in the case of logs and larger timber each layer is or should

be placed in reverse directions. Pine timber, when cut, contains in round figures 40 to 60 per cent, of its weight of moisture, the larger proportion
of
is

which is within a couple of inches of the outside, and it advisable that for good interior work not more than 10 to

FIG. 39.

Common Method

of Stacking

Planks

for Seasoning.

although this is a condition of dryness rarely attained by timber when it is put into buildings. In three months 16 per cent, of their moisture has
left,

12 per cent, be

been abstracted from oak sleepers by open air exposure in Arkansas, U. S., and in the drier climate of New Mexico pine sleepers have lost 42 per cent, in six weeks.
for

Absolutely dry wood cannot be attained by any process, chemical destruction takes place before that occurs

moreover, as we have already stated, timber will always absorb the amount of moisture contained in the surrounding atmosphere, and
T.
it is

useless drying

it

below that limit.

T

274

TIMBER
the

" " moisture in so called dry wood is not always the same. The late Professor J. B. Johnson, in his "Materials of Construction," says "the weight of a

Even

amount

of

pailful of shavings varies with the time of day, being on a summer day greatest in the morning and least in the after-

noon.

Wood
is

kept on a shelf in an ordinary dwelling-house

retains 8 to 10 per cent, of its weight of water,

and this

percentage

always greater than the percentage of the

surrounding air." The timbers of the temperate zone contain least sap if cut at the fall of the year and thus season more readily,
but the time
durability.
of felling

does not affect

their

strength or

Artificial Seasoning. Kiln drying, where the timber is stacked in a tank and exposed to temperatures of hot air from 150 to 180 Fahr., is a quick, useful, and satisfactory

method

of seasoning

timber when

it

is

required urgently.
;

woods are put into the tank fresh from the saw hard woods are allowed to season in the air for some months
soft

Some

previously so

as to allow shrinkage to take place more gradually, as they are more liable to split by sudden drying. As a rule lower temperatures of 100 to 120 Fahr. are

employed when the timber is kiln dried in a green state, and sometimes dry steam is applied to it during the process to enable the seasoning to take place more gradually and with
less risk.

In the above temperatures pines, spruce, cedar,

and

woods are generally allowed about four days for 1-inch boards, and hard woods, after being air dried for three to six months to allow the first shrinkage to take place, are placed in the kiln for from six to ten days for the same
soft

thickness of boards.
Careful stacking of the

around each

piece, is as

timber, so as to allow spaces necessary in kiln drying as in

SEASONING AND IMPREGNATION OF TIMBER

open
air seasoning.

275

One

of the

advantages of kiln drying

is that all parts outside as well as inside are equally dried, and it allows of the timber being quickly brought into use,

but there

unless care

risk of unequal shrinking or splitting kiln drying is taken during the process seldom used for large-sized timber. The time occupied in kiln drying, as in the open air, depends upon the thickness
is

is

timber under treatment, and it will take much longer, longer even than in proportion to size, to dry baulk timber
of

dry planks as much as twenty times as long is required to dry a 10-inch log as in the case of a plank one inch thick.

than

it

will to

been tried

Charring the ends of wood and sometimes all over has at various times with a view to preservation, but

after the experience of many experiments it is questionable It is not uncommon to char the if it is worth the cost.

ends of fence posts before they are put into the ground, and this is required in the specifications of at least one county authority in Great Britain for oak and other posts for
handrails on bridge approaches.

Impregnation of Timber.

The prevention

of the

propaga-

tion of fungi can generally be attained by a proper system of seasoning when required for building work, but where

timber has to be placed in situations more conducive to the

the ground as railway life, say or where it is liable to attack by the sea worm, it sleepers is necessary to have, recourse to antiseptics of one kind or another.

production of fungus

in

Methods and processes for the preservation of timber are Rot and decay of timber were the bane as old as history. of the architect and engineer 2,000 years ago as they are

The famous wooden statue of Diana of the Ephesians was kept saturated with oil of Nard by means of
to-day.

T 2

276

TIMBEE
of small orifices in the

number

woodwork

in order to

prevent decay, and even so late as the nineteenth century

so history repeats itself

recommended the coating

the sea worm.

a famous north-country engineer of piles from the ground level to

oil as

about low water with whale

the engineer was not.

a preventative against
successful,

The Ephesians were probably

The first English patent for the artificial preservation of timber appears to have been taken out in 1738, since which " almost every chemical time, as has been truly said, of any plausibility has been sugprinciple or compound
gested for the purpose."
Britton, in his treatise

on

"

Dry

Eot

Timber," enumerates twenty-nine different substances which had been used for preserving wood at the Over 120 patents present time they probably number 200. exist in America alone. Those dealt with here may be
in
;

called

"

the survival of the fittest."

and has kept

Burnettizing was invented by Sir William Burnett in 1838, its ground ever since.
It consists of

an injection

of chloride of zinc in the pro-

portion of one part of the zinc solution, having a specific gravity of 1'6, to 40 parts of water, and it is forced into the

wood under pressure

claimed for
it

It was and prevents decay. The process was for some time favoured by the English Government, but is not now, so far as the author knows,

of

150

Ibs. to

the square inch.

that

it

hardens the

fibre

employed in this country. It is still, however, either in the original form or with various modifications, extensively used in the case of sleepers on the German, Austrian, Dutch, and French railways, and is the chief method used for the preservation of sleepers on the United States railways, where it is called the zinc chloride process, owing to
its

cheapness, although creosote

is

now

largely used.

SEASONING AND IMPREGNATION OP TIMBER

It is

277

true that this and other salts exert a on the fungus threads, some more than retarding others the main objection is that the salts are soluble and liable in time to be washed out of the wood.

doubtless
effect

The Wellhouse

used in the United States and

or Zinc Tannin Process has been a good deal is an effort to overcome the

above difficulty by injecting into the timber, in addition to the zinc, a solution of glue and tannin, either in one operation or separately the latter appears most satisfactory, but
;

is

more

costly.

It is

claimed that the glue and tannin form

small particles like leather, insoluble in water, which plug 1 The Germans up the ducts and retain the zinc chloride.

Americans are experimenting on a large combination of zinc and creosote a large of the ties or sleepers on the Prussian railproportion But the difficulty with ways are treated by this process. all mixtures of zinc and tar oil is that if the mixture is injected at one operation a poor tar emulsion is likely to result, whilst if each is injected separately it is expenIn some cases it was found that the pieces of wood sive. at the bottom of the cylinder received large quantities
as well as the
scale with a
;

of oil whilst those at the top received but a very small

quantity.

Burnettizing, either in its simplest form or combined with other materials as described, is the system of preservation most generally used for sleepers on the United States railways and is recommended, not because it is considered the best system, but because of its cheapness, yet even amongst American railway engineers there is great

At a recent meeting of the Wood Preservers' Association of America it was stated that the amount of timber treated by the zinc, glue, and tannin process in 190(5 had very much decreased compared
1

with the quantity treated in 190o.

278

TIMBER
is

diversity of opinion as to its advantages, and it more suitable in some situations than in others. 1
Boucherie's

much

Process,

which

appears to be the same as

Marjery's, consists of the injection of sulphate of copper in the proportion of 1 Ib. of copper to 8 or 12 gallons of water, and was at one time used with fair success in

England for telegraph poles and is now used in France and Germany in the latter country posts have a life of
;

over thirteen years. According to a recent statement in L' Electrician,, Paris, vol. 32 (1906), it is necessary that the
after the tree is cut

wood should be treated not later than eight or ten days down, and another disadvantage is that
the
life

of the posts is affected

by the nature

of the soil in

which they are placed.

Kyanizing
of
is

the impregnation of timber with bichloride

mercury

in the proportion of 1 Ib. of the bichloride to

;

5 gallons (about 50 Ibs.) of water it is sometimes simply allowed to soak into the wood steeped in the vat, but as a

rule

in- the same way as in the case of burand creosoting, and in the same tanks which are nettizing
it is

pressed

used for creosoting.

Kyanizing

is

much

used by the North Eastern Bail way

Company in Newcastle-on-Tyne and district for the treatment of wood for coaling staiths, planking of bridges, etc.,
The latter it has proved very satisfactory. author has a specimen of kyanized plank cut from a bridge deck after being in an exposed situation for forty-one
and
for the

The process is years, which is perfectly hard and sound. said to be a preservative against fire, but that is very
doubtful,
1

and in water, particularly sea water,

it

appears
of

Latest practice aims at getting not less than half a zinc chloride into each cubic foot of timber.

pound

pure

SEASONING AND IMPREGNATION OF TIMBER

to

27!)

metals.

have invariably failed, as indeed have all the salts of The North Eastern Kailway Company always the kyanized timberwork to prevent the salts being paint washed out. This process is a good deal used on the Continent for small timbers such as posts, stakes for grape
vines, etc., but as the corrosive
to be taken in the handling.
is

very poisonous care has

this

process has a
Powellized

life

of

Timber preserved by seventeen years in Germany.

of

Wood was the treatment

wood by a strong

solution of sugar, invented in Great Britain a few years

ago.

an excellent preservative for timber, and in the wooden ships a layer of salt between the days inner and outer planking secured a year's longer classing
Salt is of the old at Lloyd's
;

it

is

and

still

required by the Lake underwriters for

recommended by the American Lloyd's new first-

class vessels.

Creosoting,

which

is

best

known and mostly used

the system of timber preservation in Great Britain, was the

in 1838, the
of burnettizing,

invention of Mr.

John Bethell

which saw the invention

same year and these two

still

may
used.

be said to be the only systems which are

largely

good in

It is Creosoting is by far the best preservative for timber. all situations and in all conditions, and "even those

who

unanimous

largely use the zinc chloride and other processes are in giving the first place to Creosoting, and are

only deterred from using it because of its much greater cost, or because it is unsuitable for the situation where the

timber

is to

be used, such as interior work.

process distilled coal tar is injected under By pressure into timber (properly seasoned to allow the

this

280

TIMBER

to penetrate) which is placed in iron or steel cylinders 6 to 9 ft. in diameter and of various lengths up to 150 ft. and over, having tightly fitting cast-iron doors at

creosote

each end.

The timber,

if

in logs,

is

placed on bogies and

run into the cylinders, which are

fitted

with

rails to suit

their gauge, or in the case of telegraph poles or smaller timber

FIG. 40.

Creosoting

Tank empty.
are then secured with
creosote,

it is

lifted or

pushed
the

in.

The doors
filled

screwed

bolts,

tanks

with

and the

pressure applied for a shorter or longer length of time dependent upon the size, quality, and condition of timber
(see Figs.

40 and

41).

The

specification

which the author has used

for

many

years for Baltic and pitch pine timber and has found very
satisfactory
is

as follows

SEASONING AND IMPEEGNATION OF TIMBER

"

281

Each log and each piece of cut timber will be weighed before and after creosoting by an inspector and the creosote will be paid for according to his record of the quantity All timber which receives less than 7 Ibs. of oil injected.
per cubic foot at the first tanking will be retanked, all timber which receives less than 6 Ibs. of oil per cubic foot
at

the

second tanking will be retanked, and

all

timber

PIG. 41.

Creosoting

Tank

filled

with Poles.

which receives
to rejection. "

less

than 5

Ibs. of oil

per cubic foot

is liable

Samples

of creosote

may

if

necessary be taken for

analysis.

Fahr.

tested at a temperature of 60 specific gravity of not less than 1*045 and to contain not less than 10 per cent, of crude carbolic and
oil
is

"

The creosote
to

when

have a

other tar acids.

282

TIMBER
The temperature
is to

"

of the creosote

when

injected into the

timber
is to

be not less than 120

Fahr. and the pressure

be not less than 150 Ibs. per square inch." In the case of planking or sleepers, a parcel of say a dozen or more, dependent upon the total quantity to be
placed in the tank, is weighed before and after creosoting, and the amount of creosote injected into this parcel is taken as the standard for the amount of creosote which

has been injected into the tankful of timber. 1 It is generally stated that not more than 10

Ibs. of creo-

sote per cubic foot will be paid for in pitch pine, and 12 Ibs. per cubic foot for Baltic planking and railway sleepers,
sufficient protection for timber in even against the sea worm, but in the neighGreat Britain, bourhood of the Gulf of Mexico and other parts of the American coast infested by the teredo as much as 22 to 25 Ibs. per cubic foot is recommended, but this is difficult to

as

this

is

considered

obtain.
is

Even in America, where the zinc chloride process almost in general use, creosoting is invariably applied to timber structures in worm infested parts of the coast, as it Pitch is the only process of any use in such a situation.
pine timber often requires to be under a pressure of 150 or 160 Ibs. per square inch for ten hours to allow of 7 Ibs. of
oil

Baltic timber as a rule per cubic foot being injected does not require such long pressing.
;

must be a very soft class of wood with a great deal of sapwood and well dried which will admit of 22 Ibs. of oil being injected into it, but this is the quantity which the Louisville and Nashville Kailway Company try to get into
It

timber as a protection against the teredo.

See previous remarks about creosoting Oregon Pine. It is now being generally admitted that each species of timber requires different treatment, as what may be very suitable for one species is not suitable
1

for others'.

SEASONING AND IMPREGNATION OF TIMBEE

For
this

283

purpose they use loblolly pine, which has a

great deal of

much more
which we

sapwood into which the creosote will penetrate readily than into the harder, long-leaved pine
1

call pitch pine.

Fairly seasoned, sound pitch pine in logs or cut timber occasionally take in 15 Ibs. per cubic foot, but this is rare,

and the average injected is much less, as the specification shows. Timber merchants in Great Britain think that
even 7 Ibs. per cubic foot is a strict specification for pitch pine, but if the timber is fairly dried and the oil heated

and pressed as specified above there is no difficulty. Only recently several hundred logs of pitch pine were creosoted under the above specification, and there were only three or four which did not take in 7 Ibs. per cubic foot at the first tanking 33 per cent, took in over 10 Ibs. and several 13 and 14 Ibs. per cubic foot. They had been drying for about three months. The life of well-seasoned and properly creosoted timber, even in situations inimical to its life, is almost indefinite,
;

and, as a proof of the advantages of the sys.tem, creosoted timber piles standing in a row with uncreosoted piles were perfectly intact after ten years, whilst the uncreosoted ones

were badly eaten by the sea worm. Creosoted pitch pine piles have withstood the attacks of the luminoria on the
north-eastern coast of Great Britain for over twenty years when untreated timber would have been rendered useless
in half the time,

and the Louisville and Nashville Railway have creosoted piles in their structures near New Company Orleans which have withstood the teredo for twenty-five years in a situation where this pest cuts down untreated piles in one or two years. Creosoted railway sleepers have never been removed
1

In recent

tests

28

Ibs. of creosote

per cubic foot was got into

loblolly sleepers.

