PINACE^ 



141 



Wood yellowish-white to red and brown, sometimes mottled, 

 resinous, straight-grained, of great strength, toughness, and dura- 

 bility, equal in quality to pitch pine. The following results of 

 tests carried out on behaK of the Air Ministry are recorded in 

 the Catalogue of the Emyire Timber Exhibition, London, 1920, 

 p. 113:— 



Kirk 1 mentions four grades of timber : — (1) Red Kauri, 

 which is regarded as the best general building timber and suit- 

 able for beams, joists, and heavy framework, but liable to cast 

 and twist, shrinking longitudinally and transversely. (2) White 

 Kauri, yellowish white, straight-grained, very tough, bears a 

 greater strain than red but is less durable, neither warps nor 

 shrinks longitudinally if fairly seasoned before working up. A 

 splendid timber for mouldings and joiners' work, and largely 

 used by boat- builders on account of its toughness and elasticity. 

 (3) Black Kauri, deep brown in colour, very hard, dense, heavy, 

 heavily charged with resin, difficult to work, has extreme 

 durability. (4) Soft Kauri, pale dun colour, straight-grained, 

 rather soft, light specific gravity, never casts or twists or shrinks 

 longitudinally when exposed to weather, sometimes marked with 

 longitudinal streaks or veins. Excellent for joiners' work and 

 mouldings, but not for beams or heavy framing. In addition 

 there are waved and mottled kinds of kauri in which the wood 

 is beautifully figured. Such wood is used for panelling and furni- 

 ture, and it takes a high polish. Kauri-wood is used for general 

 building, flooring, all kinds of joinery and carpentry, bridges, 

 wharves, mine-props, railway sleepers, shipbuilding, church 



^Kirk, Forest Flora oj New Zealand, p. 145 (1889). 



