68 



Reuben T. Patton. 



especially if the drying is uneven, due to circulation of the air being; 

 bad. 



So far as the graphs for oak and pine are concerned, it would 

 appear that it does not matter when the trees are felled. There does 

 not appear to be any movement of the moisture in the heartwood of 

 oak, and it is inconceivable that the heartwood of pine can ever con- 

 tain a great amount of moisture to meet the needs of the tree. 



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Distance from centre in inches. 



Latbral Distribution of Moisture in 

 Various Treks. 



As already mentioned, the big trees of Victoria frequently have- 

 very little heartwood, as it has rotted away. 



Diffusion. — The second biological factor is that of the power of 

 any particular timber to lose its moisture. When it is said that a 

 wood is diflficult to season, all that is meant is that the wood loses 

 its moisture either too slowly or too quickly. If it loses the moisture 