284

TIMBER

owing to decay, but solely because of the abrasion by rails or chairs caused by traffic. That there are failures in creosoting is certain. The
in as

author has seen a creosoted plank taken out of the ground bad a condition as an adjoining uncreosoted one after

only a few years' exposure, but this is rare, and on the other hand he has cuttings from the Memel timber of the old

East Pier

wash
as

of

at Blyth, Northumberland, which has stood the the sea and the attacks of the sea worm and
;

weather for forty-seven years

the creosote smells as strong

on the day it was injected and still stains the paper on which the wood is placed. Doubtless one of the reasons of failure in creosoting is because the timber treated has not been sufficiently dried. Particular care should be taken that logs and planking,
particularly the latter, should be properly separated laths when in the creosoting tanks, so that the creosote

more
by

has a proper chance of being injected equally over the

surface.

Creosote no doubt,

exposure to
ber
this

the salts of metals, tends by weather and salt water to leach out of the timlike

may
is

weather
above, it situation

but, as

be noticed in telegraph poles during hot may be judged from the examples given

a very slow process. Cut timber in the same as piling, and used for bracing, begins to be affected by the sea worm at or near low water much sooner

than vertical piling, and, chiefly at the ends where the timber has been cut to fit and the creosote partly cut away, it has been attacked after about eighteen years in this country and in some instances sooner. The German Government
give statistics extending over fifty years, from which they estimate the average life of creosoted telegraph poles to be twenty and a half years, but many telegraph poles in Great

Britain have been in use for forty years.

Of sixty poles

SEASONING AND IMPREGNATION OF TIMBER

examined
years,
at

285

one time after being in use for twenty-five were found to be sound with the exception of three one of these was found decayed at ground line which and the two others at is the place they generally go first
all
;

arm

slots.

Preece, K.C.B., Past Pres. Inst. C.E., and for Chief Engineer of the Government Telegraph many years Department for Great Britain, has stated that as a result
Sir

W. H.

of thirty years' experience

never seen a properly creosoted telegraph pole show the slightest sign of decay," and he mentions that a line of creosoted telegraph poles

he has

"

erected in

318 in number between Fareham and Portsmouth was 1848, and when taken down in 1883 were as

sound as when

first

erected

with

all

the other systems of

2

preservation telegraph poles had failed in much less time.'' Burnettized poles have generally a life of only seven
to ten years,

and are very unreliable, some decaying

after

three or four years.

for
to creosoting are that it can only be used outdoor work, the filthy condition the workmen get into when working with it, the long time one has to wait

The objections

while the timber

the

main

drying, and, the greatest objection and one in some situations, its very inflammable nature.
is

It is

not advisable or necessary to creosote oak or hardwood

of that character, except

perhaps for railway sleepers.

means

Haskynizing was a process for preserving timber by of hot air, whereby it was said that its natural

properties were solidified and

all fungus life destroyed, and which was much lauded some years back. The author had a good deal of experience with it and found that in the
1

Jour, of Proc. Inst. Elec. Eng., Vol. XXXIX. Min. of Proc. Inst. O.E., Vol. LXXVIII.

286

TIMBER
it

ground as railway sleepers and in sea water

life.

proved a
:

used. failure after a very short The approximate costs of treating timber are as follows
It is
little

now but

Per cubic
Burnettizing (Zinc Chloride process),

foot.

Germany
Burnettizing (Zinc Chloride process),

2rf.

to 2^/.

United States Zinc Creosote process, Germany United States ,,

.

....
. .

2|d.

2f J.
,,

2^d.
4d.
3(/.

3d.

Zinc Tannin process, United States Creosoting, United States

,,

3J<7.

l^d.
4d.
4Jrf.

North
,,

of

England
.

5d.

Germany

Kyanizing, North of England

It will
is

9d.

more than double the

be noticed that the cost of creosoting in America cost of treatment by the zinc
;

and chloride process, which is the one in general use there this is the reason why the latter has been until recently
almost exclusively employed.
ties of

consider the enormous and increasing quantitimber which are being used yearly, and that we can look to the not far distant future when the world's chief
forests of supply will be depleted, any of the artificial methods of

When we

and when we know that

treatment in use will

increase the

life of

and

treble

it,

timber for years, that some will double that it is not only a yearly saving, but necestraffic,
is
it

sitates

much

fewer renewals of structures and less inconwill be

venience to trade and

artificial

seen

that

the
for

treatment of timber
will

an important question
of course

the engineer and architect.

It is

a matter of

&

s.

d.

whether he

the cheaper timbers at

by some satisfactory system utilise hand by paying even 25 per cent.

SEASONING AND IMPKEGNATION OF TIMBER

extra for artificially treating them, or use

287

more

costly but

and more durable timber which will not need artificial treatment, or again, in cases where a long life is
harder
not required, use the softer timber in
its

natural state. 1

Fireproof Timber. Many experiments have been made in the direction of rendering the timber fireproof, but not

much

practical result has been attained,

and so

called fire-

proof timber has been but little used. Practical experience has narrowed the efficacious compounds to be used in the fireproof treatment of timber to ammonium chloride,

phosphate, ammonium sulphate, calcium chloride, alum, borax, boracic acid, and a few others. The solutions, which are said to penetrate right into the

ammonium

interior of the wood, do not affect the

workmen's

tools,
etc.,

and
just

the treated timber will take paint, stains, varnish, as well as untreated wood.

According to Professor Vivian B. Lewis, they crystallise

in the cells of the wood, and under the influence of heat "

the ammonium phosphate decomposes to ammonia gas and phosphoric acid, the former driving all air out of the cells and replacing it by a non-inflammable gas, whilst the phosphoric and boracic acids fuse and coat the cell walls with a glaze which, while allowing the gases from the

decomposing cellulose to escape, prevents the access of oxygen from the air to carry on further combustion."
In 1901 there were only fifteen timber treating plants in the United States; in the following six years this number was increased to
1

fifty.

CHAPTER

XII

DEFECTS IN TIMBER AND GENERAL NOTES

Heartshakes

Grain Wany Timber Eingshakes Knots Sap of Sections Wood Toughness Flexibility Microscopical Kesonance Meaning of Durability Judging Timber.

ALTHOUGH their defects and weak points have been generally dealt with in detail under the different timbers described, it may be well to describe here certain typical
defects in detail.

Heartshakes are

splits

noticed

in

the

ends of logs

FIG. 42.

Heartshake.

FIG. 43.

Starshake.

they rarely run the full length of the logs of commerce, but sometimes, as in mahogany, teak, greenheart, and other tropical woods, they are found towards the
centre of the log and cannot be detected until out (Fig. 42).
it is

opened

splits at the ends, which generally run the medullary rays, extend the full cross section of along the timber, sometimes only a short distance out from the

Sometimes these

DEFECTS IN TIMBER AND GENERAL NOTES

centre
;

289

in one case it may be only a single line, in another something like a cross, and where there are several radiating from the heart of the timber it is called a starshake (Fig. 43). They are usually found at the butt

end.

more or less subject to seasoning checks, " out as it is called when drying some much or opening more than others (Fig. 44). It will be noticed that seasoning checks run from the
All timber
is

"

outer

sides

towards

the

centre of the log, just the opposite way of heartshakes.

blue

In elm, Tasmanian gum, and other gums

are

they

very

common.

(See also Figs. 81

are

and 32.) Oak and other hardwoods

very liable to opening ends when seasoning,
this
is

at the

and

caused by the

ends drying quicker

than
FIG. 44.

other portions of the timber, and S shaped pieces of iron

are often

"

Seasoning checks or opening out."

hammered

into the

ends of oak logs to minimise this evil. It is a serious loss for timber merchants when this happens, as it often means
that 18 inches or

more has
There
is

to be cut to

waste before the

a patent in the market, a composition, for coating the timber which is said to be a cure for this evil, but a mixture of whiting and oil is someis

timber

saleable.

times used, and in more valuable -timber a piece of wood is fastened to the ends or they are banded with iron. Opening
out on the faces

when drying

is

not, as a rule, serious in

fir

and pine timber.

T.

290

TIMBER

Eingshakes or Cupshakes are openings in the annual the rings rings in the butt ends of logs which separate one another, leaving an opening between the layers from

FIG. 45.

Cupshake.

FIG. 40.

Bingshake.

of

wood

for 18 inches or 2
log,

which one can sometimes insert a thin rule ft. sometimes they go right round the in other cases only partially round (see Figs. 45 and 46).
into
;

FlG. 47.

Cupshake often found in pitch pine.

FIG. 48.

Showing the

effect of
is

cup or
cut up.

ring shake

when

the timber

rather characteristic feature of

peculiar

many

the

cupshake,

often

formed

pitch pine logs is like a note of

interrogation (Fig. 47) .* when timber is cut up is

1

The effects of cup and ring shake shown by Fig. 48.

happens
to

In the illustration

this

be shown in the opposite

direction.

DEFECTS IN TIMBER AND GENERAL NOTES

Most
ends of
of these defects only go a short distance into
logs, at

291

the

often found that by cutting any 18 inches or 2 ft. off the end the defect is minimised if not
rate
it is

done away with, and although logs thus affected should be

subjected to careful inspection, these defects are not serious where the timber has to be used in large bea us, but they often cause a loss in converting it into small scantling.

When
its

intended use

selecting timber one should do so with a view to timber required for a beam or joist carry;

ing a steady load and suitable for that purpose might not be suitable for carrying, moving, or jarring loads timber
;

suitable for either of these purposes might not be at all desirable for use in pile-driving, which, owing to the heavy
it has to sustain, should be sound throughout, whereas any that is not sound throughout can be cut up into satisfactory material for joiners' work, as, in the smaller sizes, the faults are eliminated with a certain amount of waste. It is in logs that the defects above

hammering

referred to are specially noticeable, and it is comforting to know that when used in large sizes the defects are often not
of

much

consequence.

Variation of Colour in the

natural, should be looked

same piece of timber, unless upon with suspicion, as it often

shows incipient decay. There is a good deal of difference in the colour of the same species of wood which comes from different districts, some of the northern pine being almost yellow, whilst other is of a reddish hue sometimes the colour
;

is

mixed, the red shading

off into

no sharp division

of colour.

the yellow; there should be reddish tinge on the heart-

wood
guide.

of light coloured Baltic

is

timber sometimes denotes

decay, but this

a matter in which experience

must be the

one which cannot be avoided.

Knots are another objectionable feature in timber, but Many are found in excellent

u 2

292

TIM BEE

logs, and it is useless specifying, as is sometimes done, that " the ordinary building timber is to be free from knots "; loose knots are certainly to be avoided, but one seldom finds these in sound pine timber.

Very large knots, especially if at the edges of timber which has to stand heavy strains, such as beams or
columns, are a cause
of considerable risk
;

it

may
is

said that in the majority of cases where timber beams or columns it fails at knots.

safely be tested as

Fig. 49 will the underside

show the reason

of

for objection to a

beam carrying
if

load,
side.

knot on where it is
In bending,

much more

serious than

on the top

FIG. 49. -Showing risk of knots on underside of loaded beams.

the fibres on the underside of the beam are subjected to tension, the fibres of the wood around the knot like those in a piece of cross-grained timber offer but little resistance

and the presence of a knot in this position has the same effect as putting a saw-cut on the underside of the
to tension,

beam.

A knot is the place where a twig or branch has projected from the parent stem some timbers are to be got in considerable length with few knots, such as Oregon, California!! redwood, Tasmanian blue gum, kauri, and others, the reason being that these trees do not bear branches within a considerable distance of the ground, whereas European trees, pines and firs used in building, especially the firs
;

DEFECTS IN TIMBER AND GEN REAL NOTES

293

and spruce, branch close to ground level, and the branches are very close to one another hence the great number of knots, although usually of small sizes, to be found in the spruce or white deal hence also the reason why they
;

cannot be avoided even in the smaller scantlings of that

class pf timber.

Knots in pine panelling, though they do not add to the quality of the timber, certainly add to its attractiveness, giving variety of grain and colour, particularly noticeable on stained or varnished surfaces.

Dead knots are caused by timber growing ovor the spot where limbs or branches have decayed and fallen off. Straightness of Grain is a necessity in some situations. There are very strong timbers, some of the strongest, which have a twisted or crooked grain, but in the conifera tribe, where in the longitudinal direction the natural trend of the
grain is straight, it is dangerous for certain purposes to use timber when the grain pursues a diagonal or slanting direction it rarely does so, and it might not be of much conse;

quence in a beam

if

laid the

proper way

but for vertical

loads or pile-driving it is very objectionable, as in this case there is a risk of its shearing off when subjected to heavy loads or to severe hammering.

Sap

is

tion as to

The questhe great bane of the timber selector. what is really sap and of the amount of sap
is

allowable in constructional timber

a very knotty one,

it

causes a good deal of friction, and often leads to lawsuits

and arbitration.
It is practically impossible to get timber of large sizes without sap. Oregon is the only timber much used which may be said to be free of it, and specifications are often

misleading.

objectionable, ns

wood and

is

fir and pine timber is undoubtedly does not stand weathering like the heartgenerally the first to decay there should be

Sapwood on
it

294

TIMBER

as little as possible allowed, but it is not much use, and scarcely fair, to put into a specification for large-sized " free from sap," unless the engineer timber that it is to be or architect is prepared to pay a much larger price than
for ordinary timber, because, to attain this object, largersized timber must be bought in the first instance so as to

allow of the timber standing the required size after the This adds considerably to the cost, sap has been cut off.
for not only has the larger-sized timber to be but the cost of sawing has to be added.

paid

for,

As

a rule for heavy

work three 4-inch or four 3-inch tim-

bers are cut out of a 12- inch log, and there will be a certain amount of sap on the outer sides and corners of two pieces

and possibly on the edges of the others. It would be much more satisfactory to define the amount " of sap allowable, as, for instance, Sap is not to exceed " in an 11 2 inches or 2J inches at the corners of timbers
or 12-inch plank, thus
:

\
:
.

FIG.

50.

On no account should sap be allowed all over one side. Smaller scantlings can by selection be got quite clear of sap, and this is very desirable. The clause " the timber shall be
properly seasoned
tionable sap, for
"

would prevent the admission

of objec-

some kinds are worse than

others.

