Description of the Woods in the Collection. 75 



Salient Features. A hard, heavy, solid wood; brown when 

 freshly cut, but rapidly becoming purple (magenta); cold to the 

 touch. 



Physical Characters. Weight (so far recorded), 49-62 Ibs. 

 per cubic ft. Hardness, Grade 2, extremely hard; compare Box- 

 wood. ' Very hard and dense " (20). Smell or taste 0. Solu- 

 tion dark brown; the residue after evaporation, purple. Heating 

 the wood when brown brings out the purple colour. A log received 

 in a very wet condition, after being opened, turned colour as I 

 watched it. Heartwood well, and sometimes sharply, defined from 

 the Sapwood ; surface bright or of a greasy lustre. Sapwood, 

 dirty white ; width about 2 ins. 



Bark. About J-J in. thick; resembles that of Beech, but is 

 of a brick-red colour. " Is used for wood-skins for canoes " (20). 

 Hard; a thin white layer beneath the epidermis; closely adherent. 

 Surface of log beneath bark, smooth. 



Uses, Qualities, etc. "Mill-beds, mortar-beds, house-framing 

 a-nd all purposes where shock has to be resisted durable " (22). 

 " Ramrods, buhl-work, marquetry and turnery " (13). " Less 

 durable than Kooroobooilli ; capable of resisting great strain; may 

 be met with in logs from 100-120 ft. long by 30 ins. in diameter, 

 free of Sapwood " (20). A wood that works well with all tools, 

 although hard. It is well known and appreciated in Europe. The 

 purple colour is dissipated by spirit polishes. Almost invariably 

 confused with other Purplehearts on account of the similarity in 

 the name, but not for any other reason. 



Authorities. 2. Bell, p. 9. 7. DaGama, p. 9. 12. Haw- 

 tayne, p. 388. 13. Royle, p. 103. 16. Devenish, p. 423. 19a. 

 Martin, p. 226. 20. McTurk, p. 6. Martm-Lavigne (20c), p. 96. 

 21. Miers. 16o. Kew Guide, p. 44. 27a. Stone, p. 84, PL VI., 

 iig. 47. 28. Wiesner, p. 927. 



ANATOMICAL CHARACTERS. 



The same as those of Simiri, No. 81, but much more striking. 



Transverse Section. Much darker than the other sections. 



Pores. Readily visible with the unaided eye on account of the 

 patches of Soft Tissue which surround them; uniformly distri- 

 buted; few; single or in pairs and threes; often filled. Round 

 when not sub-divided. 



Rays. Visible with the naked eye when the wood is moistened ; 

 ^very fine : uniform ; more or less regular, about the width of a 

 Pore apart; weak but otherwise straight; scarcely avoiding the 

 Pores. 



Sings. Doubtful; boundary probably the fine line of Soit 

 Tissue which appears here and there. 



Soft Tissue of definite arrangement; very prominent and 

 abundant in large spindle-shaped patches enclosing the Pores and 

 often joining two or more groups. Also the boundary-line. 



Pith. (?) 



