AMERICAN WOODS. 337 



heart-wood is of a dark-brown colour, and intensely hard 

 and heavy. 



Lance Wood, Duguetia Quitarensis (Nat. Ord. Anona- 

 cece), is imported in poles fifteen to twenty feet in length, 

 and six or seven inches in diameter, covered with a thin wrin- 

 kled bark. Lance-wood is much used for the shafts of gigs 

 and other similar vehicles, and for a variety of purposes re- 

 quiring great strength and elasticity. It is imported from 

 Cuba and from Guiana. 



Greenheart, Nectandra Rodiai (Nat. Ord. Laurace<%), 

 is a very fine, durable, hard wood, often imported from 

 Demerara, and used as a substitute for Lignum-vitse, which 

 it slightly resembles ; latterly it has been employed in phar- 

 macy, in consequence of its yielding a chemical principle 

 called Beeberine. 



Satin Wood. Maba Guianensis (?) (Nat. Ord. Ebena- 

 cece.) — This beautiful wood, which has a light canary-yellow 

 colour and satiny lustre, is imported chiefly from Nassau, in 

 New Providence, one of the Bahama Islands. It comes in 

 square logs about ten feet in length, and about eight inches 

 square, and is used only for furniture and small fancy arti- 

 cles of cabinet-work. 



Partridge Wood, Heisteria coccinea ? (Nat. Ord. Olea- 



