1 . Introduction. 



(Bv THK MINISTER OK PUBLIC INSTRUCTION.) 



THE aesthetic and utilitarian purposes to which our native timbers lend themselves have been emphasised 

 in many directions in the past, but the special adaptation of a section of them for cabinetwork is 

 now conclusively shown by Mr. R. T. Baker in this publication. 



As he mentions, it did not take the first settlers long to find out and appreciate such a valuable 

 cabinet timber as our " Red Cedar," the history of which he has traced back to practically the foundation of 

 the Colony. Such a valuable timber as this should not be lost sight of in the reafforestation now about to 

 be undertaken by the Forestry Department of this State, for after one hundred years it still ranks as a 

 first-class cabinet timber. 



The colour, figure, and other characteristics here portrayed of the various species, by colour 

 photography, will no doubt come as a revelation to all who are not intimately acquainted with the timbers 

 themselves ; and these coloured illustrations speak louder than words, and at the same time demand that 

 action should no longer be delayed in the culture of such fine specimens of the cabinet-maker's desiderata. 



Such a technical work as this shows without doubt that our forest trees are worthy of more attention 

 than has been given them in the past, and that they deserve to be still better known in the future. 



The late Baron von Mueller, the greatest student of the great Australian genus Eucalyptus, never 

 tired of singing the praises of the trees of that genus, for their technological value, but in no instance is 

 there a record where he predicted their utilisation for cabinet work, and yet here Mr. Baker graphically 

 demonstrates that several species are indeed well adapted for this special handicraft. 



