ON THE HARD WOODS OP COMMERCE. 5-1 



material known for the purpose. Whether all the boxwood imported 

 is furnished by Buxus sempervirens, is not known. It is, however, 

 not improbable that B. halearica, a larger species, may furnish some of 

 that which comes from the Mediterranean. The wood of this species is 

 coarse, and of a brighter yellow than the common species. Rondelet, in 

 a table of the mean heights of trees, gives that of the trunk of the box 

 at 16 feet, and the mean diameter at 10J inches. In 1820 the imports 

 of foreign boxwood were 363 tons, the duty being as high as 71. 18s. 6d. 

 per ton, and on that from British possessions ll. 13s. 4d. In 1831 the 

 imports had risen to 484 tons, the duty having been reduced in 1826 to 

 bl. on foreign grown, and ll. on British grown. x The duty is now only 

 Is. per ton levied for statistical purposes. The average imports of the 

 last three years have been about 3,500 tons, showing the great increase of 

 the trade in this important wood. The value in 1860 was about 11Z. 

 per ton, and in 1861, 10Z. From the Russian port of Soukoum Kali, in 

 the Black Sea, 1,450 tons of boxwood, valued at 10,384Z. were shipped 

 in 1861 to Constantinople ; the greater part of this was sent on to Eng- 

 land. The market price of the wood at Soukoum Kali was 4s. 2d. the 

 pood of 36lbs. But little boxwood of any size is to be obtained now in 

 the United Kingdom, and we draw our chief supplies from Turkey ; 

 while France depends a good deal on Spain. 



The importance of finding some wood calculated to come into the aid 

 of boxwood, the most generally useful of all the European hard woods, 

 has long been felt. Attention was drawn to the subject at the Madras 

 local exhibitions a few years ago, and it has occupied attention in 

 several of our colonies. Among the large and varied collections of 

 woods from different countries, shown at the recent Exhibition, we did 

 not notice any which, upon trial, appeared adapted for the purpose. 

 We may, however, incidentally mention those which have been pointed 

 out as suited for wood engraving. The essential properties requisite for 

 this purpose are uniformity of structure, and considerable toughness, 

 hardness, and retention of any sharp angles to which it may be cut, 

 whether on the end or on the side — colour, except for certain purposes, 

 is of little consequence. Dr. Hunter, of Madras, has furnished the fol- 

 lowing results of experiments on woods for engraving, made under bis 

 superintendence at the School of Arts, Madras : — The guava-wood 

 (Psidium pyriferum), though close grained and moderately hard, with a 

 pretty uniform texture, was found to be too soft for fine engraving, and 

 did not stand the pressure of printing. It answered well for bold en- 

 graving and blocks for large letters, and for this purpose has been used 

 for several years. The small wood from hilly districts was found to be 

 harder and finer in the grain than that from large trees. Satin-wood 

 proved to be hard, but uneven in the grain, coarse in the pores, and, 

 like many other large woods, harder and denser in the centre than near 

 the bark. As it was found to splinter under the graver it was con- 

 demned. The small dark coloured kinds of sandal wood of 5 inches in 



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