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leaves contain a red colour, which in Malabar was formerly used to dye 

 silk and cotton. Natives of Burmah use the leaves as plates, also to- 

 wrap up parcels and for thatching. The blossoms and berries are pro- 

 duced in large numbers ; when in bloom they resemble hops, and the 

 clusters of seed have the appearance of a bunch of grapes. The seed or 

 nut is of a dark russet brown colour and very hard ; when ripe it falls 

 to the ground and plants itself, but its spread in this way is impeded by 

 the numerous iorest fires of the dry season, which generally occur in 

 March and April, after the seeds have ripened and fallen down. Ot 

 the seeds which escape, numbers are washed down the hills by the first 

 heavy rains of the monsoon. These collect in the valleys, and it is here 

 that groups of seedlings and young trees are generally found. The 

 value of teak for the purposes of shipbuilding does not consist merely in 

 its durability ; a still greater advantage is, that the ship is at all times 

 ready for service, while those of European wood — constructed of oak and 

 fir — are constantly warping, and in about forty- eight hours after caulk- 

 ing of the top sides are as leaky as before, and the health of the crew 

 suffers. But the teak ship, when well caulked, remains dry and com- 

 fortable for those on board and what is more is always fit for service. 



In Burmah the two principal ports for the shipment of teak are 

 Moulmein and Rangoon. In the Moulmein markets at least five kinds 

 are sold, and at Rangoon large quantities are brought down the Irra- 

 waddy and sold under the name of Irrawaddy teak. Siam has also con- 

 tributed a considerable quantity to the British markets. The two kinds 

 best known for trade purposes are the Malabar and the Burmah. The 

 former grows in the forests along the western side of the Ghauts and 

 the adjoining mountains, where nummerous streams afford water car- 

 riage for the timber, and the largest forests are upon the Anamally 

 Hills, fifteen to thirty hundred feet above the sea level. The tree re- 

 quires sixty to eighty years to reach a proper age and maturity to fit it 

 for shipbuilding. After the best straight timber has been taken, the 

 crooked pieces, called shin logs are used for other purposes. 



Teak does not injure iron, and is not liable to shrink in width. In 

 colour and lustre the wood resembles oak ; it is light, easily worked, and, 

 though porous, is strong and durable ; but the quality of the timber de- 

 pends very much upon the locality in which it is grown, and that is 

 exceedingly variable. The differtnces in the quality of Malabar and 

 Burmah teak arises from the kind of soil, exposure, and humidity of the 

 climate. A tree in Burmah, ten years old, has a girth of 18 inches at 

 six feet from the ground, while one in Bombay will require 20 years to 

 reach this size. Quality depends much on this comparative rate of 

 growth ; and the slower this is, as a general rule, the denser and finer 

 grained is the timber. Thus, teak giown in Burmah weighs generally 

 42 pounds to the oubic foot, while that grown on the western coast of 

 India rises as high as 55 poui ds, and the difference in strength varies 

 as from 190 to 2b9. The durability of the wood under favourable cir- 

 cumstances is simply marvellous. In the museum at Kew, there is a 

 specimen of perfectly sound teak, received from Salsette, in Bombay, 

 said to be 2,000 years old. Teak wood rib lining of the arches in the 

 caves of Karli is said to be co-eval with their construction about 2,000 

 years ago. This durability is supposed to be due to the aromatic oil 

 contained in the wood, and almost all the authorities concur in this 