The

author does not agree with a distinguished engineering expert who, in giving evidence some time ago, stated that timber seasons in its transit from the Baltic, because, unless
the timber be partly seasoned before being put on board, as

DEFECTS IN TIMBER AND GENERAL NOTES

it

295

very often is not, its condition may become worse on the " " occurs, and few would take blueing voyage, it sweats and " blue" deals except for the commonest purposes.
not easy to detect sap in certain conditions of SOUK; of the wbitewoods, as the colour of all the timber is much
It is

the same, although the sap has generally a dirtier tinge looking at a pile of round Swedish or Russian redwood
;

logs

we

see the ring of lighter coloured sap about an inch

thick distinctly

(Fig. 37) ; of the sap is cut off in the process the difficulty is increased, so in the case of particularly

but

marked from the reddish tinged heartwood when the timber is squared and a good deal

whitewood, as the sap is then only found at the edges and partly on the sides. Sap is almost invariably

found on the edges even

if

absent

from the

sides.

Sapwood is not so objectionable where the timber has to be

creosoted, as any one looking at a
pile will

of

notice

telegraph poles (Fig. 37) the complete ring of

log, yet

FlO. 51.

sapwood encircling the

the long
1

life of

telegraph

poles proves this not to be deleterious. The presence of sap in commercial timber

is

due

to the

same cause

as

wany edges,
"
is

viz.,

the desire of the timber con-

verter to get as "

as possible out of the tree. the expression used for logs the edges Wany of which are not sharp. Some timber is imported " wany," " " but much of the square timber has wanes on some parts

much timber

timber

1 As a mle creosote does not enter much into the heartwood, and the presence of a ring of sapwood in timber to be creosoted ensures its perfect preservation. In the case of street paving, however, it is possible that the snppy portion might not wear so well as the rest.

29

TIMBER
and there
logs.
;

of its edges,

is

a good deal of

wane on the edges of

some hewn

Fig. 51 shows the section of a 17-inch

diameter tree the darker shading is the sapwood. As will be seen by the full lines, there would not be much 12-inch perfectly square log, and also difficulty in getting a free from sap, except just at the corners, out one practically
of

the timber be cut along the inner dotted line, which shows a 13-inch log, there will be some wane on the corners and much more sap there, whilst if

such a

tree,

but

if

cut along the outer dotted line,

there will not only be a good deal of

which shows a 14-inch log, wane on the edges, but

FIG. o3.

the amount of sap will be considerably increased, and may extend along the sides if the sap widens out in places. The converter naturally tries to get as large- sized merchantable logs as possible out of the trees, hence the wany

edges on logs.
if practical view should be taken of timber selection a few logs or pieces of timber are required, there will only be no difficulty in getting them free from the defects de;

scribed

but

when

a large quantity

is

required

it is

impossible

them, although timber containing them must be carefully examined the best must be made of such timber as can be obtained in the market.
to avoid
;

The pines and

firs

have generally few

defects, except sap

DEFECTS IN TIMBER AND GENERAL NOTES

;

297

and occasional bad ends pitch pine is remarkably free from them, and Baltic redwood has probably less defects than any timber in the market and causes but little loss in cutting up, and one seldom opens a log of either of these timbers and finds defects inside which were not noticeable on the sides or ends. In planks cut from the centre of a log there is a risk of the centre portion lifting up, and when used for flooring the annual rings should have the convex side uppermost the part nearest the pith should be put downwards as per l Fig. 52 and not as shown in Fig. 53. Toughness is a familiar but indefinite term most of the flexible woods are often called tough, but a tough wood should be both strong and pliable, as are hickory, elm, or ash. Tough wood is required where loads are applied in the form of blows and shocks, as for instance in the spokes of a cart wheel, which are subjected to sudden jars or shocks whenever the wheel passes over a stone, and these jars and shocks are much more severe than is generally supposed. Willow and bamboo are called tough, but would not be suitable for such a purpose as this, and willow is only tough when
; ;

wet.
Flexibility is the

term applied

to

timber which will stand

deformation before rupture, as for instance bamboo, lancewood, or willow, but these would not be suitIn Indian architecture, able to carry permanent loads.
considerable
is used, it is always given a convex curve. years a good deal has been done in the way of illustrating different timber by microscopical or enlarged To sections, to which photography has lent its aid.

where bamboo
Of
late

Nordlinger on the Continent, E. B. Hough in America, Herbert Stone and James A. Weale in this country,
1 Good flooring hoards are often cut on the quarter, that annual lings at right angles to their faces.

is

with the

298

TIMBER

amongst others, we are indebted for hundreds of illusIt may be trated sections showing the structure of wood. " Conmentioned that so far back as 1770, in a book on struction of Timber," by John Hill, M.I)., there are some
excellent

microscopical sections given of a good many European timbers. This is an excellent and easy method of distinguishing different timbers by this means we can tell hickory from
;

ash,

and oak from either

beech from birch and sycamore,

though they appear very similar. A good log of timber has a clear ringing sound when struck on the end with a hammer, and this is particularly noticeable in the pines and firs a dull sound denotes decay or defect somewhere, although it may be only local and not of serious import. The least knock or even scratching with a pin at one end of a good log can be distinctly heard at the other end, even over a length of 60 ft., if the timber is sound and healthy. Resonance is a quality in timber to which particular
;

at a casual glance

attention has to be paid by those requiring

wood

for musical

instruments,

spruce and silver

fir

being the favourites

free of defects

for this purpose, and it has to be of uniform structure and growth.

wood

and

Where timber
of the white ant

is

referred to as subject to the depredations

insects, this only applies

and other boring

to its native districts or the tropics. In climates such as that of Great Britain timber is rarely attacked by boring

insects to

obtained from

more

attains a great age, and timber regions infested by these pests is no liable to attack in Europe than native timber or timber

any extent
the

until

it

brought from the Baltic or North America

but,

on the

other hand, European or North American timber imported into the tropics is quite as liable to attack as, probably more
so than, native timber.

DEFECTS IN TIMBER AND GENERAL NOTES

It

299

should be understood that

when

a timber

is

referred

to as durable, or fairly durable, this is only a comparative term, and only applies to its use under conditions for which
it

is

adapted and generally used, because although some

classes of timber such as greenheart, jarrah, pitch pine, oak, and many hardwoods may be used in most situations and

either for interior

work or where exposed

life

to the weather,

and

will

have a
it

fairly long

in either, yet with

many

other timbers

would be quite the contrary. For instance, sycamore, poplar, and other softwoods which last for very long periods if protected from the weather would not be at all durable if placed in situations where they would be alternately wet and dry, and no one would think of using them in Great Britain for, say, a timber quay, irrespective altogether of their want of strength. The durability or otherwise of timber in various situations is very variable the poorest timber may, in a dry protected situation, last for centuries; the best of timber in other situa;

tions will decay in a few years. last longer as railway sleepers

Some
and

of the softer

this is about the

woods most

severe test to which timber can be subjected, especially if placed in a cinder ballasted track than some of the hard-

woods, which in ordinary situations could not compare with them in point of longevity. Oak, as we have seen, will last in fairly good condition in some places for 2,000 years, but
the best American oak, when used for railway sleepers, only lasts eight or ten years, and in some situations will decay in three years. In America, which is about the only

country in the world where large quantities of untreated softwoods are used for railway sleepers, it has been found
that the comparatively soft red cedar, the arbor vitse, and redwood resist decay best, as they are less affected by disease than most timbers treated hemlock will not last so long
;

in

some

situations as untreated cedar

some roads get a

life

;iOO

TIMBER

from cypress, whilst others in the same Again, timber lasts years from oak. locality only much longer in some climates than in others the same timbers will have a much longer life in a dry bracing climate than in a moist atmosphere, such as that of Great Britain
of fifteen years

get five

Yellow pine is much used for outor parts of the tropics. door work in its native districts and is found fairly suitable,

whereas

it

would not be so suitable

for

such a purpose in

Great Britain as the Baltic timber.

Those timbers which contain a large proportion of resin are well adapted to resist decay in bad situations, whilst other timbers, such as many of the tropical woods, are protected by various chemical ingredients

which ensure them a

long

life.

To judge timber properly it should be seen in the log or in large pieces as well as cut up. It is almost impossible to its quality, or in some cases even to tell one class of judge
if

timber from another, if only seen in small pieces, especially the colour be nearly alike. The question as to whether
is of oak or chestnut, which comes up for discussion, is a case in point. There might be some difficulty in deciding the question merely by colour and from a distance, but if one saw a cross section or end view of one of the beams it could be quickly decided, as the one timber is of quite a different structure to the other. The carpenter and joiner of past days was a much better judge of timber than he of the present day he had a better chance than his descendant of our time. The former probably cut up the timber himself or saw it cut up from home-grown timber, and knew its peculiarities well the latter has timber delivered into his hands in sawn and even planed boards ready for use, from all parts of the world, and from trees of which he knows little or nothing, and new

the roof of Westminster Hall

so often

timber

is

continually coming into the market.

CHAPTER

XIII

STRENGTH AND TESTING OF TIMBER

Varying Results obtained in Testing Timber and Causes thereof Tests ou American and Australian Timber Necessity for Tests on Large Pieces of Timber Comparison of Strengths of Timber, Green and Dry Great Increase of Strength in Timber caused by Drying Tables of Strengths of Timber with Varying Degrees of Moisture Effects of Kiln Drying Long Time Tests on Beams Various Methods of Testing Tests by Lanza, H. D. Smith, C. Graham Smith, Major Bock, and others Strengths of Timber in Side Compression and Shearing Weight of Timber Variable Weight Compared with Number of Rings per Inch Factors of
Safety.

THE results obtained when much more than those obtained

structural material timber
is

testing timber vary very with iron or steel. Of all

two pieces from the same producing very different results; the main reason being that timber is a built-up structure and subject to internal strains, and these strains vary with each piece of timber.
It is

the most variable in strength, tree, or even the same log, often

calculation

because of this great variation in tests that in the of stresses for timber structures it has been

usual to allow a much larger margin of safety than in the case of steel structures, and probably this is why we have

had a singular immunity from failures in timber structures, the margin of safety allowed being much greater than was
really necessary. Nearly all calculations for strength of timber, until quite

recent years, were based upon tests made on small specimens of wood 1 or 2 inches square, and all who have had to

302

TIMBER
of this material

do with the testing

know

that the smaller

Small sample pieces of the specimen the higher the result. timher are obtained in more perfect condition, have fewer

and knots, often no knots at all, while these imperfections cannot be avoided in the case of timber of the sizes
flaws

hence in most cases it has been assumed, during recent years, that the results obtained from small test specimens should, when put into practice, be reduced by 50 per cent, or even more.
used in constructional work
;

It is

one

of the

a curious thing that in the case of timber, although oldest constructive materials, and the one of
is

used than any other, we have been content to depend upon what are more or less doubtful tests, whilst in the case of steel, a material only a few years in use, we

which more

can rely upon accurate

tests.

It is

not satisfactory, con-

sidering the number of powerful testing appliances now in use, that the tests made on timber of large scantling are so very meagre. Although the movement in the direction of

remedying this state of things is slow, it is gradually coming to be considered necessary that tests made on timber, to be of any value, should be upon pieces such as are used in actual work, and not upon small or specially prepared specimens. The late Professor J. B. Johnson initiated a valuable series of tests on timber for the United Professor Lanza also carried out a States Government. great number of useful tests on large-sized timber, chiefly white and yellow pine (pitch pine) and spruce, at the Watertown Arsenal, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, United States, which have thrown a good deal of practical light on the subject, and the United States Government are continuing these tests. Quite recently the Government of Western Australia has, under the direction
of

Mr. G. A. Julius,

B.Sc., M.E.,

tested

thousands of

different-sized pieces of the

hardwoods

of this arid other

STRENGTH AND TESTING OF TIMBER

303

Australian colonies, the results of which have been pub" The Physical Characteristics of lished under the title of A somewhat the Hardwoods of Western Australia."
similar work, though not on such a large scale, undertaken for the Government of New South

had been Wales by

Professor

The

tests

W. H. Warren, M.I.C.E., some years earlier. made by Mr. Julius were for cross-breaking,
;

tension, end

and cross compression, shearing along grain, hardness, etc., and upon the influence of moisture they are the most careful and elaborate made upon timber up to
date,

and

it

is

to be

hoped that the example thus

set will

be followed up by our own and other Governments, and by universities and establishments which possess facilities for

work

of

this

character, at

once useful to the students

engaged upon the work and of great value to the timber If there were a large number of careful tests, of the user.
character indicated above, carried out by different authorities and on various kinds of timber, they might be the means
of considerably reducing the timber scantlings now used in construction. For instance, if in a case where we now

use 12-inch by 12-inch or 12-inch by 6-inch timbers it were found, by the results of a number of satisfactory tests,
that timber 12 inches by 10 inches or 12 inches by 5 inches might be used with safety, it would mean a saving of 16 per
cent, of timber.

alone
it

is

This from a monetary point of view considerable, but it would also in many cases make

easier to obtain timber of the required scantling, which in the larger sizes would be a great gain, as the time is approaching, and in the case of some timbers has already

arrived,

when the obtaining of large sizes and long lengths presents considerable difficulty. It must not be thought from the above remarks that the
author has any wish to depreciate the results of timber tests made by experimenters in the past. To Tredgold,

304

TIMBER

Barlow, Laslett, and many others in this country, we owe a great deal, since it was from the tests on small pieces of timher made in a primitive manner, but with the best means at their disposal and before the days of large testing machines, that men had to deduce the scantlings required
for constructional

work

now, however, when better means

are available, endeavours should be made to produce results which can be depended upon with something akin to the reliance placed upon tests of steel, although there are
difficulties in

connection with the testing of timber which

do not occur in the testing of steel. 1 The amount of moisture in timber considerably affects the result of tests, probably to a greater extent than any-

The drier the timber, the higher the results thing else. obtained in other words, seasoned timber is stronger than
;

(/reen timber,

and that

to a very considerable extent, as will be

it

shown but
;

in general

will

for strength of constructional

tests for

be safer in making calculations timber to make use of the

moderately seasoned wood, as it is not often that highly seasoned timber is used it too often has to season in the work.
;

is, therefore, useless making comparisons between tests timber unless we compare their conditions of moisture. It takes a very long time by air seasoning to thoroughly Two pieces of pitch pine 16 ft. dry timber of large sizes.

It

of

by 12 inches by 12 inches and 16 ft. by 16 inches by 8 inches, after air seasoning for two years, showed that whilst in the outer portion of the wood there was only 17 per cent, of
moisture, the
1

inner portion

still

contained 25 per cent.

