38 Transactions. — Miscellaneous. 



shrinking so as to quite disfigure the building. This red kauri 

 should only be used for beams or other framework, and not for 

 mouldings or joiners' work. The next is the white kauri, a tough 

 kind of timber ; will bear a greater breaking strain than the red, 

 but not so durable ; I have seen it quite soft in a few years ; it is 

 a splendid timber for moulding and joiners' work. The shrinking 

 endways is almost nil, if worked up after a fair amount of season- 

 ing, neither will it cast. It is largely used by boat-builders on 

 account of its readiness to bend. Black kauri is not very abun- 

 dant, it comes from the west coast of the island, it is only fit for 

 rough work, is heavy with gum, and the most durable of all; in 

 fact, for fencing-posts or the like, I believe it would last as long as 

 puriri. I need hardly say it is not fit for mouldings or joiners' 

 work ; it is so hard it would require very strong machinery to work 

 it, and after being worked it would cast into all shapes. The last 

 specimen of kauri (No. 4) is the timber for joiners' work and 

 mouldings ; there is a peculiar grain marking in this kind of kauri 

 not to be found in any of the other specimens — this kind should 

 only be used for mouldings and joiners' work. We have often 

 heard it remarked that kauri is noted for its casting, twisting, 

 and shrinking: well, this last kind of kauri will neither cast, 

 twist, nor shrink endways. I have seen slight scantlings, say 

 3 in. by 3 in., 20 feet long, quite straight, after being exposed to 

 the weather without any care. I have seen joiners' work made 

 up out of this timber standing as well as cedar. I have already 

 said it should only be used for joiners' work and mouldings, it is 

 so light and soft ; it should never be used for beams or heavy 

 framework ; but if this kind of kauri and the white only were 

 used for joiners' work and mouldings, we should seldom hear 

 of ruined ceilings, and twisted doors and sashes. This kind 

 of kauri is only found in the Tairua District. 



The next timber on my list is the rimu (Dacrydium cupres- 

 sinum). It is known in the South Island as red pine. The 

 rimu, I believe, grows in the South to a very large tree, but in 

 this province the average size tree is two feet six inches to three 

 feet diameter ; it is a timber with a large proportion of sap- 

 wood — a two-feet diameter log will have nine inches of sap- 

 wood, leaving only six inches of heart, the heart not being very 

 well defined. By this specimen of rimu (a board twelve inches 

 wide) the difficulty in discriminating between sap and heart will 

 be seen, even by an expert. There is a hard white gum, and 

 frequently many shakes, near the heart, that renders this tree 

 unfit for boards, but it answers well for scantlings, joists, and 

 framework. The sap-wood, if exposed to weather or damp, will 

 not last, but the heart is very durable. I have known rimu 

 fences standing many years. Of course, with kauri so plentiful, 

 we have not used much rimu ; but at the rate the kauri is being 

 cut, before many years we shall, I am sure, have to fall back on 



