Brarg.—On the Building Materials of Otago. 155 
in the ground and is still perfectly fresh. Any other pine sapling, under 
the same circumstances, would be quite rotten in twelve months. 
Podocarpus. 
This section of the Conifere comprises about 60 species that are 
scattered over all parts of the world except Europe and North America. 
Of this number Otago possesses five, four of which are timber trees, and 
one an Alpine shrub. 
No. 2. Miro—Podocarpus ferruginea. Miro is common in all the forests 
of Otago that lie under an altitude of 1,000 feet, and occasionally in those 
above that level. It is generally found associated in the same bush with 
red pine. The tree grows to a height of from fifty to ninety feet, with a 
clear straight trunk twenty to fifty feet long, and eighteen inches to three feet 
in diameter, but the tallest trees are not always the thickest, particularly in 
dense forests. This timber, which is far inferior to black pine in point of 
durability, is so like it in many respects that they are frequently confounded. 
I shall therefore describe their leading points of resemblance and difference. 
Generally black pine is a heavier timber than miro, but this is scarcely a 
distinction, for a full grown tree on the one hand may be compared with a 
young one on the other. The scales on black pine bark are thicker, and 
the furrows deeper than those of miro. The foliage of black pine is flat like 
the English yew, and ofa light green colour, shiny on the lower side. That 
of miro is roundish and erect, and of a deep dull green, which turns to 
rusty red on drying. Black pine has a cluster of from four to seven small 
dark berries, scarcely noticeable among the foliage ; while miro has a con- 
spicuous single berry like the dog rose or sweet briar, almost identical 
therewith in size and shape, but of a redder colour. This berry has a strong 
odour of turpentine. Although black pine is sometimes marked in à 
decided manner, it has always a ground colour of clear yellowish-brown, 
but miro is blotched throughout, and the ground colour, which is light 
dirty red, varies every few inches. A horizontal section of the latter shows 
that the heart contains a considerable portion of dark-colored wood, which 
runs in star-like points towards the circumference, hence the blotched 
appearance of the timber. The figure can be varied at pleasure by simply 
changing the direction in which boards are cut. The annual rings ard 
other markings in black pine are generally concentric. Consequently a 
great variety of figures cannot be obtained. Generally the wood of black 
pine is lighter and brighter in colour and easier worked than miro. The 
timber can also be distinguished when green by the taste andsmell. These 
are strong and pungent in both cases, but there is a peculiarity in each 
easily recognised when once known. These particulars may seem too much 
detailed, but when we consider the disappointment and loss that have 