A number of tests on made by M. P. S. Girard

appear to have Barlow's Strength of Materials, 1837.) 2 Bulletin No. 70, United Status Dept. of Agriculture,

large-sized columns and beams of oak were in France so far back as 1798, but these tests been lost sight of, and others of less value used. (See
p. 123.

STRENGTH AND TESTING OP TIMBER

305

small pieces of jarrah arid karri, which when green contained 50 and 54 per cent, of moisture, contained at the end of six months 34 per cent, and 38 per cent., and at the
13 per cent, and 14 per cent., whilst large pieces of the same timber about 12 inches by 12 inches contained 39 per cent, and 43 per cent, respectively at the

end

of three years

end of one year, 28 per cent, and 31 per cent, at the end of three years, and after six years they still contained 21 per
this timber had been cent, and 22 per cent, of moisture stacked in the open and well ventilated. Red gum and blackbutt, which when green contained 75 per cent, and 61
;

per cent, of moisture, contained, as one might expect, after the periods of seasoning mentioned above, a yet larger 1 proportion of moisture than karri or jarrah.

As showing the influence of moisture on the strength of timber, in the Western Australian tests it is stated that tests of karri "green" gave results 46 per cent, less than " " in end compression, yate gave 43 per cent., karri dry
blackbutt 40 per cent., tuart 35 per cent., jarrah 31 per cent., red gum 29 per cent., York gum and wandoo 23 per cent., and Morrell 22 per cent, below the strengths in end

compression of the same timbers which contained only 12 per cent, of moisture, which were, that is to say, perfectly this being the standard of moisture adopted seasoned
;

for all the

Western Australian

tests, as

well as for most of

those of the United States.

In cross-bending tests for beams

of

Australian timber

25 square inches in section, the percentage of reduction in

strength between green timber and seasoned timber varied from a maximum in the case of karri and tuart of 33 per 1 In tests cent, to a minimum of 14 per cent, for wandoo.
" The Physical Characteristics of Australia," 1906.
1

the

Hardwoods

of

Western

T.

306

TIMBEE
the

made on

hornbeam by M.

Julius Marchet in 1895 the

weight necessary to crush cubes of the wood containing only 7 to 9 per cent, of moisture was from 2'1 to 2'3
times as

much as was required to crush cubes of the same saturated with water. 1 A most interesting series of tests has been recently carried out by Mr. H. D. Tiemann, M.E., M.F., of the Forestry Service, United States Department of Agriculture,
given in detail in Bulletin No. 70, showing the effect of seasoning on the strength of wood, and gives more convincing proof than anything hitherto of the remarkable and constant increase in the strength of wood caused by The following tables show the degree to which drying. the strength is increased over green timber
:

STRENGTH AND TESTING OF TIMBER

307

similar law, but not to increase quite so rapidly, the ratios being as follows
:

310

TIMBER

SHEARING STRENGTH PARALLEL TO GRAIN AND COMPRESSION STRENGTH AT RIGHT ANGLES TO GRAIN.

Moisiure per cent, ol' dry

weight.

311

timber, although it will not bear nearly so much load as a dry beam, will nevertheless not fail so suddenly. Since it has been shown that wet timber is not nearly
so strong as the as
to

same timber when

dry, the question arises

how

treating

timber with creosote or other anti-

septics affects its strength.

From

a few tests

made by
as

Mr. Tiemann on
follows
:

loblolly

pine the comparisons are

312

TIMBER
Between had the wood had
in

spruce, oak, and birch timber, 4 inches square.

1893 and 1895

increased while

the'

moduli

of breaking

and

elasticity

deflection
it

become
dry

stiffer

had diminished had during this period been stored

lofts of the building.

In 1901 further tests made on

similar timber which during those eight years had been seasoning, and which was further dried for ten or twelve

days at 100 Fahr., showed that the modulus of breaking under compression, bending, and shearing stresses had all
increased, as well as that of elasticity,
deflection,

and that that of which had diminished from 1893 to 1895, was
to the

on the increase, but not in any particular relation

1 lapse of time.

Doubtless one reason

tests

why dry timber shows

higher

than wet timber

its

and

volume

is

that the timber shrinks in drying diminished, in the case of pines and
is

spruces by about 10 per cent, and some timbers considerably more, but the numbers of fibres in the wood resisting
cross section, too, is smaller, generally calculated upon the original section this, however, would only account for a very small of the increase. The remarks as to the gradually portion
;

strain

remain the same

is

its

although the result

;

increasing strength of wood as it dries point to the conclusion that beams and joists in buildings are capable of

bearing safely a heavier load some years after erection than

when

originally put up.

Timber columns are fairly uniform in tests up to, say, 15 diameters long, and up to this point give way by direct crushing in longer columns the larger proportion fail by " " lateral flexure or buckling sideways, and generally, as was the case in Lanza's tests, fail at knots. In the West Australian tests, with columns of a ratio of 18 to 1, 60
;

per cent, failed by side flexure.

1

Min. of Proc. Inst. O.E., Vol. CLVIL,

p. 452.

STRENGTH AND TESTING OF TIMBER

The
results of
tests.

313

compression tests are

less variable

than

any other
tests

So far as the engineer or architect is concerned, the which chiefly concern them are those for transverse, shearing, and crushing strength, since, long before the timber would give way in tensile strain, the bolts or connections would shear through the ends of the timber and it may here be stated that no bolts should be nearer than
;

tensile

3 or 4 inches from the end of a timber having to bear stress. Moreover, the tensile and transverse

strength of timbers do not vary much. Mr. Julius found that with the Australian timber the tensile stress was about
whilst in the case of

above the ultimate strength in cross breaking Quebec pine beams tested by Mr. H. D. Smith, M.I.C.E., the ratio of transverse to tensile strength only varied between 0'82 and 1*31 in the same beam.
5 per cent,
;

In tensile tests on timber the experiments have generally been made upon small turned specimens of about 1 inch in diameter the centre portion of a piece of timber for about 6 inches long is turned down to a diameter of about
;

inch, the

thicker
of the

portions at

the

ends being secured

;

grips testing machine there is difficulty, in holding them, and occasionally the enlarged however, ends draw through the grips, and the timber fails by shearing along the grain, and not in tension. Timber is not a satisfactory material for a tie bar the only case in which it is likely to be used in tension is in the tie beam of a roof where the strain it has to bear is
in the
;

generally small. In making calculations for the

columns

it is

strength of beams or advisable to assume either the minimum results

of tests, or thereabouts, as

it is safe to assume that there would be no more care exercised in the selection of timber for actual work than there would be in the case of timber

814
for "

TIMBER
testing,

One hundred tests on beams 3 inches by 10 inches to (pitch pine) yellow pine about 4^ inches by 12| inches, and one piece 6 inches by 16 inches, made by Lanza, gave an average modulus of
probably not so much.
"

rupture of 7,442

Ibs.

yet he says

"

should not
Ibs.

feel justified

per square inch," although only nine of the samples tested fell below that limit. Laslett, on the basis of small pieces of the same
1

in using a greater

number than 5,000

timber, gave the

minimum modulus

of

rupture as 10,044

Ibs.

per square inch, Hatfield as 9,000 Ibs. per square inch, and

Eodman

8,796

Ibs.

per square inch, proving what we have

said about the mistake of trusting the results of tests

made

on small and perfect samples of timber. Again, for spruce beams tested by Lanza the average modulus of rupture in 161 tests on pieces from 2 inches by 7 inches to 7 inches by 12 inches was 4,521 Ibs. per square
inch, yet he says that although only seven of the tests fell below 3,000 Ibs., that is all that could with safety be used, though if timber were specially selected he might allow

4,000

Ibs.

7,506, Laslett 7,508, and Trautwine

For similar timber Eankine gives 9,900, Hatfield recommends 5,400 Ibs.

per square inch. Mr. H. D. Smith, M.I.C.E., tested to destruction a number of Quebec yellow pine beams, 9 inches by 9 inches, 18 inches

by 9 inches, and 12 inches by 12 inches, with a span of 14 ft., and the mean transverse strength was found to be 3,807 Ibs. per square inch. On beams of the same timber, tested under similar conditions and at the same place in 1875 by Mr. C. Graham Smith, the mean transverse strength was 4,491 Ibs.
per square inch for a scantling of 14 inches by 15 inches, with a clear span of 10 ft. 6 inches. 2 For this same class of
1

." 2

Applied Mechanics," G. Lanz;i, 1899. Min. of 1'roc. Inst. <_'.E., Vol. C'XXYllL, and
7th, 1875.

Eiiyineeriiiy,

May

STRENGTH ANL> TESTING OF TIMBER

315

timber, Lanza's tests on thirty-seven beams gave an average modulus of rupture of 4,451 Ibs. per square incb the minimum was 2,456, and he recommends 3,000 Ibs.
;

per square inch as the figure to be used.

The

results of

tests

made on superimposed beams by

Major Moritz Bock on the Continent and by Mr. H. D. Smith in Liverpool are somewhat different to those which

would be anticipated and generally assumed by designers. In both experiments it was found that the bolting together
of the

beams gave no appreciable increase of strength over beams simply laid one upon another in one of those tested " by Mr. Smith the bolts bent at each joint of the baulks and pressed sideways into the timber in some cases to the extent of inch," showing that the beams slid upon one another. The strongest of Major Bock's combined beams had only 50 per cent, the strength of a solid beam of the same size. In the case of superimposed beams secured with oak keys and wedges at the joinings, as well as being bolted with inclined bolts, the strength was found to be 60 per cent, of
;

that of the solid beam. 1

In cases, therefore, where

of

it

is

heavy two or three beams superimposed, although it is advisable to have them secured with a few bolts, to ensure their not being shifted or knocked out of position sideways, the
additional strength of the cumulative beams should only be assumed as about 50 per cent, extra per beam. Beams

loads, to secure a greater

found necessary, because depth of girder by having

composed of three baulks are proportionally stronger than those composed of four, and those composed of two baulks are proportionally stronger than those composed of three but under the same unit stresses three beams are much stifTer than two, and, though in a less degree, two are
;
1

Min. of Proc.

lust. C.E., Yols.

CVI. and CXXVIII.

316

TIMBER
than one, doubtless owing to the friction between the

stiffer

surfaces.

Bolts increase the friction and produce a marked effect on the stiffness of beams, although, with bolted beams as

with unbolted, the upper beam slides over the one below it. In the case of flitch beams, that is, whole or cut timbers

by side and bolted together, tests show that the main difference between these and simple beams of the same scantling is that they break more suddenly. Loads placed upon timber columns, as upon columns of other material, should be in the centre, as all tests show
laid side

that columns eccentrically loaded give considerable reductions in strength, and Lanza found this particularly noticeable in the case of oak columns. 1

The question of compression at right angles to the grain and the shearing strength of timber has not as yet been so carefully studied as that for transverse strength and compression parallel to grain.
oak, ash,

Pine and spruce will only bear about one-seventh, hickory, and some of the Australian hardwoods about

one-half to one-fourth, of the load at right angles to the grain which they will bear parallel to the grain
so that, in the case of timber columns carrying heavy loads and having these loads transmitted to timber base plates or caps, proper precautions must be taken that the load on

the side timber

is

not excessive.

it

Judging by a large number of tests on different timbers may be stated generally (although a few samples on

310 show the contrary) that the strength in cross compression is higher than in shearing, and in some of the harder
p.

timbers considerably higher (see

1

tests, pp.

120 and 219).

" "Applied Mechanics," G. Lanza, and The Practical Column under Centre and Eccentric Loads," by J. M. Monerieff, M. Am. Soc. C.E.,

American Society

of Civil Engineers, Vol.

XLV.,

1901.

STRENGTH AND TESTING OP TIMBER

317

Curly-grained timber, as a rule, gives much higher results than straight-grained timber in shearing tests parallel
to the grain.

load is applied to a portion of the tested as is usual in practice, the strength in cross specimen, the

When

on the average, 12 per cent, higher than applied over the whole surface. In the Western Australian timber tests it was found that " the strength of beams cut on the quarter," that is, radial to the circumference, was 12 per cent, less than that of those cut in the ordinary manner. As a general rule, the weight and density of seasoned timber is the measure of its strength, the heaviest timbers, even those of the same species, being the strongest in combut density is no criterion of pression and bending tests tensile strength, and some comparatively light timbers have great tensile stress, as, for instance, ash and hickory. The weight of timber is very uncertain and very puzzling, and doubtless the great variation in the weights of timber, as given by different people, is mainly due to the greater or and to estimate lesser amount of moisture in the timber
compression
is,

when

the load

is

weights by small pieces is very uncertain, each piece of a log or tree being of a different weight to an adjoining piece, yet one often finds the weight of timber given to two
places of decimals.

The weights per cubic

well-seasoned wood.

foot given in this

book are

for

The number of rings per inch have no bearing on the weight as a rule, nor do they influence strength. Although a piece of pine or fir timber with, sa}^ sixteen rings to the
inch might weigh more than one with, say, only six rings, yet, in quite a number of cases, one finds the reverse, and
in the author's experience one with thirty-four rings to the

inch weighed less per cubic foot than one with twenty,

318

TIMBEE

one with twenty weighed less than one with ten, and another with five weighed 2 Ibs. per cubic foot more than one with twelve rings. In the case of pine or fir timber,

where the rings are abnormally

well dried

close,

may

be somewhat more than

the weight when in the case of

timber with open rings, but in oak and elm the fairly wide rings form the heaviest wood.

piece of water-logged
its

American white pine

(the yellow

pine of the

seasoned

English market) might easily, although when weight would only be about half, weigh more
seasoned piece of jarrah or karri.
All
if left

than that

of a fairly

timber will sink

long enough in water, as is proved the fact that dry sawdust from the softest wood will by quickly sink if placed in water, but it might take years to so saturate a log of timber as to cause it to sink thus we find
;

water-logged ships floating about the ocean to the danger

of navigation
If

sometimes for years. by a large number of tests on fairly large-sized pieces of timber we deduce a fairly accurate modulus of rupture, it would be safe to assume a factor of safety of 4 in the case of ordinary construction work that is, assume the working but in the as one quarter the breaking strength strength
;

case of machinery, or in structures carrying jarring loads, a factor of safety of 5 or 6

allowed.

moving
should

or

be

Factors of safety, as at present arrived at, are more or less in the nature of guesswork, and are, as has been said,
"

an expression

of

reliability of values of strength,"

ignorance or lack of confidence in the but with a larger number

of reliable tests they

may

be reduced to a more definite

figure

and

to a

minimum.
.

