THE COTTON THEE YIELDING THE CORKWOOD OF 

 WEST AFRICA. 



EAST AND 



Gambia, or African mahogany (Khaya senegalensis), is perhaps 

 the most important tree in Africa from a commercial standpoiut, 

 aod has a very extensive range of growth. It has been exploited 

 for more than twenty-five years and its timber has been one of 

 the chief sources for Sierra Leone, Lagos, Kamerun, Angola, and 

 parts of Congo. The tree is found also in the upper Nile region, 

 especially in the sections known as Djur and Nyssaland, but it is 

 rare at this distance from the coast. According to authentic 

 references in botanical literature, this tree is very common in the 

 neighborhood of Cape A'erde and along the Gambia river, where 

 it is called Gambia mahogany by the English colonists. In the 

 French provinces the tree is known as cail, or cail-cedro. The 

 negroes of West Africa have named it "hie," "jallow, " " du- 

 bina, ' ' and ' ' oganwo. ' ' 



Gambia mahogany is among the largest and most beautiful 

 trees along the coast of Gambia and on elevated parts of Cape 

 Verde peninsula. It is very abundant in the district of Bargny, 

 where it forms the principal stand of the forests. In Senegal 

 this tree is now being planted on a commercial scale by the 

 French, because it produces a very valuable wood, which has at- 

 tained considerable importance in the trade. Upon the whole 

 there is scarcely a tree in West Africa which deserves more at- 

 tention; for, when the beauty and usefulness of its wood are 

 taken into account there is no other tree that can compare with it. 



African mahogany is a name given to a good many other woods 

 that are now being cut and sold, but the name "Gambia" ma- 

 hogany is applied only to the wood of Khaya senegalensis, which 

 is prized beyond all others as a substitute for the genuine mahog- 

 any (Swietenia mahagoni). Gambia mahogany is a large and very 

 beautiful tree and yields one of the most abundant and useful 

 timbers. It frequently attains a height of over 100 feet and an 



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CORK OAK OF NORTHERN ALGERIA. 



average trunk diameter above the enormous buttresses of over 

 three feet. The tree is usually perfectly straight, so that splen- 

 did and most valuable boards may be cut from the logs. The 

 wood is best suited for carpentrj- and cabinet work, and is used 

 extensively for making handsome and expensive furniture. In 

 color and figure it often resembles the true mahogany of tropical 

 America, but it is somewhat softer, paler, slightly coarser, and is 

 more liable to check in seasoning. The natives make boats of 

 great strength and durability out of single logs of this tree. The 

 tree yields a gum which was formerly collected and exported as 

 a substitute for gum arable. 



The West African mahogany trade began in 1S86, and the in- 

 dustry has attained such proportions that the output of tropical 

 American mahogany has not increased in spite of the fact that 

 there has been an enormous enlargement in the use of so-called 

 mahogany. African kinds are shipped into the United States in 

 large quantities, and the best grades are cheaper than similar 

 grades of the true mahogany from Cuba or Mexico. The wood is 

 somewhat paler red and works with greater difficulty than the 

 tropical American mahogany, and is less valuable on this account. 

 Since the tree is so widely distributed and the wood procurable 

 in such large quantities and at so many ports along the west coast 

 of Africa, it has come into extensive use both in Europe and in 

 America. Some of the logs are beautifully figured and the wood 

 is highly esteemed for the best grades of furniture. 



It is difiicult to predict what the prospects for the Gambia 

 mahogany will be in West Africa ten years from now. The sup- 

 ply seems almost inexhaustible, but it is more than likely that 

 the easily accessible trees will soon be cut and inferior substi- 

 tutes will take its place. No less than twenty other species, most 

 of them entirely unrelated, are now being exploited and shipped 



