64 THE IDYL OF THE SPLIT-BAMBOO 



already noted mostly they are angular and at the 

 knots we have had in mind lateral or sidewise 

 deflections. Another condition of things may exist 

 generally adjacent to or between knots ver- 

 tically with relation to the enamel surface; they are 

 sudden bumps or depressions, and the direction of 

 the corrective bending for these then is determined 

 according to whether they are upward or downward 

 deflections. 



Our strips now are fairly rectangular, and quite 

 straight, at least as regards any aggravated or sud- 

 den bends. Here we again go over the knots with 

 the file, further to modify any bumpiness at these 

 points, when the strips are now ready for planing. 

 It is well, first, to mark the strips at their butt ends 

 and on the rind side, to indicate any preferable ar- 

 rangement as to the order in which they shall be 

 glued up, using the modified numerals, I, II, III, IIII, 

 IIIII, IIIIII. These you always can decipher 

 despite any subsequent cutting away, either at the 

 top or bottom, in planing. 



A word as to the actual significance of split vs. 

 sawed strips will conclude this chapter. As already 

 stated, the straightness of bamboo varies greatly. 

 Some sticks may be so straight that it really would 

 make very little difference either in the strength or 

 action of a rod made therefrom, as to whether the 

 rod were built from hand-rent or machine-sawed 

 strips. But whereas in split strips the woody fibers 