International

twelve years ago a committee of the American Association of Railway Superintendents of and Buildings recommended the following factors Bridges

Some

STRENGTH AND TESTING OF TIMBER

of safety
:

319

grain, 4

for
;

For timber in shearing, and compression across columns under 15 diameters high and for end

for extreme fibre stress in transverse rupture, bearing, 5 6 ; and in tension with and across the grain, 10.

As there is such great variety in the results arrived at as to the strengths of timber tested by different people, only
those tests which have been

made upon

a large

number

of

samples of the same wood reduced to a standard degree of moisture have been given in this work, and the author has
only gone so far into the question of testing timber as to show the inquirer what errors to avoid and lead him by
references to

more

detailed information.

Sufficiently accurate statistics are not yet available for dealing in great detail with tests on timber.

CHAPTER XIV
" "

FIGUEE

"

IN

TIMBER
Timber Used
for

Figure"

in

Timber Timber Suitable for Carving Veneer Markings on Timber.

MANY
" "

figure" in timber

theories have been propounded as to the cause of while it is true that all timber possesses
;

figure" in some degree, which is more noticeable if cut in certain ways, yet there are some in which it is

it

be
or

more

conspicuous

than in

others,

and which

for
it

cabinet

furniture work are

much

appreciated, as

adds to the

value of the work produced.

The characteristic figure of oak is due to the broad and deep medullary rays so conspicuous in this timber, and the same applies to New Zealand honeysuckle. Figure due to the same cause is found in the beach and plane, but is not so pronounced. The beautiful figure in " bird's eye " maple is supposed to be due to the boring action of insects in the early wood of the tree, causing pits or grooves, which in time become filled up by being overlain by fresh layers of wood these peculiar and unique markings are only found in the older and inner portion of the tree. Pitch pine has sometimes a very beautiful figure, but it
;

generally does not go deep into the timber ; walnut has It is quite a variety of figures, and so has English elm. in mahogany, however, that we find the greatest variety of
this timber is only used for furniture and a good figuring greatly enhances the value, fancy work,
figure,

and as

finely figured logs fetching fancy prices.

"FIGURE" IN TIMBER

321

An

interesting discussion took place

some time ago

in the

columns of the Timber Trades Journal on figure in mahogany, in which many people capable of giving an opinion took part various theories were put forward, the consensus of which seemed to be as follows Mahogany, unlike the oak, never draws its figure from its small and almost unnoticeable medullary rays, but from the twisted condition of its
;
:

the natural growth of mahogany produces a straight wood; what is called "figured" is unnatural and exceptional, and thus adds to its value as an ornamental wood. These peculiarities are rarely found in the earlier portion of
fibres
;

near the centre, being in this respect quite maple they appear when the tree is more and consist of bundles of woody fibres fully developed, which, instead of being laid in straight lines, behave in an erratic manner and are deposited in a twisted form sometimes it may be caused by the intersection of branches, or
the tree that
different to
is
;
;

possibly

by the cracking

of
it

the

bark pressing on
of
its

the

wood, and

becomes It will have been observed by most people that the outer portion of a tree is often indented by the bark, and the outer rings often follow a sinuous course which corresponds to this indentation, but in most trees, after a few years, this is evened up and the annual rings assume their nearly circular form it is supposed by some that in the case of mahogany this is not the case, and that
course, accentuated.
line

moving causing a wavy

thus

out

natural
in

straight

which

time

the indentations are even accentuated.

logs of timber are got
;

The

best

figured

from trees which grow in firm rocky soil those on low-lying or swampy ground are seldom To the practical woodworker the figure in figured.
;

mahogany causes difficulty in planing the wood to a smooth surface some portions plane smooth, others are the " wrong way of the grain." Figure in wood is affected by
T.

322

TIMBEE
way
the light
is

thrown upon it, showing light if seen from one direction, and dark if viewed from another, as can be easily observed by holding a piece of figured mahogany under artificial light and looking at it from both
the

The characteristic markings on mahogany are ends. " mottle," which is also often found in sycamore, and is conspicuous on the backs of fiddles and violins, and is not
in itself valuable
;

it

runs the transverse way of the fibres and

FIG. 54.

Effects produced

by grain

of

oak in panelling.

" Roe," which probably the effect of wind upon the tree. is said to be caused by the contortion of the woody fibres, and takes a wavy line parallel to them, is also found in the hollow sides of bent stems and in the root structure, and
is

when combined with "mottle"

is

is

very valuable.
"

"

an exaggerated form
tornado shake
"
is

of mottle.

"Dapple" Thunder shake " or

across

a rupture of the fibres

the
;

grain, which in mahogany does not always break them the tree swaying in the wind only strains its fibres, and thus produces mottle in the wood.

TIMBER SUITABLE FOR CARVING

The well-known " Thuya burrs wounds due to the lighting of
;

323

"

to

fires

are attributed by some against the trunks

of adventitious

of the trees

by others

to the

growth
in

buds

from a
"

tree stump. " Stripe," so conspicuous

is

the

beautiful

Andaman

marblewood." which

grey with a dark purple or black

" spoken of as figure." One constantly comes across peculiarities found in timber when opened out. The Timber Trades Journal has given one of these showed two initials eviillustrations of several cut on the outside of a tree, probably by young lovers dently in years gone by, which were quite distinct when the tree was cut up, although they were twlTfeet from the outer face. Only a short while ago the writer saw, in one of the trees of the Hull boulevards, imbedded and nearly covered over
stripe, is also
;

with new wood, the iron holdfast of a gate, which will probably be a puzzle for future timber converters and a
trial for their

saws.

the recently constructed Cunard s.s. Mauretania some charming effects were obtained in panelling by careful

On

arrangement

of the figure in the wood, and this was characteristic in the Austrian oak panelling, of particularly which a great quantity was used. The wood was fixed in the panels in squares or parallelograms in " Venesta," and

and fixed that the grain diamond pattern in the centre

so cut

of

the

wood formed a
sometimes

(see Fig. 54),

with straight, sometimes wavy grain, which has a most charming effect, and looks to the casual observer as if it

were in one piece, the joints being so well made as to be unnoticeable unless closely examined.

TIMBER SUITABLE FOB CARVING.

Amongst the softwoods are yellow pine, basswood, Kauri pine and lime, and for carving one need not look for Y 2

324

TIMBER
from Sycamore, beech, and holly, which are of

better material than a good piece of yellow pine free

knots and shakes.

light or nearly white colour, are also useful softwoods. Of hardwoods, Italian walnut is admirably suited for fine

work, but only the hardest and that of closest grain should be chosen. It is a fine-grained wood of even texture, cuts with something of the fineness of English oak, and is

English walnut capable of receiving even more finish. has too much figure to be suitable for this purpose.

American walnut
carving, as
in grain
its

is

best fitted for sharply cut

is

and shallow

figure

caney.
^

Honduras mahogany is very similar to American walnut Cuba mahogany is closer. Of hardwoods there are not many to equal English oak for sharpness, clearness of detail, and lasting qualities, as so much of the carving in English cathedrals and church
;

stalls testifies.

There are some marvellous specimens of minute mediaeval carving in box to be seen in the British Museum, and also

some good carving

in pear tree

wood

of the

same

period.
tree,

of Grinling Gibbons' work was but this wood is not easily procurable.

Much

done in pear

TIMBER USED FOE VENEER.

The manufacture made rapid strides

something
this purpose.

of

wood

into veneer is one

which has

In the United States of late years. like 25,000,000 cubic feet are annually used for
Their average Beech can be
are cut 25

Veneers are sawn, sliced, and rotary cut. thickness varies from 5 to 15 to the inch.
cut as thin as 30 to the inch.
to the inch,

In

Germany they

and both French and German merchants cut

their veneers thinner than in England,

MARKINGS ON TIMBER,

ETC.

325

Red gum (satin walnut) is the timber most used for veneer in the United States. Maple and yellow poplar (Canary wood) come next, and these three furnish more
than half the veneer supply. Cottonwood, oak, beech, birch, basswood, elm, ash, walnut, and sycamore are also used for this purpose. Much of the softer wood veneers are not used for veneering in the true sense, but for boxes, baskets, crates, etc. Woods such as maple, oak, birch, and walnut, which take a good polish and possess a pleasing grain, furnish the bulk
of true veneers for furniture

two and three wood " for boxings, chair seats, etc. ply In Europe great quantities of birch and aspen are used, and the " Venesta" waterproof boards made of these woods are much used for panelling, ceilings, roofs and sides of tramcars, chair seats, etc. They are made in thicknesses 1 of j ^ and 2*0 mcn an d upwards, and used either singly or in plys. The " 3-ply " are J inch and the " 5-ply" f inch thick, and the J inch thick is said to be stronger than J inch in ordinary wood. These "Venesta" boards are made of layers up to 1^ inch thick, and can be got in various

Many

of these thin-cut

and interior woods are used

finish.

for

"

sizes

up

to 5

ft.

by 15
the

ft.

without a knot or
"

joint.

They

or compo boards, be bent ply to sharp curves and may be finished off in oak, walnut, or other hardwood.
can, like

many of

"

"

"

MARKINGS ON TIMBER, ETC.

This is a subject which can only be touched upon. The markings of deals and battens require a book for themselves, and have one in that published yearly by Messrs. William Rider & Sons, of London.

The marks are continually altering as new firms into the market, so that even those in the trade only

come

know

326

TIMBER

which they deal. Certain letterings are a fair guide to the buyer that he will get good material if they emanate from a good firm, but only in the same way as he may assume he will get good furniture or good clothes from reputable firms. Marks and
the brands of the class of timber in

brands on timber are

inspector, or builder,

of little

guide to

the

architect,

whose only safe plan is to select the material from stock, by doing which he may get as good timber out of seconds as by buying firsts in the parcel, and
at less cost.

As a general rule Kussian timber is hammer-marked with the importer's initials, and some Archangel and other planks have red marks at the ends denoting the different qualities Swedish and Norwegian deals are marked with large red, blue, green, or black stencilled letters on their ends, often with a crown or cross between inferior qualities are sometimes not marked at all. Swedish and Finnish Gulf
; ;

fourth, and

generally imported in first, second, third, fifth, as well as in an unsorted class, and planed in three classes, first, second, third, and also in an goods unsorted class. The first and second are joiners' wood
deals are
;

now

the third quality is generally well adapted for engineering work. White Sea deals are imported in four qualities,

first,

generally in three qualities, second, and third. American goods are often branded, and sometimes have red marks on the sides or ends to denote quality.
St.

Petersburg and Eigas

The method of marking pitch pine, Baltic, and other log timber by the Customs measurers on the north-east and other ports is as follows The length of the log is near the centre, the Customs number and cubic contents are
:

close together,

and nearer the end they are screeved thus

MARKINGS ON TIMBER,
which means length 23

ETC.

327

ft.

/(

10,

% =
ft.)
;

20,

/%(

and contents 27 cubic 30 (the crossed lines

feet,

indi-

cating

10

single

where the cross meets the

or

strokes represent single feet, and foot of a stroke, thus )(/ 15,

In larger logs the strokes have often two ftl 25. thus crosses, 80, and a notch 60, or thus f$

^=

above represents half a foot, thus rfl/Hj = 38 J ft Australian timber is marked with circles, and Tasmanian timber with diamond shapes on the ends, having within them the initials of the colony from whence they come, as well as the initial of the timber. The following are a few
-

specimens

Western Australia.

Jarrah.

Karri.

Blackbutt.

New

South Wales.

N.S.W
G.G
Ironbark.

Grey gum.
Tasmania.

Turpentine.

Blue gum.

Stringy bark.

Peppermint.

328

TIMBER
which there are numerals
"
1,

in addition to

2,

3,

4,

etc.,

either before or after the

broad arrow," when the timber

officer,

has been inspected and passed by a Government which are for the purpose of identifying him.

Besides the above there are often owners' and other

There are no quality marks on log timber. although there are strict regulations concerning pitch pine, marks on Baltic logs, it, and although there were formerly

marks on

these have been discontinued.

sold

Log timber

is

invariably

by Customs measurement, and this varies somewhat at different ports. Mahogany, cedar, and other furniture wood is measured up in log and sold by the superficial foot of one inch thick, an allowance being made from the total
cubic contents for waste.

load of timber

is

50 cubic
feet,

feet.

St.

Petersburg

standard contains 165 cubic

and

this is the

measure

by which deals and small cut timber is bought -and sold. A cord of wood measures 8 feet by 4 feet by 4 feet, and contains 128 cubic feet, and a fathom is 216 cubic feet.
customary square," of generally sold by the 100 feet, and 600 square feet of 1-inch boards equals one load of 50 cubic feet. The term " lumber " largely used in America applies to cut, split, or sawn timber, such as beams, joists, boards,
Flooring
is

"

planks, staves, "and the like.

APPENDIX
glance through timber import lists gives one a better idea than anything else of the enormous quantity and infinite variety of timber and timber goods which are landed in Great Britain daily a few
;

samples taken at random from one week's deliveries will show the large quantities and great variety which one ship will carry.

vessel

from Newport News, United States, brought 3,546 oak boards and planks,
14,461 pieces of poplar lumber, 5,921 bundles of poplar,

12,371 pieces of oak lumber, walnut lumber, 1,373 ,, ,,

223 bundles of whitewood, 191 pieces of ash, 75 ash logs, 50 bundles of chestnut.

A vessel from New

Orleans brought

25,793 pieces of gum lumber, 2,048 bundles of

13,568 oak staves, 4,712 walnut staves, 3,649 bundles of oak staves, 175 ,, hickory, 14,460 poplar staves, 3,045 hardwood staves,
1,822 cypress staves, 124 cases of handles.

vessel

from

St.

John,

New
,,

Brunswick, brought
staves,

1,661 bundles of handles,

900

,,

3,217 deals,

330

APPENDIX
133 standards of spruce deals, 575 bundles of flooring, 731
,,

,,

strips,

1,463 birch strips, 1,771 bundles of maple blocks,

1,395 pieces of walnut, 2,255 maple boards.

vessel from Norfolk, United States, brought

2,827 oak planks,

324 ash planks,

2,216 149

dogwood logs, persimmon logs.

vessel

from Kingston, Jamaica, brought 396 pieces of greenheart and ebony,

824 black ebony, ,, ,, 836 ,, ,, lignum vitse, 140 lancewood spars, 985 pieces of ebony, 19 cedar logs, 45 mahogany logs.

It is no uncommon thing for a ship to bring, in addition to a miscellaneous cargo such as above, 1,500 or 2,000 doors or window frames. There is not the same variety of species of timber in the goods brought by ships from the Baltic, but there is an almost unlimited

The following variety of scantlings. Baltic and Archangel timber

:

list

is

from a recent

sale of

in.

