436 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



a similar kind are played, some with small balls and 

 small pins. Wood's elasticity qualifies it for this use. 

 Billiard cues, racks, and apparatus require large quan- 

 tities of wood in their manufacture. The billiard table 

 might be considered as furniture except that it has a 

 specific use which takes it out of the furniture class. The 

 wood that goes into a fine dining or library table is 

 equally acceptable to the maker of the billiard table, 

 and among such -woods are oak, mahogany, chestnut, 

 yellow poplar, rSsewood, cherry, walnut, and ebony. 



ARTISTIC BILLIARD CUES 



The wood joiner and the wood engraver spare no pains to make the 

 finest cues possible from the standpoint of workmanship. High class 

 carving is often part of the finishing. A few of the many styles found on 

 the market are shown in this photograph of cue handles. 



he colors black by dyeing. 

 It then passes for ebony 

 as inlay. Thus holly, the 

 whitest wood, becomes an 

 imitation of ebony, the 

 blackest. 



The triangle, within 

 which the balls are placed 

 on the table preparatory 

 to beginning the game, is 

 often of cherry. 

 The buttons or 

 tokens, strung 

 on a wire and 

 used for keep- 

 ing tally of the 

 game, are of 

 paper- birch, 

 maple, or of 

 beech. 



The gymna- 

 sium is largely 

 equipped with 

 wooden appa- 

 r a t u s . The 

 benches and 

 horses may be 

 any of dozens 

 of woods, since 

 particular qual- 

 ities are not 

 demanded ; but 



The cue is equal in place to the table, and the manu- 

 facturers of cues select their woods with great care and 

 circumspection. The weight must be neither too little 

 nor too large; and since the size is regulated by custom, 

 the requisite weight is secured by selecting the wood 

 that possesses it. Factors other than size and weight 

 must be considered. The cue must have elasticity. It 

 must start the ball upon its journey with the proper 

 speed. That cannot be done by the player alone, no 

 matter how skillful he may be. The cue is called upon 

 to do its part. 



Maple is regarded as the best wood for cues. The 

 article is often finely made, with maple as the main 

 part but with 

 inlays and in- 

 sets of other 

 woods, such as 

 mahogany, pa- 

 douk, walnut, 

 rosewood, and 

 ebony. The in- 

 lay is for the 

 sake of appear- 

 ance. The bil- 

 liard cue maker 

 is a large user ^ unique device for returning balls. 



, , ,, , . , A loop the loop return chute for billiard balls in an alley. It is made of wood and is an ingenious 



Ot holly which device to save time and the wear of balls. The balls return by gravity to tht starting place. (Photograph 

 ' by courtesy of BrunswickeBalkeCollender Company, Chicago.) 



THE CUES AND THEIR STAND 



Some of the finest woods grown in 

 America, or brought to our shores, 

 are manufactured into billiard cues 

 Not infrequently the same cue con- 

 tains several kinds of wood, and they 

 are often arranged to show contrasts 

 in colors, such as ebony and holly, 

 cherry and maple, and rosewood and 

 walnut. 



for some other parts of the 

 equipment, selections are 

 carefully made with the 

 view of satisfying par- 

 ticular needs. Many woods 

 will do for springboards, 



for it is the athlete's muscles, and not so much Uie 

 wood that gives the jumper his send-oflf. Hickory, ash, 

 and elm are suitable for the trapeze ; the horizontal bars 

 are of spruce, as are the vaulting poles, because spruce 

 is among the strongest woods in proportion to its weight. 

 Calesthneic rings are of hickory, and climbing poles are 

 of yellow pine or some wood of similar quality. Indian 



clubs and dumb 

 bells, which al- 

 ways fill promi- 

 nent places in 

 well appointed 

 g y m n a slums, 

 are usually 

 made of sugar 

 maple, because 

 it is heavy, 

 takes a smooth 

 polish, looks 

 well, stands all 

 the use and 



