JAPANESE TIMBER 
203 
doubtless be appreciated by cabinet-makers. Its chief fault 
lies in want of seasoning — the Japanese have never had 
any idea of seasoning wood — and some pieces split badly. 
It is fairly free from knots, but some of the knots 
are dead. 
There are two kinds of tamo — tamo-moku, a beautiful 
curly-grained wood, and tamo-chichinii, which has a 
wavy grain. Both are used for carriage panels in Japan. 
" Sen" is a species of white ash, softer than American ash, 
which shows a beautiful figure ; it is only got in lengths of 
10 to 12 ft., though up to 17 inches diameter. Quantities 
of both " sen " and " tamo " are being used on the Chinese 
and Manchurian railways and largely in Japan for railway 
sleepers, for which the latter, at any rate, is said to be well 
suited. " Sen " is largely used for furniture in Japan and 
is well adapted for that purpose ; it takes good polish, does 
not warp, is hard, and lasts well. 
Katsura {Cercidophylliiin Japonxcum), of which there are 
several kinds, attains a height of 80 ft. 
Red katsura is said to be well adapted for making cigar 
boxes. This timber is obtained in good widths and is used 
for furniture. It has quite a silky appearance when planed, 
and is considered by the Japanese one of their best woods 
for fine, neat work. 
There are several varieties of maple, one a beautiful 
" bird's-eye," known as itaya-moku, and another with flowery 
grain called " hana-itaya." 
The above are the best known commercially, although 
only a few of the excellent timbers which grow in Japan. 
Doubtless one reason why such little attention is paid to 
seasoning or preservative processes is that fire and tempest, 
and not decay, generally determine the existence of the 
light Japanese structures. Paint is seldom used, but wood 
