LIGNUM- VITiE 203 



mingo. Cuba '' Guayacan." Height 20 — 40 ft. ; diam. 1 — 2 ft. 

 S.6. 1,393—1,248. W 60—83. E 508—498 tons. / 4-88—7*18. 

 ft 7-14. fc 3-4— 4-4. fs •447—1-246. R 246 lbs. Sapwood dingy 

 yellow, J — 1 in. broad, as durable as the heart, some of it being, 

 therefore, left on to preserve the rest from splitting ; heart blackish 

 with a greenish tint ; pith-rays not recognizable and annual rings 

 scarcely so ; very heavy, hard, strong, and close-grained, with fibres 

 running obliquely both radially and tangentially, so that it can 

 hardly be split, and containing 26 per cent, of gum-resin, which 

 renders it almost imperishable. It is liable to cup-shake when 

 more than 10 in. in diameter. Imported in lengths of 6 — 12 ft. up 

 to 10 in. diam. and 3 — 6 ft. when of greater diam., realizing £5 — £18 

 per ton. Used for ships' blocks, pestles, mortars, skittle-balls, 

 rulers, heads of croquet-mallets, string-boxes, etc. Among the 

 ancients and in France the name has been applied to TetracUnis 

 articuldta, [See 'Arar.] 



Lignum-vitse, African {Gombretum truncdtum Welw, : Order 

 Oombretdcece), Guinea to Mozambique. '' Mozambiti." Large, 

 very heavy, dense, close-grained, with light-coloured sapwood and 

 deep reddish-brown heart. 



Lignum-vitse in Australia (i) Acacia falcdta [See Myall, Bastard], 

 (ii) Myrtus semenioides [See Myrtle, White], (iii) Eucalyptus poly- 

 dnthema [See Box, Red], (iv) Phylldnthus Ferdiimndi [See Beeeh, 

 White], (v) Vitex Ugnum-vitce A. Cunn. (Order Verbendcem). JSTorth- 

 Eastern Australia. Height 50 — 70 ft. ; diam. IJ — 2 ft. Blackish, 

 hard, close-grained. Useful, but not yet known to cabinet-makers, 

 (vi) Dodonma viscosa L. (Order JSapinddcece) . Found throughout 

 the tropics. " Switch-sorrel " of Jamaica. " Birch " of Tas- 

 mania. Sapwood white, heart dark-brown, in some varieties 

 greenish-black, streaked with rose, very hard, close-grained, and 

 durable. Used in India for engraving, turning, tool-handles, and 

 walking-sticks, and suited for all the uses of the true Lignum- 

 vitse. 



Lignum-vitse, Bahama {Gudiacum sanctum L.). Florida and the 

 Bahamas. W 89. Sometimes as much as 26 ft. long and 12 in. 

 in diam., resembling G. offlcmdU and similarly employed. 



Lignum-vitaB in British Guiana {Ixora ferrea Benth. ^Sidcro- 

 dendron triflorum Vahl : Order Rubidcece), Known also as " Hackia,' 

 or " West Indian " or " Martinique Ironwood." Height 30 — 60 ft. ; 

 diam. 1—2 ft. W 65-8—73. E 1,027 tons. / 6-72. fc 4-85. 

 fs -457. Dark-brown and hard. Valuable for cogs, shafts, or 

 furniture. 



Lignum-vitaB, Guayaquil, an unknown species, nut-brown, hard, 

 fine-grained, having nothing in common with the true Lignum- 

 vitse, to which it is inferior. W 49. Shipped from Guayaquil. 