4X6 4x7 4X8 4x9

4

in.

in.

11

3X4 3 X 4^ 3X5 3x6 3X7 3X8 3 X 84 3X9

3

in.

in.

in.

in.

in.

in.

in.

2|

11

APPENDIX
in.

331
in.
in.

in.

in.

in.

in.

in.

in.

in.

li

li 1J

U
li

X X X X X

4
4

15X5

If

If
If If

6
7

X X X X

4$ 6
9 11

1X4
1

| i

X X

1X5
1

4|

X 2i X 4~

1X6 1X7 1X9

5$
^

The Archangel and St. Petersburg goods are the wider sizes and run mostly from 7 to 11 and 12 inches. As showing how in the most out of the way and unlikely localities the timber merchant searches for his supplies, the author had gone carefully through a report on the timber of the Hawaiian Islands prepared by the United States Forestry Department in 1904, and neither in that nor in any other work dealing with the place could he find any likelihood of timber in any quantity from this locality being put on the market yet, shortly afterwards, he saw in a trade journal " that a company had contracted to supply a large number of " Ohia Ohia-lehua sleepers per annum to an American railway company. (M etrosideros polymorplia), which grows to a height of 100 ft. and
;

ft.

diameter, produces a

wood

of

reddish colour, and, although

it

had been used for sleepers in the island, splits and warps so badly that it was not generally considered fit for much else than fuel. Koa (Acacia Jtoa), related botanically to the blackwood of Australia and Tasmania (A. melanoxylori), is the one fairly abundant Hawaiian tree which is valuable for its timber. It is a highly-prized cabinet wood, a good deal used on the island, and exported to a small extent. The colour varies through rich shades of red and brown the grain is fine and indistinct. Curly koa is especially prized but very rare.
;

BIBLIOGRAPHY
" BARLOW, PETER, F.E.S., Strength of Materials." 1837. " BOULGER, G. S., F.L.S., Wood." DE COQUE, J. V., " The Timbers of New South Wales," Eoy. Soc.
Trans., N.S.W., Vol. 28, 1894.

" DRURY, COL. HERBERT, Useful Plants of India," 2nd ed., 1873. " ESTEBAN, E. D., Strength and Other Properties of Cuban Woods," Van Nostrand's Eng. Mag., May, 1883. " EVELYN, J., Sylva," 1786. " of Victoria, Australia, and Forestry of other Countries," Forestry Report of Eoyal Commission, Melbourne, 1902. " GAMBLE, J. S., Manual of India Timbers," London, 1902. " HARTIG, EGBERT, Timbers and How to Know Them," 1890. " HAY, DALRYMPLE, Suitability of New South Wales Timbers for Eailway Construction," Gov. Pub., 1905.

Constructional HILL, L. M., B.E., M.I.C.E., Guiana," Min. Proc. Inst.C.E., Vol. 147.

"

Woods

of

British

HINTON, E.

J.,

A.M.I.C.E.,

" Timbers of Minas Geraes, Brazil," Min.

Proc. Inst.C.E., Vol. 130.

" HOLTZAPFFEL, CHARLES and JOHN JACOB, Turnery, &c.," Vol. 1. " HOUGH, F. B., Ph.D., Elements of Forestry," Cincinnati, 1882.

JOHNSON, PROF.

" Materials of Construction." J. B., JULIUS. G. A., B.Sc.j M.E., "Western Australian Timber Tests, 1906," Gov. Pub., Perth, Western Australia. " Notes on Timbers of Western Australia," Gov. Pub., Perth, Western
Australia, 1906.

LANZA, PROF. G., Applied Mechanics," 7th ed., 1899. " Timber and Timber Trees," Eevised by Prof. LASLETT, THOS.,

"

H. Marshall Ward, D.Sc., F.E.S. NEWHALL, CHAS. S., " The Trees of North-East America," " MACOUN, JAMES M., Forest Wealth of Canada." " MAIDEN, J. H., The Useful Native Plants of Australia."
Ibid.,

1899.

PERCIVAL,

" Notes on the Commercial Timbers of " New SIR WESTBY

B.,

New

Zealand

South Wales." Timbers and Forest

Products," London, Gov. Pub.

334

BIBLIOGEAPHY

PINCHOT, GIFFORD, "Short Account of the Big Trees of California," United States Dept. of Agric., Div. of Forestry, Bulletin No. 28. " Timber," United States Dept. of Agric., Div. of BOTH, FILIBERT, Bulletin No. 10. Forestry,
Ibid.,

Manual of Forestry," Vol. 5. SCHLICH, W., Ph.D., " Forestry of United Kingdom." " SCHRENK, HERMANN VON, Factors which cause the Decay of Wood,"
Journal of Western Soc. of Engrs., May, 1901. "Fungous Diseases of Forest Trees," United States Year Book

"

Ibid.,

of Dept. of Agriculture for 1900. " British Forest Trees," 1842. SELBY, P. J., STONE, HERBERT, F.L.S., "The Timbers of Commerce," London,

1904.

" Tasmanian Forestry," issued by Dept.

of Lands and Surveys Hobart, 1905. The Timber Trades Journal, London. " Materials of THURSTON, B. H., Engineering," Part 1, 5th ed., 1899. " TIEMANN, H. D., M.E., M.F., Effect of Moisture upon the Strength and Stiffness of Wood," United States Dept. of Agric., Div. of Forestry, Bulletin No. 70.

TREDGOLD, THOS., "Elementary Principles of Carpentry." " Notes on Useful TURNER, JOHN HENRY TUDSBERY,

Japanese Timber," Min. Proc. Inst.C.E., Vol. 89. UNWIN, PROF. W. C., M.I.C.E., "The Testing of the Materials of
Construction."
D.Sc.,

WARD, PROF. H. MARSHALL,

Diseases."

"Timber and Some

of

its

INDEX
A.

Alaska cedar, 90
Albizzia lebbek, 185 Alder, 48

ABIES balsamea, 82
,,
,,

concolor, 82
grandis, 82
nobilis, 82

Algarrobo, 144

pectinata, 87 Acacia arabica, 161

,,

Alnus glutinosa, 48 incana, 48

Alphitonia excelsa, 229

catechu, 178
colubrina, 136

Amboyna wood, 44
American timber, 65
,,
,,

,,
,,

common, 56
false.

tests of, 118

See Locust. forrnosa, 150 ,, ,, honialophyllon, 236 koa, 331 melanoxylon, 234, 250 Acajou, blanc, 128

Andaman

Acer macrophyllon, 111 ,, nigrum, 111 ,, pennsylvanicum, 111 pseudo platanus, 45 rubrum, 111 ,, saccharum, 111 ,, Acle, 178 Aderno, 138
^Esculus flava, 97 glabra, 97
,,

hippocastanum, 47

Afforestation, 23

African forests, 18, 204

timber, 204 Afzelia bakeri, 197

Agathis australis, 238 Aka gashi, 199

,,

matsu, 201

See wood. Moliwa. marble wood, 185 redwood. See Padouk. ,; Andira inermis, 149 ,, stipulacea, 149 Angelin, 149 ,, amorgoso, 149 coco, 149 ,, Angico, 136 Angiosperms, 6 Anjan, 177 Annual rings, 8 Ants, white, 267 Apple, 49 Araucaria brasiliensis, 139 ,, cunninghamii, 227 Arborvitse, 90 Archangel timber, 30 Argentine timber, 139 ,, ,, strength of, 146 Aroeiraand Aroeira do Sertao, 133 Artocarpus chaplasha, 186 ,, integrifolia, 162
bullet

336

INDEX
Bamboo, 160

Artocarpus lakoocha, 186 lanccofolia, 192 Ash, 52, 102, 202 Ash or swamp gum, 249 American, or white, 103 ,,
,,

Bambusa
,,

arundinacea, 160 auriculata, 160

Banksia marginata, 252

Bassia
latifolia,

173

black, 103
blue, 103

Basswood, 113
Batinga, 138 Beech, 56, 105
,, ,, ,,

,,

Cape, 206
Carolina, 103

common, 56
entire leaved, 242

,,

common, 52
English, 52

Japanese, 202 ,, percentage of, in wood, 7 ,, red, 103 New South Wales, 229 Asiatic forests. 18 Aspen, 59, 102
,,

,,

evergreen, 234 or myrtle, 252 red, 105

,,

tooth leaved, 242

white, 105, 226 Berrya ammonilla, 162 Betula alba, 55

,,

Assegai wood, 207

lenta, 104

Astronium fraxinifolium, 135

speciosa, 138 urunduera, 133 Athrotaxis selaginoides, 251 Australian forests, 18
,, ,, ,,

lutea, 104

papyrifera, 104
pine, 190 trees, the, of California, 108

Bhotan
Big
Billian,

196

timber, 209
,,

Western,

timber,

tests of, 219

Austrian forests, 17 Avocado, 148

Bintangor, 195 Birch, common, 55 red, 104 white, 104 ,, ,, yellow, 104 Bird's eye maple, 112
Bittermit.

B.

BABBAR.

See Babool, Babia, 152 Babool, 161 Bairnsdale grey box, 233

See Hickory. Black ash, 103 bean, 228 ,, cherry, 98 ,, gum, 95

,, ,, ,, ., ,,

Italian poplar, 101

locust, 116

Balanocarpus maximus, 193 Balata. See Bullet tree. Balau or ballow, 192 Balsam fir, 82 Balsamo, 134 Baltic redwood, 32 whitewood, 34 ,,

maire, 239
pine.

See Matai.

spruce, 98 Blackbutt, 220, 222, 233 Blackwood (shisham), 175

,,

New

Zealand, 250

INDEX
Blackwood, Victoria, 284 Bloodwood, 235 Blue ash, 103
Bullet wood, 187 Bumelia nigra, 152
Burnettixing, 276 Butternut, 113, 132

337

gum, 244
pine, 189 Blueberry ash, 229 Bois d'arc. See Osage orange. .Bois riviere. See Waterwood. Bolivian timber, 146 Bombax insigne, 185 ,, malibaricum, 185 Borassus flabelliformis, 167 Bourra courra. See Letterwood. Bowadichia vergelirides, 138 minor, 138 Box, bairnsdale grey, 233 brush, 223 ,, common, 51, 177 grey, 223, 233 red, 223 ,, Tasmanian, 252 true red, 223 ,, yellow, 233 Brauna parda, 133 do sertao, 134 ,, Brazilian timber, 19, 132, 139 Briar, 63 Brigalow, 232 Britain, forest area of, 17 ,, imports of timber into, 27 British Guiana timber, 121

Butter tree, 173

Buttinum ferrugineum, 134

Buttonwood, 101

Buxus sempervirens,
C.

51, 177

CABIUNA. See rosewood. Cabraiba, 138 Cabui, 135

Jacaranda

and

Csesalpinia melanocarpa, 141 Calamander, 163 Callitris calcarata, 227 verrucosa, 227, 234

Calophyllum calaba, 150

,, inophyllum. 195 Calycophyllum candidissimum,

151
multiflorum, 142 Camphor tree, 193 Cana fistula, 138

Canadian elm, 105

,.

forests, 18

oak, 98
,,

,,

poplar, 101 timber, 65

Broad leaved ironbark, 221

maple, 111 Brosimum aubletii, 130 Brown pine, 227 Brush box, 223 Bruyere, 63 Bucida buceras, 148 Buckeyes, 97 Buckthorn. See Cherry, American, 98 Bullet tree, 125
>, ,,

Canary wood. See Tulip tree. Candeia, 134 Canella de velho, 135 ,, preta, 135 Cangu, 189 Canjocas brasiliensis, 137 Cape Colony, timbers of, 204

Carapa guianensis, 127

Carolina ash, 103

Carpinus betulus, 45 Carving, timber suitable Z

for,

323

I.

INDEX
Castanea dentata, 97
,, ,,

sativa, 47

vulgaris, 95 australe, 228

Castanospermum

Cassia fistula, 188 Catalpa hardy, 117

,,

longissima, 148 speciosa, 117

Chickrassia tabularis, 174 Chimarrhis cymosa, 150 Chinette, 148 Chir pine, 190 Chittagong wood, 174 Chlorophora excelsa, 208 ,, tinctoria, 149

Cedar, 86, 129, 134, 145, 147, 158, 164, 166, 207
Alaska, 90 boom, 207

Chloroxylon swietenia, 172 Chuglan, 186 Cirouaballi, 128

,,
,,
,,

,,

canoe, 91 Idaho, 91 incense, 91

Citharexylum melanocardium, 150 Climate, forests and, 26 Coachwood, 229

Cocoanut tree, 163 Cocus nucifera, 183

Cohucho, 143
Colonial or

New
,,

South Wales, 226 Lebanon, 86 Port Orford, 90

of

Moreton Bay

pine, 227

red, 87

white, 90

Cedro, 134, 145 Cedrela australk, 226

,, ,,

brasiliensis, 134, 145

microcarpa, 166
odorata, 153
serrata, 166

Colour in wood, 291 Coniferous wood, 6 Contraction of timber, 11 Conversion of timber, 291 Copaifera bracteata, 126 guianensis, 139 humencefolia, 152 ,,

,,

Cord

of

wood, 328

,, ,,

toona, 164

Cedrus deodora, 166 libani, 86 ,, Celery top pine, 251

Ceratopetalum apetalum, 229 Cercidophyllum japonicum, 203

Champak, 194
Chaplash. See Kaita-da. Charring, 275 Che, 189 Chelura terebrans, 266
Cherry, 50
black, 98

Cordia gerascanthoides, 152 ,, gerascanthus, 147 Cork elm. See Bock elm. Cornus florida, 116 Corylus avellana, 63 Cotton tree. See Bombax. Cottonwood, 101 Crabwood, 127 Cratsegus oxyacantha, 63
Creosoting, 279
,,

specification for, 281

Cryptomeria japonica, 201

Cuban pine, 74 Cumamodendron

oxillare,

135

Chestnut, American, 95 horse, 47, 97 ,,

,,

Cunonia capensis, 206 Cupressus lawsoniana, 90

nootkatensis, 90

Spanish or sweet, 47

INDEX
Cupressus obtusa, 200
,,

339

sempervirens, 50 thyoides, 90

Dipterocarpus turbinatus, 177 Djati, 195 Dogwood, 116, 253

,,

Cupshake, 290
Curtisea faginea, 207 Curupay, 142

Grenada and Jamaica,

150
fir

Douglas
tree.

or spruce, 77

Cutch. See Khair or Kath Gyp, 147 Cypress, black, 114 common, 50 ,,
,,

Dry

rot,

257

Dryobalanops aromatica, 193

Ducalliballi, 130

Duramen
,,

or heartwood, 7
muelleri, 226

,, ,,

Louisiana or swamp, 114 pine, 227, 234 white, 114 yellow, 91

Dysoxylon fraserianum, 226

E.
D.

EASTERN hemlock, 83
East India walnut, 186 Ebony, 167 Eckebergia capensis, 206

DACKYDIUM cupressinum, 240

,, ,,

franklinii,

251

intermedium, 242 westlandicum, 242

Eclurospenumum
Ekki, 208 Elder. See Els.

batshasaii, 137

Dalbergia cultrata, 175 ,, latifolia, 175 ,, nigra, 136

,,

Elm, American, 105

cedar, 105
,,

sissoo, 175

English, 61
rock, 105
slippery, 106

Dammar, 194
Daru, 192

,,

Date plum.
Deals, 35

See Persimmon.
of,

,,

white, 105 wych, 62

Decay of timber, causes Degame, 151

Deodar, 166

255

Els, red 206

white, 206

Eng, 177
of,

Dialum platysepalium, 193

Dicotyledons, timber
6

spruce, 98 Enterolobium timbonva, 143

Engelmann
Eperna

Dimorphandra mora, 125 Diospyros ebenaster, 167

,,

kurzii, 185

,, ,,

quiesita, 163

virginiana, 115 Dipterocarpus thurifera, 198

,,

falcata, 126 Erica arboria, 63 Errol. See Pyinkado. Essenhout, 202 Eucalyptus, 209

tuberculatus, 177

,,

acmenoides, 222 amygdalina, 250

z 2

340

INDEX
European
forests, 17

Eucalyptus amygdalina regnans, 233 ,, bosistoana, 233

,,

Eusideroxylon zwageri, 196 Evergreen beech, 234

botryoides, 235
calophylla, 218

cornuta, 218
,, ,,

Exogenous trees, 7 Expansion of timber, 15 Eyn, red, 174

corymbosa, 235
corynocalyx, 236 crebra, 221
diversicolor,

F.

