24 The Timbers of British Guiana. 



Uses, Qualities y etc. " Large sizes, but very scarce, was 

 formerly used for bed-posts " (2). " Takes a fine polish and is a 

 durable wood, average height about 120 ft. ; will square free of Sap 

 20 ins." (20). Rather hard to saw, takes nails badly, fissile, planes 

 and turns moderately hard and well. Polishes well. A handsome 

 furniture wood, which, except for its scarcity, might be worth 

 attention. It would not compete with the well-known Purpleheart, 

 No. 74. Sometimes confused with Duka, No. 22, and the Purple- 

 hearts, on account of similarity of name on the one hand and of 

 colour on the other. 



Authorities. 2. Bell, p. 5. 20. McTurk, p. 5. 



ANATOMICAL CHARACTERS. 



Similar to those of Purpleheart and No. 74 of this collection ,. 

 with the following differences : 



Transverse Section. Darker than the other sections. 



Pores. Visible with the naked eye when their contents are 

 white, i.e., when they contain chalky matter. 



Rays. Visible with the naked eye to good sight. Width about 

 the same as the thickness of the walls of the Pores. Red. 



Mings. Very ill-defined; boundary (?), a vague whitish line 

 (rare); but there are frequent! zones of denser wood. (In Purple- 

 heart the wood does not vary much from zone to zone, as in this 

 wood) . 



Soft Tissue of definite arrangement; type of Copaifera, but not 

 to be made out with the naked eye. It is not well developed, and 

 has to be sought for. More particularly the narrow, fragmentary 

 wings to the Pores are red, and therefore are difficult to see against 

 the similarly-coloured ground. 



Radial Section. Not much lighter in shade than the other 

 sections. The Pores are fine scratches filled with chalky matter. 

 The Rays are narrow, inconspicuous flakes. The soft tissue is 

 imperceptible without lens. The Rings are not indicated. 



Tangential Section as the Radial, but the Rays need the lens, 

 being minute, affecting the appearance as do those of Mahogany, and 

 are f to 1 m/m. high. 



Type Specimen. Authenticated by Bell, No. 23/2679. Rodway 

 mentions a " Ducalliballi " under the name of Sideroxylon sp. 

 A specimen sent me by Rev. J. Aiken labelled " Ficus sp.," 

 corresponds in every way with our species, and as the leaves accom- 

 panying it are those of a Ficus, we think that we may venture to 

 place it in that genus. At the same time the wood is utterly unlike- 

 that of any of the twenty -two species in our possession. 



24. NOT IDENTIFIED. 



Nat. Ord., SAPOTACE^E. Native Name, " DUKURIA " (2). 

 Salient Features. A soft, light wood resembling white Pine. 



