THE TIMBERS OF COMMERCE 



Colour. Heart-wood cinnamon-brown. Sap-wood white (37). 



Anatomical Characters. Transverse section : — 



Pores. Visible from their numbers and colour, size 4 : from 

 12 to 20 per sq. mm. 



Rays. Clear with lens : size 5 to 6 : from 5 to 9 per mm. : 

 about a pore-width apart. 



Rings. Clear to the unaided eye : no excentric, dark-coloured 

 bands and no real boundary-line. 



Soft-tissue. Encircling the pores and giving them their light 

 yellow appearance. 



Radial Section. The rays are narrow lines, inconspicuous 

 yet readily visible. 



There is no resemblance to Olive-wood. In other respects 

 as Fusanus spicatus (see No. i65). 



Type specimen from commercial sources. Not authenti- 

 cated but no doubt this species. 



No. 168. BOXWOOD. Buxus sempervirens. Linn. 

 Plate XII. Fig. 105. 



Natural Order. Euphorbiacese. 



The B. sempervirens of Thunberg is B. Japonica and not the 

 present species. 



Alternative Names. English, Abassia, Turkish, Anatolian, 

 Circassian, Corsican, Partheni, and Persian Boxwoods. Papri 

 in the Indian Middle region (12). Buis commun in France (69). 



Sources of Supply. . Europe, Asia : as indicated by the names 

 above. 



Physical Characters. Recorded dry-weight 53-72 lbs. per 

 cu. ft. My lightest specimen is of the Persian variety and my 

 heaviest of the Turkish (67 lb.), but the maximum weight given 

 is after Mathieu. Hardness Grade 2, compare Lilac. Smell 

 none, taste slightly astringent. Burns well : ignites slowly 

 but the embers glow in still air. Solution with water or alcohol 

 colourless. 



Grain. Extremely fine, close and dense. Surface cold and 

 smooth to the touch especially in heavier samples. The 

 lustre also increases in proportion to the density. 



Bark. Very thin, about ^ to J inch : greyish : wrinkled rather 

 than fissured, closely adherent, lenticels large and visible when 

 the sticks are not too much battered, as they usually are. 



Uses, etc. " Turnery, inlaying, wood-engraving, rules and in- 

 struments" (69). Rapidly being replaced by West Indian Box- 

 wood except for the very best articles, on account of its increasing 

 cost. Splits with great difficulty, takes a kind of natural polish. 

 Always in small rugged pieces. 



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