132 TIMBER AND TIMBER TREES. [CHAP. 



reddish in colour, but rather paler than the Padouk. 

 There is also the Thingan (Hopea species], a wood 

 heavier than Teak, and which lasts under water far 

 better. It grows abundantly on the Tavay coast and 

 islands.* 



The above are all very compact woods, close and fine 

 in texture, of good quality, and no doubt durable. They 

 have long been in use in Burmah, and in the Madras 

 Presidency, and are fit and suitable for use in works of 

 construction, but, up to the present time, they are scarcely 

 known in this country. 



Of a less useful character, but still of some value, is 

 the Thitkado, the Toon of India, a kind of bastard 

 Cedar, which yields timber 1 1 to 26 inches square, and 

 14 to 40 feet in length. 



The wood is of a pale red colour, clean and straight 

 in the grain, moderately hard, and not difficult to work. 

 It is not mild enough for pattern-making, but, for general 

 purposes in the domestic arts, it might be used in lieu 

 of the better kinds of Cedar from Cuba and Mexico, 

 whenever these are scarce in the market 



The Thitkado is subject to heart and star-shakes, and 

 in seasoning is very liable to split from the surface if left 

 long in the round or unconverted state, consequently we 

 need not look for any very extensive business to be done 

 in it. There have been some importations of this wood 

 into the London market, and to the Continent. 



Small quantities of Thitka or Kathitka, a kind of 

 bastard Mahogany, have also been exported from Burmah, 

 for furniture and other purposes, but I have not yet met 

 with it in London. It is thought to be a species of 

 Tiliaceae, and is named by Kurz as Pentace Burmanica. 



* Report of the officiating Inspector-General of Forests. 



