3IO TIMBER AND TIMBER TREES. [CHAP. 



in 1869 — i.e., twenty-six years later — two or three pieces 

 were still there in a perfectly sound state. The specific 

 gravity of Pohutukawa, green or fresh cut, is about 

 1200, but after seasoning it is only about 858. 



PURIRI ( Vitex litoralis) 



is common to nearly all the forests of New Zealand, and 

 flourishes in almost any situation, but the best trees are 

 those grown on a rich soil, and sheltered from strong 

 winds. 



The stems of these trees vary from straight to every 

 imaginable form of curved growth, and are seldom seen 

 standing erect. Usually they have a short clear bole or 

 trunk of from 8 to 18 feet in length, with a circum- 

 ference of 6 to 9 feet, and an overpowering weight of 

 robust branches. The foliage is a deeply-veined, plain- 

 edged, light green leaf, 2 inches in breadth by 3 inches 

 in length. It flowers nearly all the year round, and is 

 especially full in September ; the flowers are of a deep 

 red colour, and somewhat bell-shaped. The fruit, which 

 is like a cherry, is a favourite food of the wood-pigeon. 



The Puriri tree yields timber 9 to 1 8 feet in length, 

 and 10 to 18 inches square. The bark is thin, smooth, 

 and greyish-white in colour. The wood is dark brown, 

 extremely hard, heavy, close-grained, and generally free 

 from defects, the exception being that it is liable to 

 some slight injury during growth from a worm, which 

 bores it from the roots upwards, leaving a clean 

 hole of from Yz to ^ths of an inch diameter. The 

 alburnum or sap-wood on this tree is generally from 

 2 to 3 inches thick, and of a yellowish colour. 



This timber is very durable, and suitable for the 

 frames of ships, and also for many other purposes 



