USES OF WOOD. 213 



A very beautiful wood is that produced by the 

 Judas tree (Gercis siliquastrum). It is prettily 

 spotted or blotched on a ground of grey, with 

 wavy marks of green, yellow, and black ; and, as 

 it will take a high polish, it is valuable for the 

 manufacture of numerous fancy articles. 



The Junipers, of which the Common Juniper 

 (Juniperus communis) is a representative species, 

 are handsome trees, though generally so small- 

 growing as not to produce wood in any consider- 

 able quantity or of any considerable size ; but what 

 is obtained is valuable. The colour of the wood of 

 Juniperus communis is yellowish-brown, but it is 

 finely veined, very durable, will take a high polish, 

 and is, moreover, aromatic. Another species of the 

 genus, called the Eed Cedar (Juniperus virginiana), 

 produces coloured wood, largely used for the 

 manufacture of the wooden envelopes of black- 

 lead pencils. In this tree the heart-wood is of 

 a beautiful red colour, whilst, curiously enough, 

 the sap-wood is quite white. 



Another wood that is frequently used to imitate 

 Ebony is that of the Laburnum. In some species 

 of the genus Cytisus the wood is greenish-black, 



