248 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [October i, 1888. 
a mere fancy artieln ; it is good sterling stuff, com 
mauding a high price in open markets of recognized 
strength, cured with the best knowledge of modern 
times." The canister (J lb. and 1 lb.) both 2s and 2s 
6d tea has tin lid and bottom, but the body of it is of 
cardboard blocked into a round shape. There are 15 
or 20 shops in this town where Oeylon tea is sold. — 
Home Cor. 
♦ 
INDIAN WOODS SUITABLE FOE 
ENGINEERING PURPOSES. * 
By the late-KunhyaLall (Rai Baha.dur),M. Inst.O.E. 
The Principal Indian woods suitable for engineer; 
ing purposes are : — 1. Bamboo ; 2. Babul, or Keeker : 
3. Deodar; 4. Ebony; 5. Sal; 6. Teak; 7- Toon; 
8. Tamarind, or Imli ; 9. Sbishan. 
1. The Bamboo (Bambusa ancndinacea) is the most 
generally useful of all the vegetable productions of 
India. It forms the warlance of the cavalry, and 
the deadly bow of the Bheel, as well as the pole 
of the dooli which carries the wounded solider out 
of action. It is used for boat-oars, clubs, walking- 
sticks, and for scaffolding. It also forms a principal 
material in thatched roofs of houses, in which it is 
employed for the net-like frame-work that supports 
the thatch. It is an ornamental as well as a useful 
garden-tree. The bamboo is of two distinct kinds, 
the small, hard, close-grained variety, and the large 
hollow one, generally used for the uprights in scaff- 
olding. The bamboo is very tough, and is stronger 
than any of the Indian woods. 
2. The Babul (Acacia Arabica) is found on sandy 
and clayey plains and waste-lands. It thrives best 
on the poorer soils, as it is generally found on all 
the ancultivable lands around Indian villages. The 
tree seldom attains a greater height than 30 or 35 
feet, or a greater thickness than 2 feet. The heart- 
wood is of a light red colour, close-grained, hard, 
tough, and of great durability. It is perferred for 
cart-wheels and ploughs; also for the beams of sugar- 
mills, and for roofing purposes. It is in general re- 
quest for the manufacture of tent-pins, for which it 
is admirably adapted by its toughness and hardness, 
combined with lightness, which is a point of greatest 
importance to the traveller. The bark of the wood 
is exteusively used as tan. 
3. The Deodar (Cedrus deodar a) is generally sup- 
posed to be a variety of the Cedar of Lebonan, used 
in the building of Solomon's temple. It has great 
stiffness, strength, hardness, and durability, and on 
this account is well adapted for engineering purposes. 
It grows in large quantities in the Himalayan forests, 
and is brought down to the plains by river. It 
comes clown the Ravi, Jhelum, and Chenab, in large 
logs, varying from 20 to 60 feet in length, and from 
2 to 12 feet in girth. It takes a long time to season, 
and is never well-seasoned for joiners' work under 
eight or ten years. For engineering purposes it is 
said to season sufficiently in three years. 
4. The Indian Ebony (Diospyros ebenaster) is of a 
small size, not more than 8 to 12 inches in thick- 
ness. The natives use it for axles of carts, for 
which purpose it is admirably fitted by its extreme 
hardness, toughness, and strength. The sap-wood is 
much used for door-frames and for wheels ; but the 
heart-wood alone is used for furniture. It is the 
heaviest Indian wood yet known, being superior to 
Sal iu this respect. The heart-wood is of a very dark 
colour, approaching to black, and takes a good polish. 
On this accouut it is used for ornamenting furni- 
ture, for wood carvings, and for ornamental ceilings. 
5. Sal-wood is obtained from the principal forests 
along the Terai, at the foot of the Himalayan 
Mountains and ». the Vindhiyan Hills near Gaya. 
The sal ( Vatica robusta), one of the most celebrated 
of the Indian trees, as well as one of the most 
useful, is close-grained and of straight fibre, possess- 
ing great stiffness, hardness, strength, and durability, 
and is the chief building timber in the North West 
Provinces of India. It is the heaviest Indian wood 
' * Other Selected Paper*. Trans, Inst. 0. E~ 
except ebony. It can be obtained from 40 to 50 feet 
in length, and from 1 foot to 5 feet in thickness. 
