Page:Timber and Timber Trees, Native and Foreign.djvu/188

168 this sap-wood is, if possible, left on to preserve the rest of it from splitting. The chief defect in Lignum Vitæ; is the cup-shake, and this occurs rather frequently in the wood of 10 inches and upwards in diameter; it is, therefore, often difficult to obtain a sufficient supply of the larger sizes suitable for the block-maker, who must have not only the roundest, but also the most solid, wood for his purpose. There are many demands, however, for this wood for less important services, and all that comes finds a ready sale.

Lignum Vitæ is imported in the round state, and in very short lengths; pieces under 10 inches diameter are usually in lengths of 6 to 12 feet, and the larger wood in lengths of 3 to 6 feet. It is commonly sold by weight, and realises from £6 to £18 per ton, according to size and quality. That from the city of St. Domingo is the best. The specific gravity is 1248.

THE ROSEWOOD TREE (Triptolomea)

is found in Jamaica, Honduras, Bahia, Rio, and San Francisco. It attains large dimensions, but is often faulty in the centre, owing to decay setting in long before the tree reaches maturity.

The wood is dark chestnut, or brown, in colour, streaked or veined, and generally figured in the grain; it is hard and heavy, but in the hands of the cabinet and pianoforte makers it works up well; it is highly valuable for all kinds of ornamental work, and for many purposes in the domestic arts. It takes a good polish.

The chief defect in this wood is heart-shake, or hollowness at the centre, which extends far up the tree, and this necessitates the cutting of the logs down the middle longitudinally; often a middle piece is wasted on this account, consequently we never see sound solid