82 FIRST STEPS IN GENERAL KNOWLEDGE. 



lurability of their timber. The celebrated gates 

 of Constantinople, which lasted eleven hundred 

 years were made of cypress. The different kinds 

 of resinous matter obtained from pines are also 

 very valuable, and are known as turpentine, pitch, 

 balsam, sandarach, &c. The berries of the common 

 juniper are used in flavouring gin, and the large 

 seeds of some of the pines are eatable when fresh." 



" Pines are useful, indeed," said Henry ; " but I 

 always thought our hardest and strongest wood 

 was yew-tree wood. I have heard that the ancient 

 Britons made their bows of it, and they were 

 famous ones, very strong and elastic." 



" That is true," said his father ; " and the YEW 

 tribe, which comes next to the pine tribe, is not to 

 be surpassed as to the durability of its timber ; 

 but the tribe must still be considered far less 

 valuable, because the trees are much less common. 

 In Europe we have only one species, the common 

 yew.* Asia is richer in trees of this kind ; and in 

 New Zealand the most valuable timber is gained 

 from members of the tribe. I must warn you, 

 however, that the leaves of the common yew are 

 very poisonous." 



* Taxus baccata. 



