158 TIMBERS AND THEIR USES 



The direction of the grain of timber may, on 

 occasion, be the cause of serious defects. Some- 

 times, instead of the straight-grained timber 

 which is always in request, its direction may be 

 diagonal, either owing to errors in cutting or to 

 the natural growth of the tree. Diagonal grain 

 results in a serious weakening of the timber. 

 Spiral-grained timber or " torse wood " is also to 

 be avoided. It is all too common and results 

 from deffects in the growth of the tree. 



