160 



WOODS OF COMMERCE. 



average 705. W 4353. E 603 tons. // 46. fc 34. / 4-7. 

 fs '4. Breaking weight (tensile) 4853 Ibs. per sq. in. Crushing 

 strain on sq. in. 93637733 Ibs. Lighter than Oak, with less 

 tensile but almost equal crushing strength. Height 70 100 ft. ; 

 diara. 3 4J ft. Wood varying in colour from red to yellow or 

 white, the red being the better, grown on richer soil. Rings 



Fio. 46. Transvei-se section of Beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) highly magnified. 



distinct, bulging between the medullary rays. Vessels small, much 

 more numerous in the spring wood, 1 5 together, so that autumn 

 wood appears darker. Medullary rays large, very distinct, with 

 a satiny lustre, occupying nearly a tenth of the transverse section. 

 Pith-mass triangular, small. The wood contains vessels, tracheids, 

 wood-fibres and parenchyma. It is hard, heavy, as strong as Oak 

 and tougher, but 25 per cent, less stiff, close and even in texture, 

 with a fine silky grain, easily cleaved along the rays, very durable 

 under water, and, when well seasoned, not liable to split. 

 (Figs. 26 and 46, 47.) It must, however, be kept either wet or 

 dry. Beech is largely used for chair-making in Buckinghamshire 



