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wood so that it is almost impossible to tell one variety from 
the other. Honduras wood is of larger scantling than the 
Cuba or St. Domingo variety, but is very rarely seen over 
30 inches a side, 16 to 24 inches being about the average, 
and 12 to 25 ft. long. It can be recognised by the black 
specks or lines in the grain, in contrast to the white s[)ecks 
of the Cuba wood. The logs are often of tapering widths, 
slightly wany corners, and of a somewhat pale colour 
when freshly cut ; the wood is of silky texture, but, although 
not much troubled by heartshake, is distinctly inferior to 
the old Spanish, being lighter and more spongy in grain, 
though straighter and without much flower. The Belize 
and Trujillo shipments are most appreciated. 
Mahogany is also now brought from Nicaragua, mostly in 
round logs of mild textm-e and straight grain, from Costa 
Rica and Grenada, and is known by these names in the 
market, and a very good and much appreciated, finely- 
textured, and good-coloured wood comes from Tobasco, in 
the south of Mexico, which is generally jogged in the 
manufacture; occasionally a small quantity comes from 
Panama, which is rather subject to worms, and often 
damaged in transit, and from Guatemala, in which the 
heartshakes are generally serious. It is not possible by 
description to enable a person to distinguish one variety 
from another, as this is very difficult, even for experts with 
a long and close knowledge of the trade, and in small pieces 
it is scarcely possible even for an expert to do so. Honduras 
and West Indian wood have a much softer feel when rubbed 
with the thumb than the African wood. 
All mahogany is of varying shades, from reddish brown 
to dark red, and though some of the African wood is very 
dark, some of it — the Gaboon wood for instance — is not 
unlike the colour of teak. It is chiefly used for high-class 
joinery, furnilure, and veneers ; not difficult to work, it is 
