53 



Slicker leaves. — Broadly ovate, somewhat cordate, tending to become 

 unequal, but not always so, and apparently always attenuate, as pointed out by 

 Howitt. Venation well marked and more transverse than in the foliage of the 

 mature tree. 



Mature leaves. — It is a coarse-foliaged tree, by which characteristic alone 

 it can usually be distinguished from those species with which it is usually 

 associated, or with which it is likely to be confused. Its strikingly oblique, 

 unsymmetrical leaves have, no doubt, given origin to its name. Obliquity is a 

 character of nearly all Eucalyptus leaves, but in the species under consideration, 

 and in JE. capitellata, it is particularly observable. 



Fruit. — Fruit ovoid, more or less pear-shaped, and slightly contracted at the 

 orifice. They vary in shape, however, from subcylindrical to nearly hemispherical. 

 They are three to five lines in diameter. The drawings will make the shape of the 

 fruit quite clear. The fruits depicted at Plate 7, fig. 4 have unusually thick rims, 

 and show transit to E. coriacea. Perhaps they are E. coriacea. 



Bark. — Rough-barked to the ends of the branches ; the bark of the trunk 

 and branches is decidedly fibrous, but the fibres are not so clean and tenacious as 

 those of the true Stringybarks, and the bark is not so suitable for roofing. In some 

 districts, particularly in Tasmania, it tends to become less fibrous, forming one of 

 the " Gum-topped Stringybarks." See p. 69. 



A figure of a basket (Bee-lang), showing good workmanship, and made 

 by Tarra natives out of this fibre, is in Brough Smith's " Aboriginals of Victoria," 

 i, 344. 



Timber. — That from New South Wales localities is a rather inferior, 

 coarse, open-grained, porous wood, liable to shrink and warp. It is not esteemed 

 for public works in New South Wales. Its open nature may be, at least in part, a 

 consequence of rapid growth, for which, according to several authorities, E. obliqua 

 has the reputation. 



It has been used in the Braidwood and Cooma districts for many years for 

 building purposes. In Victoria and Tasmania it is largely used, and a recent official 

 publication of the latter State says " It is our most valuable wood." In considering 

 the value of this observation, it should, of course, be borne in mind that neither of 

 these States possesses a series of excellent timbers such as New South Wales can 

 boast of. At the same time it is quite possible that Tasmanian and Victorian 

 grown timbers of this species are superior to that grown in New South Wales. 

 Howitt, a leading Victorian authority, groups it as a " second-class timber," adding 

 that "although a fairly durable and useful timber, it has generally the fault of 

 being more or less full of gum- veins, and is thus unsuitable for many purposes." 



