USES OF WOOD. 195 



it are stitched at the ends with the roots 

 of trees those of the White Spruce are com- 

 monly employed and the join is made water- 

 tight by a coating of resin. Each detached 

 cylinder of bark, cut in two, thus makes a couple 

 of canoes, the great recommendation of which is 

 their extreme lightness, and their adaptability for 

 being carried across country from water-side to 

 water-side on men's shoulders. Many persons 

 who have not seen these canoes themselves, have 

 seen models of them, but have not, probably, sus- 

 pected that the bark of the Birch was the ma- 

 terial employed in their construction. Amongst 

 the uses of the wood itself, may be included its 

 employment in making packing-cases, and wooden 

 shoes, in turning (into articles of various kinds) 

 and for match-making the ease with which it 

 splits and the rapidity of its combustion making 

 it very useful for this last-mentioned purpose, 

 In countries, however, where the tree largely 

 abounds, it is often used by the population for 

 almost all domestic and commercial purposes. 



Hard wood, yellow in colour, is that of the 

 Bird Cherry (Cerasus padus), and though not-very 

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