EUEOPEAN TIMBER 
51 
Britain. The wood is of a yellow or reddish colour, grow- 
ing darker on exposure ; it is hard, strong, and very 
durable, and has a pleasant smell ; the resin it contains 
enables it to resist for a long period the action of water. 
It is not liable to the attacks of. insects, and being of 
beautiful colour and easy to polish it is much used for 
finished woodwork. The doors of old St. Peter's at Rome 
were of cypress, and when taken down to make way for the 
brass doors of Antonio Philarte were found in perfect 
condition after a life of at least 600 years. In early times 
it was much used in conjunction with cedar for ship- 
building. This timber must not be confounded with the 
wood now known as cypress in the English market, and 
which is imported from America. The common cypress, 
as indeed is the case with all cypress wood, is very light. 
Weight about 20 lbs. per cubic foot. 
Laburnum {Laburnum vulgare), a well-known tree which 
grows in the British Isles, the Continent of Europe, and 
America, and in favourable situations attains to a height 
of 40 ft. and a diameter of about 12 inches, though this 
size is rare ; the wood is a beautiful brownish or sometimes 
dark green colour, of fine grain, hard and heavy, much 
valued for cabinet work, turnery, and inlaying and parts 
of musical instruments ; it is not, however, much used, as 
it can only be had in small sizes. It is sometimes stained 
and passed off as ebony. 
Weight 52 to 57 lbs. per cubic foot. 
Box. — The Common Box (Buxus sempervirens) is said to be 
a native of Surrey, and great quantities originally came 
from Box Hill in that county. It also grows in Gloucester- 
shire and Kent, and is found throughout Europe, North 
America, Asia, and Japan. In Britain the tree seldom 
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