6 
TIMBER 
called cypress, and at other times poplar. Tasmanian 
blue gum, according to a letter in the Timber Trades 
Journal some time ago, is now being imported under the 
name of Tasmanian oak, whilst the sap boards of the 
American red gum (satin walnut) and Tupeloe are sold as 
" hazel pine." Quite as much confusion prevails in the 
American timber trade as in that of Great Britain. If then 
there is such confusion in the trade, one cannot be sur- 
jirised at the novice in timber selection being confused. 
After all it matters little what is the name given to certain 
classes of timber (although when it has to be described in 
a specification it would not be amiss if the botanical name 
were given, so that the required material might be defined), 
the main thing is to see that we get suitable timber for the 
work required, and there are certain practical methods of 
distinguishing most of the timbers in general use. 
Timber is produced only by the Spermatophyta, or seed- 
bearing plants, which are subdivided into the Gymnosperms 
and Angiosperms ; the Conifer or cone-bearing tree, to 
which belong the pines, larches, and firs, is one of the 
three natural orders of Gymnosperms. These are 
generally classed as " softwoods," although yew, which is 
classed with them, is certainly not soft ; they are more 
extensively scattered and more generally used than any 
other class of timber, and are simple and regular in 
structure. The so-called " hardwoods " are " Dicotyledons " 
or broad-leaved trees ; a subdivision of the Angiosperms, 
they are generally of slower growth, and produce harder 
timber than the conifers, but not necessarily so ; basswood, 
poplar, sycamore, and some of the gums, though classed 
with hardwoods, are not nearly so hard as some of the 
pines. The palms and bamboos are Monocotyledons, the 
other of the two divisions of the Angiosperms. The 
chief characteristics of the conifers and the dicotyledons 
