XXVIL] CANADA ELM. 225 



The wood is somewhat darker in colour than the 

 Wych, is tough, hard, and of the same porous and 

 flexible character, but being more frequently subject to 

 star-shake, it is considered to be an inferior variety, and 

 is consequently less sought after. It is not generally so 

 suitable for boat-board as the Wych Elm, but for any 

 ordinary purpose it might be used as a substitute for 

 either of the other kinds. In commerce it is known as 

 the Dutch or Sand Elm. 



The English Elm trees are remarkable as being among 

 the first in leaf in the spring, and the latest in shedding 

 them in the autumn. 



THE CANADA ROCK ELM TREE (Ulmus Americana) 



is found growing abundantly in the low woods of North 

 America, from New England to the Carolinas. It attains 

 moderate dimensions, with a clean straight stem, and few 

 heavy branches, and yields timber for the market in logs 

 of from 20 to 40 feet in length and from n to 16 inches 

 square. 



The wood is whitish-brown in colour, hard, tough, 

 and flexible, with a fine, smooth, close, silky grain ; and 

 as it has only a small quantity of sap-wood it can be 

 worked up closely and economically. It is necessary, 

 however, to remove the sap in the conversion of the log, 

 as, unlike that of the English Elm, it is of a perishable 

 character. 



Rock Elm is often substituted for the English 

 common Elm for garboards and planking in ship- 

 building, as it is very durable when employed under 

 water ; it is also used for ladder steps, gratings, &c., on 

 account of its clean whitish appearance ; and owing to 

 its flexible character it is frequently used in boat-building. 

 It cannot, however, be used with advantage in bulk, or 



