66 



ELEMENTARY AVOODWORKING 



kinds of wood. If we say that the strength of white 

 pine is one half, we mean one half that of white oak, 

 and in all timber calculations white oak is the standard, 

 just as the yard and mile are standards of length. In 

 work which requires strength, such as carriage making, 



shipbuilding, and cooperage, 

 white oak is used very exten- 

 sively. 



The quartered oak used so 

 much for furniture is obtained 

 by cutting the logs in a special 

 manner. The method of cut- 

 ting gives a beautiful mottled 

 effect with the silver rays 

 spread out in iiTegular white 

 splashes on a dark background. 

 We might separate the oak 

 into two distinct groups : (1) 

 those trees whose acorns ripen 

 in one season ; (2) those which 

 require two years. The acorns of this latter group re- 

 main on the tree throughout the first winter and ripen 

 the second summer. 



To the first class belong the white oak just men- 

 tioned, the post oak, chestnut oaks, mossy-cup oak, and 

 live oak. 



Fig. 79. Typical Leaf of the 

 White Oak 



