114 
as dry as if they had been seasoned for three or four years by 
exposure to the air, and all the woods when the trials took place may 
therefore be considered as perfectly seasoned. 
The trials embraced working the various samples with different 
vertical, and han 8; planing and moulding with revolving cutters; 
cutting circular mouldings, and making two or three bands from such 
of the woods as I thought might be suitable for cooperage work. 
Further trials were made with the object of testing the strength of each 
of the woods, the result of which is given at the end of this report. 
For this purpose pieces 1 inch square by 30 inches long, having been 
selected from the straightest and soundest portions of each piece of 
exhibit the beautiful figure which is so strikingly apparent in the 
polished samples which I saw at your office, 
Taking the samples in the order in which they are mentioned above 
I will now give the result of the trials in detail :—— 
Stringy bark (Eucalyptus obliqua) h 
a straight grain, in appearance somewhat resembling American ash. 
as well as for the framing of railway car iages and s. lt is 
lso a valuable wood for the stronger description of building con- 
structions, a make excellent railway sleepers. From the 
d wou 
peculiar strength of the fibre of the grain it will not maintain a good 
surface, as, even when perfectly dry, the grain rises, so as to render it 
impossible to polish it successfully, 
however, is open to the same objection in this respect as stringy bark, 
me detached from the surface, which renders this wood quite unfit 
for any but rough work. 
Red Myrtle (Fagus Cunninghamii).—A sound, mild-working wood, 
of a bright pink colour, resembling English beech in grain, and could 
be dvantage for all the pu s for which the best beech is 
- UM > this country ; while its superior appearance would mum 
to take the place of the chea kinds of mahogany in b l 
other cabinet-w: i wi TC , 
Ld 
