THE TIMBERS OF COMMERCE 



size 2 (ray-scale) and about o - 5 mm. apart, undulating and 

 following the contour of the rings. 



Pith. White or brownish, about 1-4 mm. thick, five-lobed. 



Radial Section. Pores, coarse grooves with chambers readily 

 visible to the naked eye, shining when empty but often filled 

 with thyloses. Rays, broad, bright (though not lustrous), con- 

 spicuous and beautiful plates. Ring-boundaries not continu- 

 ously traceable but the bands of coarse pores clearly divide 

 each ring. (See Frontispiece.) 



Tangential Section. As the Radial, but the pores appear 

 distinctly finer as they are exposed in the direction of their 

 shorter diam. : rays inconspicuous (though large), darker-brown, 

 narrow, spindle-shaped lines sometimes a? much as z\ inches 

 high. The smaller rays need lens and are composed of a single 

 row of cells. These cells are larger than those of which the 

 large rays are composed. (See Frontispiece.) 



Type specimens from trees known before felling. 



No. 197. AMERICAN RED OAK. Quercus rubra. 



Linn. 



Plate XIV. Fig. 125. 



"Natural Order. Cupuliferae. 



Alternative Names. Canadian Red Oak. Black Oak (53). 



Source of Supply. North America : Canada and the United 

 States. Naturalized in Europe. 



Physical Characters, etc. Recorded dry-weight 40 to 49! lbs. 

 per cu. ft. 



Bark. " Remains supple for a long time, 60 to 70 years, but 

 becomes fissured and scaly at length " (51). 



Uses, etc. " Not so desirable as the European species, little 

 appreciated in America, and Michaux has given it a bad repu- 

 tation (69) in Europe. It is valuable for fuel, clap-boards and 

 furniture." " Light, spongy, not very durable " (95). " Unfit 

 for architecture and engineering works requiring strength and 

 durability "(60). " Does not check in drying, . . . rarely exceeding 

 2 ft. in diam." (53). Boulger says " unfit for staves of liquor 

 casks," while Wiesner on the contrary states that the wood is 

 " favoured for the manufacture of cask-staves." 



Authorities. Wiesner (131), L. 6, p. 64. Boulger (15), p. 26. 

 Mathieu (69), 370. Nordlinger (87). Robb (95). Laslett 

 (60), p. 173. Sargent (100), No. 273. 



Colour. Reddish-brown heart-wood, very sharply defined 

 from the nearly white sap-wood. 



Anatomical Characters. As Quercus Robur, but the rays in 

 Tangential section are very pale and inconspicuous and rarely 



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