84 TIMBER 



and also in Quebec and Ontario, where it forms extensive 

 forests, attains a height of 70 to 100 ft., and 2 ft. in 

 diameter. It is used for rough framing, and in large 

 quantities for railway sleepers, and it holds nails well. 

 Great quantities are used in Canada for piling in wharves 

 and quays. The colour is a light brown tinged with yellow, 

 the sapwood nearly white. It is imported as deals and 

 battens. 



Weight about 36 Ibs. per cubic foot. 



Western Hemlock (Tsuga heteropltylla, or T. mertensiana 

 in Canada) is by many considered superior to eastern 

 hemlock, although the difficulty of transport and the high 

 reputation of the latter have hitherto caused it to be little 

 used, but in 1905 a considerable quantity was cut in 

 Washington. To get the timber into the market it is usually 

 manufactured into flooring and scantling and sold as 

 spruce or fir, and an attempt has been made to introduce 

 it as Alaska pine. It is a good deal used for pulp. There 

 is no record of its durability. It has given satisfaction in 

 floors. Not adapted for use partly in and partly out of 

 ground ; in fresh water, hemlock piles will last about ten 

 years, but as it is softer than fir it is less able to stand 

 driving successfully. It is straight in grain, will take a 

 good polish, is much used for wainscot panels and newels, 

 and has a beautiful grain when cut in certain ways. Very 

 subject to black streaks or checks f to 3 inches long, about 

 f inch wide, and thin, which run parallel with the grain, 

 and are apt to open out when dried ; it is also liable to 

 black knots, and very liable to attack by boring insects. It 

 is not suitable for heavy construction, especially where 

 exposed to weather, but is used for ordinary building work. 

 Though usually of whitish colour the heartwood is some- 

 times a reddish brown, which may extend to the sap, and 



