S3 



Knottiness in timber is an evil of im- 

 inense magnitude, and may justly be 

 considered as the baneful source of near- 

 ly all the other defects, common to that 

 article. And yet how little are their 

 causes and consequences attended to ; 

 though it may truly be said, that, for 

 want of such attention, the greater part 

 of it is retarded in growth, and misap- 

 plied in use ; and not only so, but its 

 premature decay is much oftener to be 

 imputed to this circumstance than the 

 soil, though it has always been the 

 standing idea, the cuckoo-song of all 

 ages. 



The causes of knots may be shortly 

 explained : — Every tree, by nature, pro- 

 duces branches, and the base of every one 

 of these is a knot ; which annuall}^ in- 

 creases in size, as long as it continues to 

 grow upon the tree. Their uses will be 

 developed as we go along. — The above 

 we call natural kiiots. There are othei's, 



