202 TIMBER AND TIMBER TREES. [CHAP. 



characteristic of the larger trees, that, while they appear 

 to be healthy and vigorous, and continue to increase in 

 height and bulk, the centre wastes away near the root, 

 and, when felled, they are often found hollow for some 

 considerable distance up from the butt. The dimensions 

 of the serviceable logs which the tree yields will, there- 

 fore, depend very much upon its soundness ; but, un- 

 questionably very large scantlings can be procured from 

 it if required. 



The wood is of a pale straw colour, hard, heavy, 

 moderately strong, tough, and with the grain twisted or 

 curled. In seasoning deep shakes occur from the sur- 

 face, and it shrinks and warps considerably. 



I remember to have seen in one of the royal dock- 

 yards some extremely long and broad planks, or thick- 

 stuff, of this description of timber, which had been 

 apparently flitched from some of the hollow trees before 

 referred to. These, after being kept to season for a 

 while, warped and split to such an excessive degree that 

 it was impossible to use them for any planking purpose 

 whatever. In consequence of this defect it was found 

 necessary to reduce the planks to very short lengths, in 

 order to utilise them at all, and so they passed to quite 

 inferior services. 



A specimen log of Blue Gum 31' X 24" x 28" was 

 forwarded with other woods to the London Exhibition 

 of 1862 by the Tasmanian Commissioners; and this, at 

 the close of the Exhibition, was transferred to Woolwich 

 Dockyard for trial experimentally in ship-building. It 

 came in, however, too late, and just when wood was 

 giving place to iron in this branch of architecture, so 

 that no favourable opportunity ever offered for its em- 

 ployment. 



This log, although of very large dimensions, had been 



