THE TIMBERS OF COMMERCE 



ponding to the black zones in Transverse section, appears as 

 extremely fine, black, parallel lines. 



Tangential Section. As the Radial, but the rays are imper- 

 ceptible even with lens : about o'2 mm. high. Soft- tissue not 

 so readily visible but the pores are more prominent. Plate 

 XXI. Fig. 172. 



Type specimens from commercial sources. Not authenticated 

 but checked by the specimens in the Museum No. i, Kew. 

 Wiesner, whose description exactly corresponds with this wood, 

 calls it Inga vera. WiUd., but as it is quite unlike other species 

 of Inga described by Nordlinger and as the Kew specimen is 

 doubtless as authentic as his, I adhere to the name of Brya 

 ebenus. 



No. 84. HOOBOOBALLI.. Stryphnodendron 

 guianense. Benth. (see note.) 

 PLATE VII. FIG. 55. 



Natural Order. Leguminoseae. 



Synonym. Mimosa guianensis. Aubl. 



The vernacular name may be met with variously spelled. 

 Cassie (3). 



Physical Characters, etc. Recorded dry- weight 55! Ib. per 

 cu. ft. Hardness Grade 3, compare Blackthorn. Smell none. 

 Taste astringent. Solution pinkish-brown. Burns well, embers 

 glow in still air : the ash is left in the form of a skeleton of the 

 soft-tissue. 



Grain. Moderately fine and open. Surface lustrous, but the 

 soft-tissue, which is a feature, is dull. 



Bark. " Contains a sticky gum " (78). The surface of the 

 log after the removal of the bark is striated like the surface of 

 cane. 



Uses, etc. " Cabinet-making and all purposes where it is 

 exposed to the action of water : will outlast almost any other 

 wood at the bottom of a boat. A wood of great beauty 

 which takes an excellent finish. A tree of the average height of 

 100 feet, which will square 20 inches free of sap-wood " (78). 

 This wood deserves attention on account of its pretty figure and 

 other good qualities. 



Authorities. McTurk (78), No. 36. Stone (117). Imp. Inst. 

 Jour. No. 70, p. 266. 



Colour. Whitish-brown heart-wood streaked with blackish 

 or brownish concentric bands which approach and recede from 

 each other in loops in Transverse section, and form lines in the 

 Radial section. Sap-wood about i inch wide, white, defined from 

 the heart-wood. 



98 



