CHAP. XV.] DANTZIC OAK. 135 



purposes. It is of fair durability, and is largely used 

 in the construction of the mercantile ships of this 

 country, but only sparingly for our ships of war, except 

 for their decks, for which purpose it has been regarded 

 as peculiarly fit, as it stands well the wear and tear of 

 the gun carriages. For planking it is much esteemed, 

 as the grain is straight, clean, and almost free from 

 knots, but its price is prohibitive. Further, it is so 

 pliable and elastic, when boiled or heated by steam, 

 that it may be bent into the most difficult of curved 

 forms without showing any sign of fracture. 



This description of timber is carefully classified by 

 the merchants, and divided into crown and crown brack 

 qualities, the former being selected from trees of the 

 fairest growth, clean in the grain, and generally free 

 from every kind of coarseness and defect, while the 

 crown brack includes the short and irregularly grown 

 trees, and all those of a rough, coarse, and knotty 

 character. 



With the Oak planks they are more particular than 

 with the timber, and endeavour to secure uniformity in 

 their arrangement by employing a sworn bracker to 

 make the classification. Thus the planks of each thick- 

 ness are sorted into first and second qualities, or rather 

 into crown and crown brack qualities as understood in 

 the trade, and are respectively distinguished by the 

 mark Vf on the best, and WW on the second best, plainly 

 rased upon the side of the plank. Those of the crown 

 quality are selected from the finest and fairest grown 

 trees only, the crown brack being made up of planks 

 produced from trees of less regular growth, including 

 the coarse and sometimes faulty pieces. The com- 

 mercial values of the two bracks vary both in the 



