298 WOODS OF COMMERCE 



S, purpurea L., the Purple Osier, with red or purple bark ; and 

 S. vitelUna L., the Golden Osier, with yellow bark. Other species 

 are treated as pollards, the top being valuable for hurdles, clothes - 

 props, hoops, handles for hay-rakes, etc. Those most important 

 as timber-trees are the White Willow {8, dlha) and the Redwood 

 Willow (;S^. frdgilis), S, Gapria has been already described. [See 

 Sallow.] 



Willow, Blaek {S, nigra Marshall). North America. French 

 " Saule noir." Germ, '' Schwarze Weide." Height up to 50 ft. ; 

 diam. up to 1|- ft., but generally a shrub. S.G. 446. W 27-77. 

 R 424 kilos. Branches yellow, brittle at base ; sapwood nearly 

 white ; heart reddish-brown, very light, soft, close-grained, easily 

 worked. Used mainly for fuel and charcoal. 



Willow, CTa(ikl(S, frdgilis L.). Europe, Northern 'and Western 

 Asia; introduced in* America. Known also as "Withy," "Bed- 

 ford," or "Redwood Willow," or " Stag's-head Osier." Germ, 

 " Bruchweide." Height sometimes 50—90 ft. ; diam. 4—7 ft 

 Branches green, yellow-brown, orange or crimson, smooth, polished, 

 brittle at the base ; wood, when dry, salmon-coloured, Hght, pHable, 

 tough, and elastic. Said to be used in Scotland for boat-building ; 

 used also in cabinet-work, and for sabots and toys. Said to be 

 superior to other Willow. 



Willow, White {S. dlha L.). Europe, North Africa, North and 

 West Asia to the North- West of India. Height up to 80 ft. ; 

 diam. 7 ft. S.G. 785 when fresh, 461 when dry. W 35 — ^24. 

 Branches olive, silky, not easily detached ; sapwood white ; heart 

 brownish, Hght, soft, smooth in grain, not spHntering, shrinking 

 more than one-sixth of its bulk in drying, very durable in water ; 

 vessels uniformly distributed, indistinguishable ; pith-rays indis- 

 tinct. Used in Pliny's time, on account of its lightness, for shields, 

 and formerly for flooring ; nowadays for break-blocks on railway- 

 waggons, since, owing to the absence of oil or resin, it will not take 

 fire on friction ; for wheelbarrows, especially at iron-furnaces, as 

 it will not spht or warp when heated ; for the paddles of steam- 

 boats and strouds of water-wheels ; for shoemakers' lasts and 

 cutting - boards ; for whetting fine cutlery, and for toys ; but 

 especially for cricket-bats, for which purpose large sound trees 

 fetch exceptional prices. Cricket-bats sold at five shilHngs or any 

 higher price are all made of White Willow. The polishing-wheels 

 used by glass-grinders are made of horizontal sections across the 

 entire tree. The smaller wood is used for clothes-props, the handles 

 of hay-rakes, hurdles, fencing, and hoops, for druggists' boxes, for 

 paper-pulp, and for fueL 



i Willow, Yellow {S, vitelUna L.). Europe ; introduced into 

 North^America. Height up to 60 ft. ; diam. 3 — 4 ft. Sapwood 



