FIGURE IN WOOD 



617 



or burl are kept and sold together. Panels for fine furni- 

 ture and cabinets are often made by matching four pieces 

 so that a regular quadrilateral figure is produced. All 

 sorts of fantastic shapes and figures may be secured in 

 this way from burls and other gnarly growths. 



In the method known as slicing, a rectangular timber 

 called a flitch, after being softened by boiling, is placed 

 in a ponderous machine and brought down against a 

 sharp knife extending the full length of the timber and 

 very thin layers of wood are shaved or sliced off. Span- 

 ish cedar for veneered cigar boxes is prepared in this way. 



U. S. Forest Service 

 A TREE SHOWING THE WORK OF WOODPECKERS 



Some hold these busy little birds responsible for the figure in 



maple commonly known as "bird's-eye"; but this has 



never been established. 



In rotary cut veneer the log is turned against a knife 

 and a long strip removed, giving the impression that a 

 log is being unrolled like a roll of wrapping paper. Such 

 veneer is, of course, all tangentially cut and in the case 

 of woods with pronounced growth rings and color varia- 

 tions, very striking figure is produced in large sheets 

 without splicing. The ceiling of a car may be covered 

 with a single piece of bird's-eye maple cut in this way. 

 The artificial "graining" of wood has been practiced 

 for a long time and some of the results obtained by the 

 modern methods of printing from a master roll of real 

 wood are remarkably realistic. Through this means it 



is possible to impart a good imitation of mahogany to 

 plain colorless woods and to metals. But there is one 

 thing that such imitations lack and that is the "life" of 

 the real wood, whether solid or veneered. The imita- 

 tion is at best only a picture which is ever the same, while 

 the real wood responds to every variation in the lighting 

 and presents a new aspect with every change in our angle 

 of vision. 



THE SONG OF THE PINE 



Sometimes my voice is a thunderous roar ; 



Sometimes 'tis the softest sigh. 



Elfin songs are sung at my door, 



I harbor the lion's cry. 



And I sing to myself in my solitude 



For a giant alone am I. 



As my needles pick out sharp 'tracery 



Against the moonlight cold. 



From the edge of a hole in my sturdy bole 



The night owl's cry is rolled. 



The chipmunks scamper along my limbs : 



The squirrels chatter and scold. 



Though I snap and crack when the Frost King's free ; 



Though I stand as straight as a line, 



Yet I sing you the softest lullaby 



With 'the wind through my needles fine : 



For I am the restfullest, gentlest tree. 



Although I'm a mighty pine. 



I bring you strength through the hours of light. 



And when dark shadows creep 



I breathe my balsam to fill your night. 



And send you to slumber deep. 



For I am the symbol of quiet strength 



And I am the spirit of sleep. 



Orville Leonard. 



r\^ his recent visit to the Philippines, Gen. Leonard 

 ^-^ Wood planted a memorial tree in the Forest School 

 grounds as a living memorial of the great American 

 whose close friend and confidant he was Theodore 

 Roosevelt a sitaunch advocate of conservation. The 

 Ranger. 



A HIGHER course in forestry at the Forest School, 

 ^*- University of the Philippines, is being considered. 

 Plans are under way to reoj)en the advanced course in for- 

 estry which since 191 4 has been closed, due to lack of 

 competent instructors and professors. The Ranger. 



'T'HE United States leads all nations in forest fires. 

 * Over 30,000 forest fires occur annually destroying 

 about $20,000,000.00 worth of timber and property. 

 .Vbout 85 per cent of 'these fires are caused by human 

 carelessness. 



