382 OLEA AMERICANA. 
Properties and Uses. The wood of the Olea americana is compact, of a fine 
grain, and when perfectly dry, is excessively hard and difficult to cut and split. 
Hence, the provincial name of devil-wood. From its small size, and difficulty of 
being wrought, it is appropriated to no particular use in the arts. On laying 
bare the cellular integument of the bark, its natural yellow hue immediately 
changes to a deep-red ; and the wood, by contact with the air, soon assumes a 
rosy complexion. 
