72 TRINIDAD. 



poses, and can also be wrought into handsome furniture; its 

 colour is not so dark as that of the mahogany, but is, perhaps, 

 more beautifully variegated. Yoke may be said to be imperish- 

 able in the ground : it grows to a large size. 



Bois-lezard, Bois-fidele, or, by corruption, Fiddle-wood ( Vitez 

 divaricata, Swartz) . — This again is an excellent wood, neither 

 too heavy nor too hard, and is employed only for building pur- 

 poses, as ground and house-posts, plates, joists, rafters, &c. It 

 grows ordinarily to about twelve or eighteen inches, but often 

 much more in diameter; when large, however, it is commonly 

 found to be hollow within. 



Epineux Jaune — Yellow Sanders [Xanthoxyloz clava Her- 

 culis) — which ought not to be confounded with Epineux Blanc, 

 bears a very close resemblance to the Acoma, and is available 

 for the same purposes : it is also valuable to the wheelwright. 

 It is the Satin-wood of the West Indies. Diameter, from 

 twenty-four to thirty inches. 



Guatequen, Guatacare (Lecythis idatimon). — Very common 

 in damp clay lands, is of intricate grain, very tough, and is 

 available for house-posts, joists, rafters, and even ground-posts, 

 though in the latter it is apt to rot at the surface-line of the 

 earth, especially in damp soils. It is, however, particularly in 

 use for cart-shafts, and generally wherever the quality of tough- 

 ness is required. Diameter, from two to three feet. 



Savonette Jaune (Sapindus saponaria). — Though not used 

 as extensively perhaps as it ought to be, the Savonette Jaune is 

 undoubtedly one of our best woods : it is tough, grows to pretty 

 good sizes, and might be employed in all house constructions, as 

 posts, beams, rafters, &c. Its qualities also fit it for felloes and 

 mill -frames. It is very common. 



Red Mangrove (Rhizophora mangle). — This wood, though 

 not equal to any of the former, is nevertheless used for building 

 purposes, and chiefly for beams and joists : it entered into the 

 construction of many houses in Port of Spain. The same 

 remark is applicable to the Bois-rouge and Contre-vent : the 

 latter may be said to be peculiar to the northern mountains, and 

 is of large size ; the two former belong to salt swamps and low 

 lands. They are generally warped in growth. 



Fustic, or Bois d'Orange [Madeira xantoxytlori) , is we] 

 known as a dye-wood, and is besides an excellent timber, H 



