374 



THE FLOEAL WOELD AND GAEDEN GUIDE. 



chasers and the discouragement of taste in gardening. We cannot 

 propose a test for the guidance of the purchaser, although a section 

 of the timber would probahly reveal to a microscopist the presence 

 of the fungus by which dry rot is produced. But having paid 

 dearly for our kno vr ledge of this stuff, we advise the rejection of 



wood in which small worm-holes, like the piercing of pius, are 

 visible, for these appear to precede and prepare the way for the 

 insidious fungus. A good test of soundness is density : if the wood 

 is heavy, and when struck gives forth a semi-metallic ring, it is 

 likely to be sound. The best of timber, however, requires proper 



management in the workshop, or the work will not hold together, 

 and decay will quickly attack the materials. 



The seasoning process is the one grand step towards honest work 

 in the makiDg of rustic furniture, and the purchaser may sometimes 



be able to judge pretty fairly by the visible practice of the yard 

 whether the wood is seasoned or not. In the remarks on various 

 rustic ornaments we have recommended in some few instances the 

 employment of unbarked poles, but we are bound to add here that 

 for all general purposes it is better for the bark to be removed by 



