THE TIMBERS OF COMMERCE 



a flame, embers glow in still air and consume away to white ash. 

 No doubt good fuel. Solution with water or alcohol yellow. 



Grain. Moderately fine, sinuous at times. Surface bright, 

 somewhat lustrous when cleft (not when planed) ; rays dull. 

 Ground bright. Pores dull except when containing resin-drops. 



Bark. "Hard, tough, irregularly fissured, rugged" (17). Brown 

 to brick-red within, crumbling, full of longitudinal, whitish, 

 spindle-shaped, separable threads : J-i inch thick. 



Uses, etc. " Spokes, shafts, handles : not durable under- 

 ground " (80). " Sometimes attacked by white ants, otherwise 

 very durable — splits freely — splendid firewood " (17). " Suit- 

 able for engineering and architectural works " (61). 



Authorities. F. von Mueller (80), p. 4. Ednie-Brown (17). 

 Laslett (61), p. 431. Hutchins (45). 



Colour. Brownish-grey. 



Anatomical Characters. Similar to those of Eu. marginata, 

 No. 98. Transverse section : — 



Pores. Just visible, very plain with lens on account of their 

 brown colour, size 1-2, considerable variation : rather regularly 

 distributed, only joining up to oblique lines in broad rings, 

 otherwise in isolated groups of about 5 pores : scattered : many 

 single, mostly pairs, also nested and radial groups, but when 

 joined forming longer strings: groups separated each by a ray: 

 much brown resin : darker than the ground. The frequency of 

 radial, subdivided groups is a feature. Few 0-3 per sq. mm. 



Rays. Need lens, size 5-6, uniform : equidistant : much less 

 than a pore-width apart, widely avoiding the pores, though 

 fairly straight between : weak, thin, white threads : numerous, 

 9-13 per mm. : about as dense as the ground. 



Rings. Fairly clear if indicated by the v/hite, visible, limp, 

 irregular zones of soft-tissue : contour regularly undulating. 



Soft-tissue. Fairly visible or at least the most visible feature : 

 limp, white, boundary-like lines irregular in thickness : also short 

 arcs and part circles in the Autumn ? wood near the boundary : 

 cells rather large in radial rows of irregular length : also often 

 encircling the pores and winged (reduced) arcs, almost disappear- 

 ing on the inner side of the ring. 



Pith. ? Gum-galls present in concentric arcs often to an in- 

 jurious extent. 



Radial Section. Pores fairly prominent, often undulating 

 and out of parallel (cross-grained) : appear brown from the resin- 

 drops within them. Rays minute, inconspicuous, colourless, 

 white, dull lines or flakes. Rings doubtful. The gum-galls 

 appear crimson under the miscroscope, and are surrounded 

 by degenerated tissue. 



Tangential Section. As the Radial, but the rays appear as very 



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