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This species is widely distributed tlirougli northern and central 

 Europe and north-western Asia, and is the most important 

 coniferous timber of Europe. It is used for all kinds of building 

 purposes, also for railway sleepers, telegraph poles, masts, 

 scaffold poles, fencing, pit timber, paving, the extraction of 

 turpentine and resin, etc. The timber varies a good deal in 

 quality according to the district in which it has been grown. 

 That from N. Russia and Scandinavia is usually regarded as 

 the best, but prejudice may sometimes be the deciding factor, 

 for plenty of good timber is produced in Central Europe, whilst 

 the best of the timber from the old natural forests of Scotland 

 is of excellent quality and probably equal in every respect to that 

 imported from Russia. The best quality of imported timber is 

 usually termed redwood, although the colour hardly warrants 

 the name. It may be yellow in colour or yellow with a reddish 

 tinge, and should be heart-wood of clean grown, well matured 

 trees. Like other vernacular names, however, this one cannot 

 be regarded as a guarantee of timber of one quality, for timber 

 sold as redwood often varies a good deal in character. The wood 

 also varies greatly in weight. As a rule it is between 23 lbs. 

 and 38 lbs. per cubic foot, but some examples have been recorded 

 which weighed scarcely 20 lbs. to the cubic foot, and others have 



exceeded 50 lbs. 



When used for indoor work the best qualities of home-grown 



and imported wood last for an indefinite period. In some of the 

 old Scottish castles and mansions roof timbers prepared from 

 adjacent forests several centuries ago are still perfectly sound. 

 Out of doors, wood treated with a preservative lasts well, but 

 untreated wood soon decays, especially when in contact with the 

 earth or in places where a free circulation of air is not main- 

 tained. Most of the timber used for posts, sleepers and paving 

 blocks is treated with creosote, and as a rule an injection of from 

 7-9 lbs. to a cubic foot is considered sufficient for all practical 

 purposes. In important thoroughfares, such as " The Strand," 

 the life of creosoted redwood blocks is said to be about 7 years; 

 in other places where traffic is moderately heavy the blocks mav 



be calculated to last for from 12 to 15 years. One instance of 



however, does not depend entirely upoa the quality of , the wood 

 and the amount of creosote it contains, but is partly determined 

 by the quality of the bed upon which the blocks are laid ai^d the 

 filling and surfacing material that is used. An uneven bed or 

 inferior concrete results in the blocks bein^ pressed into the con- 

 crete, thus creating nn uneven surface and exposing their edges 

 to damp. TTnequal filling of the crevices also allows moisture 

 to lodge between the blocks. Railway sleepers a^^. /elegrajih 

 poles are also creosoted before use, and it is probable that it 

 would pay to creosote scaffold poles, especially parts which are 

 inserted in the ground. A great deal of fencing and niatenal 

 for the erection of farm buildings is also creosoted Timber 

 placed in a confined atmosphere is subject to dry rot, and even 



