teUCALYf'TUS TBEES. 25 



coast. We used for poles the young trees of the Blue 

 Gum, White Gum, Red Gum, and Stringy-bark, tak- 

 ing only the bark off. We charred the butts as far as 

 they went into the ground, and dipped in coal-tar. 

 They were expected to last ten or twelve years.' 

 When I finished the construction of the telegraph 

 line I was engaged in a saw-mill on the river Mersey. 

 The timber that we sawed was, as above mentioned. 

 Blue, White, and Eed Gum and Stringy-bark ; we 

 sawed it for all purposes used in house-building, ex- 

 cept rustic and siding. It Is used in large quantities 

 for piles, wharf, and bridge building. The timber- 

 dealers in Melbourne, and all other ports, do not make 

 a difference in contracting for a cargo of lumber of 

 colonial woods. It is generally expected that it will 

 be mixed. Wheelrights always select the Blue Gum, 

 it being considered much better for wagon-making 

 than most other varieties ; it is stronger and more du- 

 rable, and quite equal to the Hickory of this country. 

 It is used for axletrees, hubs, spokes, and all parts of 

 the running-gear. The Blue Gum is much tougher 

 and heavier, and will last longer than any of the oth- 

 ers ; in fact, it will last a life-time if taken from large 

 trees. The wood resembles the Rock Elm of the East- 

 ern States. I have rafted a great deal of it ; when 

 thrown into the water green will nearly always sink 

 to the bottom, so that it is necessary to lash the rafts 

 alongside of boats to keep them on the surface. A 

 pile sixty feet long, fifteen inches in diameter, will 

 require the strength of two men to raise to the sur- 

 face. It weighs sixty-seven pounds to the cubic foot. 

 <' The Stringy-bark tree has a leaf the same as the 

 Blue Gum, and is known in the Australian Colonies 

 as the Gum Top Stringy-bark. 