,,
,,

214

,,

globulus, 244 gomphocephala, 216

FAGUS
,,
,,

batuloides, 144

cunninghamii, 234, 252

ferruginea, 105
fusca, 242
sylvatica, 56 of wood, 328

goniocalyx, 232
heiniphloia, 223, 233

,,

,,

hoemastoina, 250 leucoxylon, 232

longifolia,

,,

Fathom

,, ,,

225

Fiddle wood, 150

longiocornis, 218

Figure in timber, 320

Fir, 34, 82

,,

,,
,,

,,

,, ,,

,, ,, ,,

,,

,,

,,
,,

,, ,, ,,

,,

loxophleba, 218 maculata, 222 marginata, 213 melliodora, 233 microcorys, 221 muelleriana, 233 obliqua, 233, 249 odorata, 236 paniculata, 220 patens, 220 pilularis, 222 polyanthema, 223 propinqua, 224 redunca, 216 regnans, 249 resinifera, 222 rostrata, 224, 236 saligna, 224 salmonophloia, 218 siderophloia, 221 sideroxylon, 221 sieberiana, 234, 250 tereticornis, 224

,,

balsam, 82 Douglas, 77 red, 30

,,

,,

or noble, 82

silver, 37,

190

white, 34, 82

Fireproof timber, 287 Flindersia Bennettiana, 229

Folha de bolo (branca), 134 ,, (vermelha), 134

Forest area of Africa, 18
,,

,,

Australia, 18

,, ,, ,, ,,

Europe, 17
India, 18

Japan, 18 New Zealand and ,, ,, Tasmania, 18 South America, 19 ,, United States and ,, Canada, 18 Forest red gum, 224 Foxiness in wood, 41
,,

Eugenia jainbolana, 175

Fragraea speciosa, 191

INDEX
Fraxinus americana, 103 caroliniana, 103 excelsior, 52 mandschuria, 202 ,,
pubencens, 103 quadrangulata, 103 sambucifolia, 103 viridis, 103 French forests, 17, 24 Fuel, amount of wood used for, in United States, 20 Fumed oak, 43 Fustic, 149

341
forest red, 224

Gum,
,,

grey, 224

Murray
,,

red, 224

red (satin walnut), 92

(Western Aus.}, 218

,,

salmon, 218
spotted, 222, 232 sugar, 236

,, ,,

swamp, 249 Sydney blue, 224

top stringy bark, 250 tupeloe, 94 York, 218 Gums, 213

,,

,,

Gurjun, 177
G.

Gymnosperms, wood

of,

GALABA or

galba, 150

Gangau, 188 Gausan. See Kosum. Geelhout. See Yellow wood.

H.
HACKIA, 132

German

forests, 17

Hackmatack.
Harnileel, 162

See Larch.

Gidgee, 236 Girdling, 181 Gleditschia triacanthos, 116

Hard

pear, 205

Gmelina

leichhardtii, 226 Goncalo alves, 135 do para, 135 ,, Grain of wood, 12, 293

Hardwickia binata, 177 Hardwoods, 6 ,, American,

waning

Greenheart, 121

Grey box, 223, 233 gum, 224

,,

ironbark, 220

Growth of wood, rates of, 9 Guaiacum officinale, 130

Guarabu, 137
Guatteria virgata, 151 Guayabi, 143

supply of, 21 Harpullia pendula, 228 Haskynining, 285 Hawaiian Islands, timber of, 331 Hawthorn, 63 Hazel, 63 ,, pine, 93 Heartshake, 288

Heartwood, 7 Hemlock, eastern, 83

,,

spruce, 83

Guayacan, 141
Guiana, forests Gum, black, 95 blue, 244
of,

19

western, 84 Heritiera minor, 173

,,

Hickory, 85 Hicoria alba, 86

.342

INDEX
Ironbark, white or grey, 220 Ironwood, 178, 188, 196, 205

Hicoria glabra, 86 ,, microcarpa, 86 ovata, 86

,,

sulcata, 86

Hieronyma alchorneoides, 148

Hinoki, 200

Hippomane manchinella, 148

Holly, 62

JACARANDA (rosewood,
,,

Brazil), 136

cabiuna, 136
preto, 136 rozo, 136

Honey

locust, 116 Honeysuckle, 228, 237, 244, 252 Honoki, 201 Hopea meranti, 194
,,

Jack tree, 162 Jack wood, 162

odorata, 187

Horco cevil, 143 Hornbeam, 45 Horse chestnut, 47, 97

Houbooballi, 127 Humirium floribundum, 126

Jambu.

Jainan, 175 See Pyinkado. Japanese forests, 18, 198

timber, 198 Jaqueira, 162

Jar rah, 213

Jarul.

Huon

pine or macquerie pine, 250 Hymensea courbaril, 129

See

Pyinma.

Jatoba, 138

Hynocura

courbaril, 138

Java
Jiqui

teak, 179, 195

Jeffrey pine, 76
I.

ICARANDA, 136
Icica altissima, 129
Ikusi, 207

Ilex aquifolium, 62 In. See Eng.

comun, 152 Jucaro prieto, 152 Juglans australia, 145 cinera, 113 ,, nigra, 112 regia, 63
Juniperus barbadensis, 88 virginiana, 88

Indian forests, 18 timbers, 160 ,,

Ingyin, 189

Inogenous

trees, 7

K.

Inveraro, 147 Ipe, 135

Iriya.

KAHIKATEA, 241
Kaita-da, 186

See Chuglan.

Iroko, 208

Ironbark, 220, 250

,,

Kajoe

,,

,,

broad leaved, 221 narrow leaved, 221 red, 221, 232 silver top, 234

Kajatenhout, 207 bessi, 197 Kakaralli, 129 Kariskes, 197 Karri, 214 Kath tree, 178

INDEX
See Katsura, 203
Katpaii.

343

Mohwa.

Kauri pine, 238 Keekar. /S'<r Baboo] Keledang, 192

Keyaki, 199 Khair or kath, 178

Libocedrus decurrens, 91 Lignum vitse, 130 Lime. See Linden. Limnoria terebrans, 265 Linden or lime, 49, 113

Liquidambar

styraciflua, 92

Khasia pine, 190 Kiln drying, 274

Liriodendron tulipifera, 102 Load of timber, 328

Loblolly pine, 71 Locust, American, 116 black, 116
,,

King "William

pine, 251

Knightia excelsa, 244 Koa, 331 Kokko, 185 Kosum, 178 Kranji sepan, 193
Kuluin, 192 Kumbuk, 174

brown, 116
or false acacia, 56, 115

,,

,, ,,

honey, 116

Kuro matsu, 202

Kyanizing, 278

West Indian, 129 Longleaf pine, 68, 190 Lophira procera, 208 Lythracse flos reginse, 188

L.

M.
MACH^ERIUM
,, ,,

LABURNUM, 51
,,

incorruptibili, 136
legale,

vulgare, 51

136
tipa,

Lacewood, 101 Lakuch, 186 Lancewood, Tasmania, 252

,,

pseudo

144

West

Indies, 151

Maclura aurantiaca, 116 Macquerie pine. See Huon pine. Magnolia champaca, 194
,,

Lanza, 145 Lanza, Prof., Tests on timber by, 302, 314

hypoleuca, 201
red or forest, 222

Mahogany, 153

Lapacho, 141
Larch, 37, 82, 190 Larix americana, 83 ,, europea, 37 ,, occidentalis, 83
Laslett, Thos., 254, 271

swamp,
236
white,

Queensland,

New

South

Lauan, 198
Laurel, 62, 98

Leatherwood, 252
Lecythis
ollaria,

129

Letterwood or snakowood, 130

Wales, 222 Mahwa. See Butter tree. Malay Archipelago, timber Maloh, 186 Manchineel, 148 Mangifera indica, 170 Mango, 170 Maple, bird's eye, 112

of,

191

344
Maple, black, 111 broad leaved, 111 ,, See Sycamore. ,, great. ,, Oregon, 111 red, 111
,,

INDEX
Mora
excelsa, 125
pine, 227

Moreton Bay
Morrel, 218

silver leaved, 111

Mountain ash, 53 Murray red gum, 224 Muskwood, 229

Mutti, 176 Myristica irya, 186

striped, 111

sugar or rock, 111 Marble wood, Andaman, 185

,,

Myrsine grisebachii, 145

Myrtle, 98, 252

See Neem. Marks on timber, 325 Matai, 240

Margosa.

Mysore sandalwood, 171

Medullary rays, 11 Melaleuca leucadendron, 236 Melanorrhcea maingayo, 195

N.

Melanoxylon brauna, 133

Meliaceae cedrela, 128

Melia indica, 176 Melkhout, 205 Merabau, 197 Meranti, 194 Merulius lacrymans, 257 Mespilodaphe opifera, 135 Messmate, 233 Mesua ferrea, 188 Metrosideros lucida, 243
,,

NAHOR. See Gangau. Naito balam, 192 Nandubay, 146 Nectandra rodiei, 121

Neem, 176

New South Wales, timbers of, 220 New South Wales timbers,
tests of, 230

New

Zealand, timbers

of,

238

polymorpha, 331
robusta, 243

Nieshout, 204 Nogal, 145

,,

Mial], 232 Milkwood, 204

Norwegian forests, 17 Nyssa aquatica, 94

sylvatica, 95

Mimosa guianensis, 127 Mimusops balata, 125

,,

littoralis,

hexandra, 178 187 obvata, 204

0.

Miro, 243 Mistol, 145

OAK, American, 98 burr, 100 Canadian, 98

,, ,, ,,

Mlange cedar, 207

Mohwa, 187
Molave, 197 Moquilia tormentosa, 138 Mora, 125

English or common, 39 European, 39 fumed, 43 iron, 100 live, 99

INDEX
Oak, post, 100
red, 99

345

rock, 100 sessile or bay, 39

,,

Paper barked tea tree, 236 Paraguayan timbers, 146 Parinarium oblongifolium, 192 Paroba branca, 133
vermelha, 132 See Angelin. Payena lucida, 192 Pear, 50
Partridge wood.
Pegui, 137

swamp

post, 100

Tasmanian, 253 white, 98 Ocotea bullata, 206 Oganwo, 208

Ohia-lehua, 331

Olea cunninghamii, 239 verrucosa, 206 Olearia argophylla, 229 Olinia cymosa, 205 Olivewood, 206 Olivier, 148 Omatsu, 202 Onara, 199 Onion wood, 226 Opepe, 208 Oregon. See Douglas fir, 77 Orham, 106 Osage orange, 116 Owenia cepiodora, 226 Oxytenanthera albociliata, 160

P.

PACARA, 143 Padouk, 169 Palisander wood. See Jacaranda. Palo amarilla, 142
,,

Peltogyne macrocarpus, 137 paniculata, 127 Penak chengai, 193 Pencil cedar. See Red cedar. Pentacme siamensis, 189 suavis, 189 Peppermint, 250 Persea gratissima, 148 Persimmon (Virginian date plum), 115 Peteribi, 146 Philippines, timber of, 197 Pholas, the, 266 Phyllocladus rhomboidalis, 251 Picea alba, 97 ,, engelmanni, 98 ,, excelsa, 34 ,, nigra, 98 ,, rubens, 98 ,, sitchensis, 98 Picraena excelsa, 128 ,, officinalis, 128 Pigeon ash. See Blueberry ash.
Pine, black,

bianco, 142
cruz, 146
saiito, 142,

New

Zealand, 240

,, ,,

Bhotan or
147
,,

blue, 189

Palms, 168

brown, 227

New

South Wales,

Palmyra palm, 167

Palu, 178

,, ,. ,,

celerytop, 251
colonial, 227

Pao

d'arco, 138
d'oleo,

Cuban, 74
cypress, 227, 234

139
,,

paraiba, 138

European,

32, 33,

34

Paper pulp, 2

Huon, 251

346
Pine, Japanese, 201 Kauri, 238

INDEX
Pinus rigida, 74 rubra, 68 ,, strobus, 65 ,,
sylvestris, 32
,,

Khasia, 190

King William, 251

loblolly, 71

tteda, 71

longleaf, 68, 190

,.

thunbergii, 202

Moreton Bay, 227

northern, 32 Oregon, 77
pitch.

