468 ON THE FURNITURE WOODS OF COMMERCE. 



they are deserving of more extensive notice than they have hitherto 

 received. Many of the woods exhibit a peculiar beauty of structure ; 

 some are highly fragrant, and retain their agreeable odour for a con • 

 siderable period of time, which renders them additionally pleasant and 

 acceptable in the form of ornamental articles to the boudoir and 

 drawing-room. 



Some of the rarest and and most esteemed ornamental woods are 

 South American, and come chiefly from Brazil ; among these are tulip- 

 wood, zebra-wood, the produce of Omplialdbium Lamberti, king-wood, 

 canary-wood, partridge and pheasant-wood, and purple-wood. 



Coromandel or Calamander wood is the produce of an ebenaceous 

 tree of Ceylon, and considered, from its peculiar marking, one of the 

 handsomest of the.brown woods. It is getting scarce. King-wood and 

 zebra-wood are rich yellowish-brown, striped ; sometimes full of zoned 

 eyes. 



A valuable, heavy furniture wood of British India is the blackwood, 

 locally called rosewood, obtained from the Dalbergia latifolia, a 

 leguminous tree. It can be procured in any quantity, and of immense 

 size, but in large pannels is liable to split. Jackwood (Artocarpus 

 integrifola) furnishes a yellowish wood, which deepens into brown. 

 When made into tables and well kept, it attains a polish little inferior 

 to mahogany. The Chittagong wood (Chickrassia tabularis) is more 

 used in Madras for the making of furniture than any other wood. It is 

 light, cheap, and durable. 



Lingoa wood, the Arnboyna wood of commerce, was imported into 

 this country in considerable quantities from the Moluccas during the 

 time those islands were British possessions. It is stated to be 

 abundant at Ceram, New Guinea, and throughout the Molucca seas. 

 The wood can be obtained in any quantity if the precaution be taken of 

 ordering it during the previous season. Circular slabs of Amboyna wood 

 are occasionally met with as large as nine feet in diameter ; but the 

 usual size is from four to six feet. These slabs are obtained by taking 

 advantage of the spurs which project from the base of the trunk, as the 

 tree itself has not sufficient diameter to furnish such wide slabs. The 

 kayubuka of commerce, so much esteemed as a fancy wood, is obtained 

 from the gnarled excrescences which are found on these trees (Ptero- 

 spermum Indie urn.) 



In the beauty of its duramen the blackwood of Australia (Acacia 

 Melanoxylon), also known as lightwood, possesses many resemblances 

 to the best walnut, and is considered even superior to that wood, being 

 harder and more durable. It is a favourite wood with the cabinet 

 makers of Victoria for furniture of every description, and receives a 

 very high and beautiful polish. 



There is one other very ornamental wood which has lately been 

 largely used in cabinet work by the French, — the cypress of Algeria 



