16 THECUBAREVIEW 



SABICU 



By C. H. Pearson 



Sabicu is the trade name given to the wood of two important timber-yielding trees growing 

 in the West Indies. Both of these trees belong to the leguminous family of plants and their 

 woods have so many characteristics in common that it is often difficult to say which kind 

 it is when timber under this name enters the market. The trade recognizes one kind as the 

 Cuban Sabicu, which is botanically Lysiloma sabicu, and the other, as the Bahama Sabicu or 

 Pilhecolobhnn arboreum. In Cuba and in a good many of the other islands of the West Indies, 

 the wood oi Lysiloma Sabicu is called Sabicu, savacu or savico, but in the trade, it is usually 

 referred to as Cuban sabicu. It is known locally also as jigue, jigue bianco, and moruro de 

 costa. Wood users employing the sabicu for making fine furniture and fancy cabinet work, 

 invariably call it horse-flesh mahogany. In the Gei-man markets, it is known as sabicuholz 

 and in France as bois de sabicu. These two woods must not be confused with sabicu moruro 

 (Peltophorum adnatum) and sabicu obscuro (botanically unidentified), both of which are small 

 and little known trees growing principally in eastern Cuba. 



Sabicu has been an article of export from Cuba for more than one hundred years. Al- 

 though it is found on other islands, it occurs in commercial quantities only in Cuba. The 

 drain on this tin^ber has been quite considerable, and the present available supply has been 

 pretty generally depleted, except in the higher maestra where there are still large areas of 

 virgin forests. The trees occur chiefly in the moist coves and along the small streams where 

 they are almost inaccessible, and it is very likely that this supply will remain untouched for 

 some years to come. The sound, merchantible trees are usually in the depths of the forest 

 far from any road so that hauling or dragging out of any logs of this heavy timber would be 

 an undertaking too costly to leave a fair margin of profit on the investment. 



The tree seldom grows to as large a size as a good many of its associates. It rarely attains 

 a clear trunk of more than 35 ft. with a diameter of about 2 ft. Baterden, in his book on 

 timber, states that logs 36 inches square occasionally come to Liverpool and London markets. 

 Moreover, the majority of the logs now coming into the markets are somewhat crooked and 

 irregular, but this is not considered a serious defect, even by the careful buyer of fancy woods. 

 As a general thing, sabicu is so free from any other defect common to a good many kinds of 

 timber that slight curvature in the logs, is usually not considered in grading. The wood 

 shrinks very little during the process of seasoning which is usually very slow. There is almost 

 no waste in converting the wood into usable form. It is free from the wind shakes or season 

 checks and does not open up at the ends or along the sides under any method of treatment, 

 nor has it been found to warp or twist, either before or after seasoning. One of the few defects 

 which can be attributed to this wood is occasionally a decayed pith, but even the inexperienced 

 buyer should have no difficulty in recognizing such logs. 



Laslett, an English authority on timber, states that there is a defect occasionally met with 

 in the sabicu, which must be set against the good qualities mentioned above, as it is more 

 common to this than to any other timljer. This is a cross fracture of a very remarkable kind, 

 and of the greatest importance, from the fact that it can rarely be detected imtil the log is in 

 process of conversion. It is then sometimes found that the longitudinal fibers of the early 

 and middle period of the tree's existence are completely broken, while the outer woody layers 

 of both the heartwood and sapwood are perfect. This defect sometimes occm-s in several 

 places in the same tree. It is difficult to conjecture the cause of this, since it cannot, one would 

 think, be done by the concussions in the fall of the tree, as that would, if any injury were done, 

 produce a more extensive fracture than has been noticed; one which would be apparent upon 

 a superficial examination. Laslett states that such fractures are most likely produced by 

 storms and hurricanes that occasionally sweep over the island, swaying the trees to and fro, 

 and snapping the longitudinal fibers, without breaking them completely off; the later growth 

 apparently strengthening, and most effectually covering the defect, ^ai ^ 



The wood of Cuban sabicu is dark chestnut brown, very hard and extremely durable. 

 The two latter qualities render it of very great value to the shipbuilder, by whom it is much 



