Description of the Woods in the Collection. 3- 



Rings. Ill-defined; boundary a very fine, interrupted, white 

 line of soft tissue; casual and uncertain; contour regular. 



Soft Tissue of no definite arrangement, merely narrow borders 

 to the Pores, excepting the boundary-line mentioned above. (There 

 stre indications of minute, concentric bars.) 



Pith.( ?) 



Radial Section. A little lighter in shade than the Tangential, 

 and much lighter than the Transverse section. The Pores appear 

 as very fine scratches; the rays as minute flakes, just visible by 

 reflection. The rings are not indicated. 



Tangential Section as the radial, but the Rays need the lens^ 

 being minute and almost imperceptible. Height about 1 m/m. 



Type Specimen. Authenticated by Bell, No. 2/2658. 



3 PTEROCARPUS GUIANENSIS. AUBL. 



Nat. Ord., LEGUMINOS^E. 

 Synonym, VATAIREA GUIANENSIS. AUBL. 



Alternative Names. " Arisouroo " (2); "Dartrier; Graine a 

 Dartre in French Guiana " (12); " Ourisoura " (24o). 



Salient Features. A yellow to rich brownish-red wood, with 

 coarse, open grain, and a bitter taste like that of (cigar box) Cedar. 



Physical Characters. Weight (so far recorded), 46| Ibs. per 

 cubic ft. When seasoned, it floats with rather more than a third of 

 its bulk out of the water. Hardness, Grade 7, soft, compare 

 Birch. Smell when dry, none. Taste like Habana Cedar; " very 

 bitter " (20) ; " like quinine " (27). 



Colour of Heartwood; " yellow" (20); dark yellow; rich red- 

 dish brown to dull brown, or even green. Darkens a little on 

 exposure toi the air. Sapwood, oatmeal-colour; 1J-2 ins. wide, 

 sharply defined from the Heartwood. Surface lustrous. 



Bark. About ^ in. thick, smooth or warty; of two layers; 

 the inner T V in. thick, fibrous and bast-like; the outer crumbling 

 and full of hard, whitish grains. Outside of log beneath bark, 

 finely striated. 



Uses, Qualities, etc. (( Readily procurable in lengths of 40-50 

 ft., squaring 12 ins." (2). "Lasts long when exposed to the 

 weather, and is not eaten by worms" (20). "Brittle" (1). 

 Fissile, takes nails badly. Specimen turns and planes very badly, 

 but I have handled much better qualities with better results. It 

 polishes indifferently. Of little, if any, value for export. 



Authorities. 1. Aublett. 2. Bell, p. 3. 17. Laslett, p. 252. 

 20. McTurk, p. 5. 21. Miers. 24a. Rodway. 27a. Stone, p. 264. 

 12. Hawtayne, p. 385. 



ANATOMICAL CHARACTERS AS FIG. 92 FRONTISPIECE. 



Transverse Section. Darker in shade than the other sections. ^ 



Pores. Visible with the naked eye; conspicuous from their 



colour and size; large, not diminishing towards the close of th 

 season's growth ; little variation except in the groups, where it is 

 considerable. Evenly distributed in bold, sinuous, oblique lines. 



