464 AMERICAN FOREST TREES 



flowers appear in July and August, are small and cup-shaped. Fruit is 

 four or five inches long and two or more wide. It ripens in late fall or 

 early winter. The nearly square seeds are three-fourths of an inch long. 

 In Florida the tree rarely exceeds fifty feet in height and two in diameter; 

 but in tropical countries it may exceed a height of 100 and a diameter of 

 eight or ten. The bark is thin. 



The wood is practically of the same weight as white oak, but is 

 stronger and more elastic. It is exceedingly hard, very durable, and is 

 susceptible of high polish. Medullary rays are numerous but small and 

 obscure. The color is rich reddish-brown, turning darker with age, but 

 the thin sapwood is yellow. It is known in Florida as mahogany, 

 madeira, and redwood. 



The uses of mahogany are so many and so well-known that it is 

 unnecessary to speak of them in detail. There were importations into 

 the United States nearly three hundred years ago, and it has been coming 

 ever since. One thing about this wood deserves mention : the price has 

 not varied much in three hundred years. Different prices have prevailed, 

 owing to distance from supply and differences in grade and quality; 

 and that holds true today; but for similar grades, the prices have been 

 remarkable for their evenness. 



Florida never figured largely in the world's supply of mahogany. 

 At their best, the trees were neither large nor numerous, but their quality 

 was good. Cutting of this timber ceased in Florida about three-quarters 

 of a century ago. The islands and the small area of the mainland where 

 the timber grew, were stripped. The logs were shipped to the Bahama 

 islands and it is said they found their ultimate market in England. A 

 few trees were overlooked here and there, and some that were small 

 seventy-five years ago, have grown to merchantable size since. These 

 have been cut, a few at a time, and the cutting is still going on. The 

 total is now only a few thousand feet a year, and one of the markets for 

 the logs, probably the chief market, is Miami, Florida. The logs are 

 small, and are generally cut and brought in by negroes who find a tree 

 now and then, cut the logs, and float them as near to market as possible, 

 and haul them the rest of the way. The scarcity of the trees may be 

 inferred from the fact that the average resident of south Florida, where 

 the range of the mahogany lies, never saw one. In appearance the tree 

 when seen at a little distance, resembles a young, vigorous black walnut 

 tree. 



CHINA TREE (Melia azedarach) belongs to the same family as 

 mahogany but is of a different genus. It is not native in the United 

 States, but has been extensively planted and is running wild. It is a 

 forest tree in some parts of Louisiana, but is found under oure forest 



