THE EVERGREENS 117 
It has cones about one and a half inches long, and its 
wood is light, soft, and close-grained. The wood is used 
for the sounding-boards of musical instruments and for 
the frames of buildings. 
The black spruce is the northern brother of the red, 
and is really a Canadian tree which occasionally reaches 
down into the United States. It reaches the Mackenzie 
River on the north and covers large areas in Manitoba. 
It takes its name from the dark, 
somber color of its foliage, which seems 
almost black against the snowy hill- 
sides. 
The cones are the same size as on the 
red spruce, but they persist in remaining 
on the tree for several years. The wood 
is soft and weak and is used for sound- 
ing-boards, pulp, and light framing for Fre. 126. Black 
houses. aoe 
The white spruce is similar to the other two, but 
lighter in color, cones a trifle longer and softer, and 
needles more slender. It is a northern tree; its wood 
is very white and clear-grained, and is used for finish- 
ing the interior of houses. 
Norway spruce, as its name implies, is an importa- 
tion from Europe, where its majestic height graces the 
mountains from the Alps to Norway and Sweden. It 
