HARDWOOD RECORD 



February 25, 1918 



■-^L Made in St. Louis by 



v ^ Sl.Louis Basket & Box Co. 



There is no account that it has ever been converted into 

 veneer, and it is so hard that it would severely tax a 

 machine to cut it. It has been cut into lumber of which 

 handsome furniture has been made, and also many small 

 articles in local demand. 



Texan ebony, which is not a true ebony, has grain 

 and color similar to mesquite, but the supply is less abun- 

 dant. Huisache is similar to Texan ebony, and is a 

 Texas product. These woods have been made into cross- 

 ties, which are almost everlasting because of their hard- 

 ness and immunity to decay. They are fit for higher 

 utilization. 



Three other Texas woods, all rather scarce in tree 

 sizes, but all possessing wood of great hardness and rare 

 beauty, are catclaw, devilsclaw, and koeberlinia. If these 

 are to be cut in veneer, the strips must be small, and 

 their use must, on that account, be restricted; but no 

 woods in the world are more beautiful if the choice grains 

 are selected and matched. 



There is a bluewood in Texas, generally known as 

 brazil wood or logwood, that possesses a rare, clear 

 color that is extremely attractive when the wood is highly 

 polished, though rough specimens would likely be passed 

 unnoticed. It is not abundant, but is to be had now and 

 then by ranchers who cut it for fence posts and fuel. 



Florida has some finely-colored woods, but large quan- 

 tities are not found in any one locality. Jamaica dogwood 

 is one such. It is reputed to be so poisonous that its 

 bruised leaves are fatal to fish if the leaves are thrown 

 into the streams, but that detracts nothing from the beauty 

 of the polished wood, which is dark, hard, and heavy. 



The mastic tree grows in Florida and has possibilities. 

 The wood is brightly colored and might find many uses 

 but not where large sizes are required. Lancewood is 

 a product of Florida and its value is due to its strength 

 rather than to beauty of color. It cannot be had in large 

 amounts there. 



People have never been inclined to give mulberry 

 wood its due. Some of it is occasionally met with in 

 lumber yards, but nobody ever pays much attention to 

 it but treats it as ash or elm or whatever it happens to 

 be piled with. Yet, the color and grain of mulberry are 

 as attractive as many of the foreign woods brought to 

 this country and sold at high price. There are no large 

 stands of mulberry, but trees are scattered over nearly 

 half of the United States and the available quantity of 

 this wood is considerable. Furniture made of mulberry 

 would compare favorably with that made of cherry, 

 though cherry is not a figured wood and mulberry is. 



Another finely colored wood which has never received 

 the attention it deserves is swamp bay, a tree of the 

 laurel family, growing in the southeastern part of the 

 United States. It is rather scarce in size large enough 

 for sawing, but the color is rich and the polished wood 

 presents a fine appearance. 



Two trees of the rose family deserve consideration 

 with the finest of the minor species. They grow west 

 of the Rocky Mountains, and are never large, and are 



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