TIMBER; FORESTRY. 345 
the red kinds but has not so coarse a grain, so that for 
cabinet-making the red oaks are more ornamental and often 
in “quartered” cut lumber (sawed tangentially) are very 
showy. More than half of our supply 
of hard-wood timber is furnished by 
the oaks. 
Tulip-wood, from the tulip-tree (Liri- 
odendron), is next in importance to 
the various kinds of oak, among the 
woods of broad-leaved trees. It is va- 
riously known as’ yellow poplar and 
white wood and grows in abundance 
in the Ohio Basin and southward, but 
does not, like oak, form separate for- 
ests. The wood is very soft and work- 
able and has largely taken the place 
of white pine for the inside finish 
of houses and in the manufacture of 
woodenware. 
Ash, beech, birch, chestnut, elm, 
maple, red gum, and sycamore are some 
of the most important hard woods for 
general purposes besides those already 
mentioned. For especial purposes cer- 
tain woods not of the greatest value 
for all-round construction are highly 
prized, as hickory for ax and other tool 
handles and for carriage spokes; beech 
for shoemakers’ lasts, saw handles, and 
Fie. 233. Cross-Section 
of Fir Wood. 
8,arosin passage ; m,med- 
ullary rays. (Much 
magnified.) 
carpenters’ planes; persimmon for wood turning and shoe 
lasts; black locust for posts and railroad ties (on account 
of its durability in the ground). 
