AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRIES. 249 



Fam. Hamamelide^. 



94. Distylijini racemositm, S. and Z., Jap. Isu, Isu-no-ki or 

 Yusu, belongs to the warm southern parts of Japan, and is mostly 

 found in the province of Hiuga. It is also seen in the forests of 

 the district of Obi, and there, according to Dupont, the trunk 

 attains a height of 12 m. before branching, and a circumference of 

 3 m. I, myself, have often met the tree on Kiushiu and Shikoku, 

 in gardens and temple-groves ; but I have never seen specimens 

 of more than i m. circumference and 15 to 18 m. high. The 

 branches spread far out in all directions, if air and light permit, 

 and the insignificant flowers appear in the earliest days of spring. 

 The leathery, short-stemmed and elliptical leaves are frequently 

 covered with galls the summer through, like our ashes and beeches. 

 The bark and wood of the tree are highly prized. The former is 

 smooth, thin, and of a grey colour. When the trees are felled the 

 bark is peeled off, dried, and burned to get the ashes called Isu-bai, 

 which are sent to the porcelain manufactories in Arita, where they 

 serve in the making of porcelain glaze. The wood is shipped 

 mostly to Osaka. It is specially good for making combs, but serves 

 a variety of other purposes also, as it has many excellent qualities. 

 It is heavy, fine grained, compact, strong, tough, and extremely 

 durable, even in water, so that Dupont said of it, " On pourrait 

 I'appeler le bois de fer du Japon." Its colour varies from light to 

 dark chocolate according to its age. The cross-cut section when 

 placed under the microscope seems thickly sown with small pores, 

 but the year-rings and pith-rays are very indistinct. 



Fam. RosACEi^i. 



Nearly all the many varieties of this family have a reddish, com- 

 pact, fine and close-grained inner wood, that takes a very easy and 

 often beautiful polish. It is moderately heavy, its specific gravity 

 ranging between o*6 and 07. The most valuable wood of this 

 family is obtained from 



95. Prumis pseiido-cerasiis, Lindl. {P. puddiim. Will.), the Sakura 

 or Yama-sakura. This is a fine tree of moderate size, resembling 

 our cherry. It grows wild in the forests all over Japan and also 

 in South Sachalin. On the great southern islands it is found 

 here and there at an elevation of 1,000 m. above the sea. Farther 

 north the altitudes in which it is found grow lower and lower. It is 

 a favourite ornamental tree for the garden and the temple grove, 

 where it is chiefly prized for its large, full flowers. Its even, fine- 

 grained reddish wood is employed principally for carvings, and for 

 blocks in printing cloth and wall paper. 



96. Pnnius Mtnne, S. and Z. {P. armeniaca, Thunb.), the Mume, 

 or Bai. Wood generally dark reddish brown, like the foregoing, but 

 not so highly prized. It has many fine pith-rays and clear year- 



