2o6 



TIMBER AND TIMBER TREES. 



[chap. 



THE INDIAN OAKS. 



The number of Indian Oaks, belonging to the same 

 genus {Quercus) as the European and American forms, 

 is considerably larger than was formerly supposed, and 

 much information is still required about their timber. 

 As a rule, the general structure of the timber, and the 

 <;olour of the heart-wood, resembles our native Oaks 

 in many respects, but there are considerable differences 

 in the details as to the medullary rays, and especially 

 the annual rings, which in many forms are so indistinct 

 as to give the impression that no periodic growth is 

 marked. 



Many of the Indian Oaks yield much harder and 

 heavier timber than our native species, and in these 

 cases there is an objectionable amount of warping and 

 cracking during the seasoning. Others, again, and 

 especially those with narrower medullary rays, season 

 well. 



The following are the principal, and it will be noted 

 that they all belong to the more Northern and colder 

 higher districts of India. They may be roughly divided 

 according to the localities where they grow, and are 

 worked. 



Quercus semecarpifolia occurs along the whole 

 Himalayan range, or nearly so, at 8-10,000 feet, from 



