JOINERY. 585 



grades of artisans employed the joiner, the cabinet-maker, 

 the wood-carver, model-maker, and tool-maker. 



1. Joinery. 



The joiner constructs the inner fittings and finishing of 

 houses, such as the floors, doors, window-cases, wainscoting, 

 staircases, etc. The material he uses is chiefly sawn timber, 

 planks, boards and scantling. He does not work usually with 

 roughly-sawn material, but with planed material, which is 

 sold by the wood-merchants ready for use, and often with the 

 requisite mouldings. Thus much labour is spared which 

 would cost more if executed by a joiner than when made by 

 special machinery. Hardly any wood in the round, or 

 roughly-sawn wood, is used by the joiner. 



The wood used is chiefly coniferous, and broadleaved wood 

 to a less degree. Boards, planks, and upright pieces are 

 chiefly of spruce and Scots-pine, and after this, of silver-fir, 

 larch, or Weymouth-pine. Owing to its white colour spruce 

 is preferred for flooring. Silver-fir turns grey and splinters 

 more readily than spruce. Pines and larch are darker 

 coloured but more durable than spruce. For wainscoting, 

 Cembran pine and larch yield excellent wood. The joiner 

 always prefers fine-zoned coniferous wood, free from knots, 

 from cool mountain regions or from the north, to coarser 

 material, except in cheaply run-up buildings. Amongst 

 broadleaved woods oakwood is preferred, and is used exten- 

 sively for parquetry floors, for which the blocks are prepared 

 specially by machinery. It is also used in short, flat, planed 

 pieces, only wood of large trees without knots being employed, 

 as the sapwood is rejected. Oakwood is less frequently used 

 for friezes, door- and wall-panels. Oak panelling made of 

 wood showing the silver grain is used in dining-halls, staircases, 

 churches and other public edifices. 



Fine mosaic parquetry floors are made of woods of 

 different colours, such as oak, walnut, birch, teak, etc., and 

 cut in different ways as regards the grain. Some of the 

 woods used are coloured by strong acids, others preserve their 

 natural tints. Oak also is used for staircases, and so is 

 beech wood, and often ash is turned for banisters. Beechwood 



