145. TORREYA CALIFORNICA CALIFORNIA NUTMEG. 49 



Washington and British Columbia. It grows in low rich soil, close along 

 the banks of streams over which it extends its long flexuous branches. 



PHYSICAL PROPERTIES. Wood rather heavy, hard, very close-grained 

 and strong, elastic, very durable in contact with the soil and susceptible 

 of a exceedingly smooth polish. It is of a soft pinkish-brown color with 

 thin nearly white sap-wood. Soon after being cut, the exposed end of 

 the heart-wood turns to a bright blood-red color, but that is only on the 

 surface and unfortunately does not appear in our sections. Specific Grav- 

 ity, 0.6391 ; Percentage of Ash, 0.22; Relative Approximate Fuel Value, 

 0.6377; Coefficient of Elasticity, 76133 ; Modulus of Rupture, 1078 ; Re- 

 sistance to Longitudinal Pressure, 483 ; Resistance to Indentation, 264; 

 Weight of a Cubic Foot in Pounds, 39.83. 



USES. Valuable for fence-posts, etc., on account of its great durability 

 in contact with the soil, and it is particularly adapted to turnery. The 

 Indians of the Northwest use it for their paddles, fish-hooks, etc., and 

 the elasticity of the wood is such that they find in this the choicest 

 material for their bows. For that reason we are told that they designate 

 the Yew by a name which translated means "fighting wood," a name 

 strangely referring to the same property and use as that referred to when 

 the ancient Greeks named the European Yew Tct^os from Toov, a 

 bow. 



MEDICINAL PROPERTIES have not been investigated of this species, nor 

 is it known whether the leaves and seeds of this tree possess the poisonous 

 properties found in the European species. 



145. TORREYA CALIFORNICA, TORE.* 

 CALIFORNIA NUTMEG, FALSE OR WILD NUTMEG. 



Ger., Calif or nianische Muskalennusz ; Fr., Muskade de California; 

 Sp., Nuez moscada de California. 



SPECIFIC CHARACTERS: Leaves linear, 1-3 in. long, very rigid, acuminate and 

 pungent, witli short stout appressed petioles, bright green above, paler beneath, and 

 most of the leaves twisting at the base so as to form a flat 2-ranked spray. Staminate 

 aments 4-5 lines long, with the inner basal scales scarious and toothed; anthers 

 nearly 1 line in length. Fruit oblong to obovoid, 1-1 in. long, with smoothish 

 slightly compressed nut, somewhat resembling a pecan nut, but more acute, and 

 when covered with the fleshy testa both externally and internally resembling the 

 commercial nutmeg in appearance, though of no value for flavoring purposes. 



A handsome graceful tree of rather wide pyramidal head of dark-green 

 foliage and of peculiar aspect on account of the width of its flat sprays; 



* Tumion Cdlifornicum, Greene. 



