98 ELEMENTARY WOODWORKING 
feature and cannot be mistaken. It comes off in layers 
and possesses a resinous quality which makes it water- 
proof, a fact fully appreciated by the Indians, who con- 
structed their canoes of it. The wood is hard and tough. 
49. Gray Birch. A 
smaller tree, known as 
the gray birch, also has 
white bark, but it is not 
as perfect as that of the 
canoe birch, does not peel 
in layers, and has trian- 
gular black spots on the 
trunk beneath every 
limb. 
It loves barren, rocky 
places, abandoned farms, 
etc., and is sometimes 
called old field birch. It 
has a fine, delicate foli- 
Fic. 107. Leaf of Gray Birch age, which is not dupli- 
cated in the forest. Each 
leaf swings from a long, slender stem, and every passing 
breeze gives it a trembling effect, like the aspen. The 
leaf form is very odd,—a broad, flat base, and then a 
long, graceful curve out to a fine point, the whole edge 
being finely double-toothed. 
