WEST INDIA ISLANDS AND CENTRAL AMEEICA 157 
close and straight in grain, shrinks but Httle, warps and 
twists less than most timber, and is very durable, especially 
when kept dry, and polishes and takes glue well. The 
sapwood, like that of all dark-coloured woods, is of a straw 
[Photo lent by McNeil, Scott & Co., Liverpool. 
EiG. 27. — Dressing African Mahogany. 
It will be seen that no use is made of the stump of the 
tree, which contains a large quantity of the very best of the 
timber. The same practice exists in cutting mahogany in 
Central America. 
colour, sharply divided from the dark heartwood. It was 
formerly a good deal used in shipbuilding. The Victoria 
and Albert, which carried Queen Victoria on so many of her 
journeys and for so many years, was built almost wholly of 
choice mahogany, more than fifty years ago, and was only 
recently put out of commission. 