J The logs are almost straight, without any knots, 
flaws, and cracks ; but the wood dries so slowly that 
it continues to shrink for several years after other 
woods would have become quite dry. Small scant- 
lings and planks are very liable to wrap in drying, 
unless some means are employed to prevent it. Sal- 
wood is very heavy and coarse-grained, and is parti- 
cularly straight and even in fibre. It is superior to 
almost all woods in strength, and is well adapted 
for engineering purposes. 
6. Teak (Tectona grandis) is not procurable in the 
Punjab, nor in the North-West Provinces, but is 
obtained from Burmah, Bombay, and from the Central 
Provinces. The tree does not reach any great size ; 
the largest timbers not being more than 16 feet long 
by 12 inches in breadth. It is used in small scant- 
lings for railway-carriages and for flooring. Beams 
for roofs are seldom obtained exceeding 20 feet in 
length. Indian teak is much superior to Burmese 
teak in strength and beauty. The weight is about 
the same ; but the deeply-marked, and wavy irregular 
veins of the Indian tree afford a much handsomer 
cabinet wood than the straight-grained and faintly- 
marked timber of the Burmese variety. It is almost 
straight, close-grained, and of oven fibre, aud is on 
that account well fitted for engineering purposes. 
Doors and windows are also made of it. 
7. The Toon ( Gedrela Tooaa) isj another of the 
more useful Indian woods. It resembles mahogany, 
and has been brought into general use by Europeans. 
It is a very excellent substitute for mahogany for 
making tables, chairs, book-cases, frames, and furni- 
ture of all kinds. It is also used for doors and windows 
of houses, but not for beams and joists of roofs, as 
it is not strong enough, and is also costly. It be- 
comes rapidly brown with age, unless it is kept well 
waxed. The toon tree is grown in most gardens, 
of which it forms an elegant ornament. 
8. The Tamarind (lama/rindm) is found chiefly on 
hard dry soils, occasionally also on black soils, but 
never on hilly or rocky ground. A full-grown tama- 
rind presents the finest appearance among Indian 
trees both for size and beauty. The young tamarind, 
of from twenty to fifty years' growth, is much used 
for door-frames, but is subject to the attacks of 
worms unless well seasoned. The wood is of a crooked 
grain, and is therefore not fitted for roofs. It affords 
a profusion of fruit. 
9. The Shishan (Dalbergia latifolia) is another 
popular Indian wood, but is never obtained in long 
lengths, and is therefore not fitted for roofs except 
for small spans. It is used for furniture of all kinds, 
being very hard and tough, and taking a good polish. 
It is found all over the plains of India. The heart- 
wood is heavy and of a reddish colour, and is em- 
ployed for structures where hard wood is required. It 
is in general use by the natives as well as Europeans. 
It is the only wood adopted for furniture in the Punjab. 
Of the above nine kinds of woods, the most 
useful for engineering purposes, are Deodar, Sal, and 
Teak, as they possess great strength, hardness, stiff- 
ness, and durability. These qualities are generally 
found in timbers which are free from large and 
loose knots, and straight-grained, and which are 
least affected by being soaked in water. — IndianEngineer. 
[On the above we would remark that there are a 
g'reat many more species of bamboo than two ; 
that the babul might well be grown in the drier 
parts of Northern and Eastern Ceylon ; that we 
need scarcely regret the absence of the deodar from 
Ceylon, seeing it is so slow of growth and requires 
so many years to season ; that the Ceylon ebony 
is evidently superior to the Indian ; that the sal 
would be a real acquistion in Oeylon, if the seeds 
could be got to retain their vitality ; that special 
attention should be given to teak at low elevations 
and to toon at high altitudes (it grows readily in 
Nuwara Eliya) ; that tamarind also should receive 
attention as a useful and ornamental wood, and that 
Dalbergia latifolia would be valuable, as would also Dal- 
bergia sissoo if they could be naturalized in Oeylon.— Ed.] 