Piptadenia cornmunis, 143

Piscidia erythrina, 150

,,

,,

Pitch pine, 68
tests of, 118, 308
Pith, 8

,,

See Longleaf pine, red American, 68 New Zealand, 240

Scotch, 32
shortleaf, 71
silver,

Plane, 46, 101

,,

eastern, 46

,,

New

Zealand, 242

western, 101 Platanus occidentalis, 101

orientalis, 46 racemosa, 101

,,
,,

stone, 34

sugar, 75

,,
,,

Swiss, 37

Platylophus

trifoliatus,

206

Western yellow, 76
white, American, 65

,,

Plum, 50 Podocarpus dacrydioides, 241

elata,
,,

New
,,

yellow White.

(P.

strobus).

Zealand, 241 See

227

elongata, 205
ferruginea, 243
neriifolia,

,,

Pinkwood

or

rosewood,

New

,,

187

Zealand, 252 Pinnay. See Bintangor. Pinus austriaca, 34

,,

,,

spicata, 240

,,

thunbergii, 205
totara, 239

cembris, 30
densiflora,

102 Poplar, American yellow,

,,

201

echinata, 71 excelsa, 189

,, ,,

,,

balsam, 102 black, 59 grey, 59

halpensis, 34

,,

Lombardy, 59
white, 58

,,

heterophylla, 74 Jeffreyi, 76

,,

Populus alba, 59
balsamifera, 102 canescens, 59
fastigiata,

,,

khasya, 190 lambertiana, 75 laricio, 34 longifolia, 190

palustris,

59

monilifera, 101
nigra, 59

,,

68
,,

pinea, 34
,,
.,

ponderosa, 76 resinosa, 68

tremula, 59 tremuloides, 102 Pores of wood, 12

INDEX
Port Orford cedar, 90 Possi possi, 197 Poui, 147
Powellised wood, 279 Preserving timber, 275 Princewood. See Cyp. Proposis alba, 144
nigra, 144

347

Quercus glauca, 199

ilex,
,,

43

Prunus lauro cerasus, 62 serotina, 98

Pseudotsuga Douglasii, 77 Pterocarpus angolensis, 207
,,

macrocarpa, 100 obtusiloba, 100 ,, ,, pedunculata, 39 prinus, 100 rubra, 99 ,, sessiliflora, 39 virens, 99 ,, hacha, 152 Quiebra Quina quina, 143

dalbergioides, 169
indicus, 169

,,

marsupium, 171
santalinus, 170
utile,

R.

Pteroxylon Puriri, 242

204

RATA, 243
Bays, medullary, 11 Bed ash, 103, 229 ,, bean, 226 beech 105 ,, ,, birch, 104 ,, box, 223 cedar, 87 ,, ,, cypress, 114 els or elder, 206 ,, eyne, 174 ., fir, 30, 82
,,
,,

Purple-heart, 126

Pyinkado, 178 Pyinma, 188

Pyrus aucuparia, 53
,, ,, ,, ,,
,,

aviuni, 50

cerasus, 50

communis,50
inalus, 49 padus, 50

gum

(satin walnut), 92

(Australian), 218

,,
,,

maple, 111 pear, 204

pine, 68, 201, 240

QUARTER sawing, 43 Quebec pine. See White

Quebracho bianco, 141
Colorado, 140

pine.

,,
,,

sanders, 170 spruce, 98

Baltic, 32 Calif ornian, 107

Redwood,
,,

Queensland, timbers of, 234 Quercus acuta, 199 alba, 99 cerris, 43 ,, crispula, 199
garryana, 99

Rengas manau, 195

Resin ducts, 37, 82 Resonance of wood, 298 Rewarewa. See Honeysuckle,

New

Zealand.

348

INDEX
in timber, 288 Shira gashi, 199 Shiron gashi, 199

Eimda. See Thingan. Eimu, 240

Rings, annual, 8

Shakes

Ringshake, 290 Robinia pseudacacia, 56, 116 Roble del pais, 144 Rock elrn, 105 ,, maple. See Sugar maple. Rosewood, Brazilian, 137 Indian, 175 ,, Rowan or mountain ash, 53 Russian forests, 17, 29

Shisham. See Elackwood. Shorea obtusa, 188

,,

robusta, 163

tumbuggaia, 189
Shortleaf pine, 71

Shrinkage of timber, 11 Sicupira assu, 138 merim, 138 Siderodendron triflorum, 132
Sideroxylon inerme, 205 Silver balli. See Ciruaballi. fir, 37, 190 ,, grain, 43

S.

SABICU, 150

Simaruba
Siris tree.

versicolor,

138

Petersburg standard, 328 Sal, 163 Salix alba, 49 Salting timber, 279
St.

Simarupa, 128
See Kokko.
Siruaballi, 128

Sissoo, 175

Sandalwood, Australian, 218, 237

,, Indian, 171 Sanders, red, 170 Santalum album, 171

Sitka spruce, 98
Si-to-oh-balli.

See Letterwood,

130
Sleepers, 273, 283 Sloetia sideroxylon, 194

cygnorum, 218
Santa Maria.
See Galaba.

Sapota gonocarpa, 133 Sap wood, 7, 293 Satin walnut. See Red gum. Satinwood, 172 Schleichera trijuga, 178 Scolopia eclonii, 204 Scordocarpus borneenses, 192 Scotch pine, 32 Seasoning, 269

Snakewood. See Letterwood. Sneezewood, 204

Softwoods, 6 Sonneratia acida, 197 Souari-pikea, 132

South American

forests, 18

Soymida

febrifuga, 174

Semecarpus pandurata, 189

Sen, 203

Spanish chestnut, 47 Sphseroma, 266 Spring wood, 10 Spruce, black, 98

Douglas, 77
,,

Sequoia or Californian redwood, 107 ,, sempervirens, 107 ,, Wasbingtoniana, 108

Engelmann, 98
red,

, ,

hemlock, 83 98 sitka, 98

INDEX
Spruce, tests
,,

349

of, 118, 308 tideland, 98

Tatane, 143

,, white, 97 Starshake, 288

Taxodium distichum, 114 Taxus baccata, 44

,,

brevifolia,
tree, 236,
, ,

85

Stinkwood, 206 Straits Settlements, timber Strength of timber, 301 Stringy bark, 249 yellow, 233 Striped maple, 111 Structure of wood. 12 Sugar or rock maple, 111
,,

Tea
of,

252

191

paper barked, 236 Teak, 179

,,

native,

New

South Wales,

229

Tecoma
,,

serratifolia, 147

speciosa, 138

Tectona grandis, 179

Telegraph poles, 2, 21, 285 Telephone poles, 2, 21 Tembusu tembaca, 191 Teng mang, 193 Tensile strength, 313 Teredo, 262 Terminalia coriacae, 176 ,, glabra, 174 Termites, 267 Tests of New South Wales timber, 230
,,

pine, 75

Sugi, 201

Summer wood,
Sundri, 173

10

Suradaimi, 128

Swamp

cypress, 114

Swedish forests, 17 Sweet gum. See Red gum. Swietenia mahogani, 153 Swiss pine, 37
Sycamore, 45 Syncarpia laurifolia, 225

Tasmanian timber, 247

United
States

,,

timber,

118, 308
T.
,,

Western Australian timber, 219

TALEBNIA

florescino, 141

nodosa, 146

Tallow wood, 221 Tamarack. See Larch.

Thingan, 187 Thitman, 187 Thitya, 188

Thoninia weinmannifolia, 143

Tamarind, 161 Tamarindus indica, 161

Thuya
,,

excelsa, 91 gigantea, 91

Tamo, 202
Tampenis, 194 Tapana, 148 Tapioca, 138
Tarco, 143

,, occidentalis, 90 Tilia americana, 113

,,
,,
,, ,,

europaea, 49
parvifolia,

49

platyphylla, 49
vulgaris, 49

Tasmanian timbers, 244

timber,
for,

specification

253

Tinya. See Khasia pine. Tipa Colorado, 144

350

INDEX
imports
into

Timber
,,

Great

Britain, 27

Vengai, 171 Victoria, timbers

of,

232

quantities used in United

States, 20

Vinhatico, 137 Vitex geniculata, 197

littoralis,

Tin, 160

242

Tizyphus inistol, 145 Toon, 164 Totara, 239

Towaronero, 126
Treating timber, cost of, 286 various methods ,, ,,
of,

W.
WAIBAIMA, 129

Wagok, 160
Wallaba, 126

275

Walnut,
,,

Trincomali wood, 162 Tring, 197 Tristania conferta, 223 Tsuga canadensis, 83
heterophylla siana, 84
,,

,, ,,
,,

63, 112, 186 American, 112 black, 112

brown, 113
Circassian, 64

or

merten-

Tuart, 216 Tulip tree (Canary wood), 102 Tulipwood, 228 Tupeloe, 94 Turpentine, 225

common, 63 Wandoo, 216 Waterwood, 150 Weight of wood, 317 West Indian timbers, 147 Western Australian timber, 213
, ,

,,

u.

, ,

hemlock, 84 larch, 83 plane, 101

yellow pine, 76
ants, 267

,,

ULMUS
,,
,,

alata,

106

White
,,

,, ,,
,, ,,

americana, 105 campestris, 61 crassifolia, 106

fulva, 106

beech,

New

South Wales,

226
birch, 104
,,

cedar, 90
fir,

montana, 62
,,
,,

34,

82

racemosa, 105 Umbellularia californica, 98 United States forests, 18 Urunday, 142

ironbark, 220

mahogany, 222
pine, 65

,,

,,

poplar, 58 sea timber, 30

trade, 30 spruce, 97

,,

V.
,,

stringy bark, 225

.

VENEER, timber used

Venesta, 61, 323

for,

324

wood.

See
fir,

White

Spruce 34

or

INDEX
Widdringtonia juniperoides, 207 whytei, 207 Willow, Huntingdon, 49 Willows, 48 Wood, as fuel, 20 colour of, 291 ,, defects of, 288 oil trees, 177 our supplies of, 27 ,,
,,

351

Y.

YACHIDAMO, 202 Yate, 218 Yellow birch, 104

box, 233
,,

cypress, 91
pine, 65
,,

,,

,,
,,

beams, tests

of,

314

poplar, 102

rate of consumption, 21 selection of, 291

,, wood, 205 Yew, American, 85

.,

structure

of,

8
,,

common, 44

testing, 801

Yokewood, 148

uses
,,

of,

2
Z.

23 weight of, 317 Woollybutt, 225, 235

of,

waste

Worms,

sea, 262, 265,

266

ZANTHOXYLUM cocoa, 143

Zapateri.

See

Purple-heart of

Trinidad, 127

X.

Zebra wood, 135, 185 Zelkowa keyaki, 199

Zinc chloride process, 276

XYLIA dolabriformis, 178

BllADBURY, AONEW,

&

CO. LD.

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LIST OF CONTENTS Occurrence. Mode of Formation History. of Coal Seams. Fossils of the Coal Measures. Botany of the Coal-Measure Plants. Coalfields of the British Isles. Foreign Coalfields. The Classification of Coals. The Valuation of Coal. Foreign Coals and their Values. Uses of Coal. The Production of Heat from Coal. Waste of Coal. The Preparation of Coal for the Market. Index. Coaling Stations of the World. This book on a momentous subject is provided for the general reader who wishes accurate knowledge of Coal, its origin, position and extent, and its economical utilization and application.
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LIST OF CONTENTS Iron Ores. Combustible and Introductory. other materials used in Iron and Steel Manufacture. Primitive Methods of Iron and Steel Production. Pig Iron and its ManuThe Refining of Pig Iron in Small Charges. Crucible facture. and Weld Steel. The Bessemer Process. The Open Hearth Process. Mechanical Treatment of Iron and Steel. Physical and Mechanical Properties of Iron and Steel. Iron and Steel under the Microscope. Heat Treatment of Iron and Steel. Electric

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Liquid and Gaseous Fuels, and the Part they play in Modern Power Production. By Professor
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Electro-Metallurgy.
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J.

B. C.

KERSHAW,

F.I.C.

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CONTENTS

and Historical Survey. Aluminium. Details of Processes and Works. Costs. Utilization. Future of the Metal. Bullion and Gold. Silver Refining Process. Gold Refining Processes. Gold Extraction Processes. Calcium Carbide and Acetylene Gas. The Carbide Furnace and Process. Production. Utilization. Carborundum. Details of Manufacture. Properties and Uses. Copper. Copper RefinCosts. ing. Descriptions of Refineries. Properties and Utilization. The Elmore and similar Processes. Electrolytic Extraction Processes. Electro-Metallurgical Concentration Processes. Utilization. Glass and Ferro-alloys. Descriptions of Works. Quartz Glass. Graphite. Details of Process. Utilization. Iron and Steel. Descriptions of Furnaces and Processes. Yields and Costs. Comparative Costs. Lead. The Salom Process. The Betts Refining Process. The Betts Reduction Process. White Lead Pro:

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Miscellaneous Products. Calcium. Carbon Bisulphide. Carbon Tetra-Chloride. Diamantine. Magnesium. Phosphorus. Silicon and its Compounds. Nickel. Wet Processes. Dry Processes. Sodium. Descriptions of Cells and Processes. Tin. Alkaline Processes for Tin Stripping. Acid Processes for Tin Salt Processes for Tin Stripping. Zinc. Wet ProStripping.
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cesses.

Dry

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Electro-Thermal

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Electro-

Galvanizing.

Glossary.

Name

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Radio-Telegraphy.
CONTENTS
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By

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C.

F.

MONCKTON, M.I.E.E.
Electric

With 173 Diagrams and

Preface.
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Phenomena.

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Methods of Arrangement, Practical Details. Methods of Arrangement, The Detecting ApMeasurements in Radio-Telegraphy. paratus, and other details. The Experimental Station at Elmers End Lodge-Muirhead Telefunken Radio - Telegraph Station at Nauen System. Station at Lyngby Poulsen System. The LodgeSystem. Muirhead System, the Marconi System, Telefunken System, and Poulsen System. Portable Stations. Radio-Telephony. ApThe Morse Alphabet. Electrical Units used in this pendices
Electric Oscillator
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The Receiver

Book.

International Control of Radio-Telegraphy.

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Raw

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Coagulation.

Principal

Raw

Botanical Origin.

Rubbers

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Glass Manufacture.
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By WALTER ROSENHAIN, Superintendent of the Department of Metallurgy in the National Physical Laboratory, late Scientific Adviser in the Glass
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Chance Bros, and Co.

With

Illustra-

CONTENTS

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R. SWAN, B.A. (Oxon.), of the Inner Temple, Barrister-at-Law. CONTENTS Table of Cases Cited Part I. Letters Patent. Intro:

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By KENNETH

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Bibliography.

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tions

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