JAPANESE TIMBER 
201 
are usually built of it. Can be had in lengths up to 30 ft. 
and of good scantling. The upper decks of some of the 
Japanese lightships were laid with this timber inches 
thick. The Japs call this the " Tree of the Sun." 
Sugi {Cryptomeria japonica), one of the largest and 
commonest of Japanese trees, found in nearly all parts of 
the empire, grows exceedingly straight and to a height of 
100 to 120 ft. The heartwood is of a ruddy brown, the 
sapwood straw colour ; it is a soft, feeble, coarse-grained 
and perishable timber, but being very straight grained 
opposes considerable resistance to longitudinal stress ; this 
property renders sugi timber useful for uprights in houses 
of light construction, though it is most generally employed 
in the characteristic scaffoldings of the country. The tree 
is felled at about thirty-five years of age, having then an 
average girth of 3 to 4 ft., but for poles it is felled much 
sooner. Both sugi and matsu have been used for the 
trusses, floor joists, etc., of Ja[)anese lighthouses. The 
annual rings are distinctly marked, and the wood is scented 
like cedar, and the tree is commonly called the " Cedar 
of Japan." 
Honoki {Magnolia hypoleuca), a hard, handsome wood 
somewhat resembling Canary wood, is used for tables, 
wooden shoes, pencils, and charcoal. 
Aka Matsu, also called Me Matsu {Pinus densijiora), is 
easily distinguished by its reddish bark ; hence the name, 
literally red pine. The wood is yellowish, slightly resinous, 
with distinct annual rings, straight of grain, easily worked, 
strong and durable, especially when immersed in water. 
It is extensively used in roofs of good class for beams, and 
also for floors, railway sleepers, and carpentry work 
