162 
MAHOGANY. 
where it has room to spread, it is of much better quality, and puts out large 
branches, the junctions of which with the stem furnish those beautifully curled 
pieces, of which the choicest veneers are made. When among rocks and much 
exposed the size is inferior, and there is not so much breadth or variety of shading, 
but the timber is far superior, and the colour is richer. The last description is 
by far the strongest, and is therefore the best adapted for chairs, the legs of tables, 
and other purposes, in which a moderate size has to bear a considerable strain. 
Since the produce of Jamaica has been exhausted there are only two kinds known 
in the market ; bay-wood, or that which is got from the continent of America, 
and Spanish wood, or the produce of the islands chiefly of Cuba and Hayti. 
Though the bay-wood be inferior to the other, both in value and in price, it is 
often very beautiful, and may be obtained in logs as large as six feet square. It 
is, however, not nearly so compact as the other ; the grain is apt to rise in 
polishing; and if it be not covered by a water-proof varnish it is very easilv 
stained. It also gives to the tool in carving, and is not well adapted for ornaments. 
Spanish wood cuts well, takes a fine polish, resists scratches, stains, and fractures 
much better, and is generally the only sort upon which much, or delicate, work- 
manship should be expended. The colours of mahogany do not come well out 
without the application of oil or varnish, and if the best sorts be often washed 
with water, or long macerated in it, they lose their beauty and become of a dingy 
brown. The red is deepened by alkaline applications, especially lime-water ; but 
strong acids destroy the colours. When the surface is covered by a colourless 
varnish, which displays the natural tints without altering any of them, good maho- 
gany appears to the greatest advantage. 
The Fehrifuga, or East India mahogany, is a very large tree. It grows in 
the mountainous parts of central Hindostan, rises to a great height, with a straight 
trunk, which, towards the upper part, throws out many branches. The head is 
spreading, and the leaves have some resemblance to those of the American species. 
The wood is of a dull red colour, not 
so beautiful as common mahogany, but 
much harder, heavier, and more durable. 
The natives of India account it the most 
lasting timber that their country pro- 
duces, and therefore they employ it in 
their sacred edifices, and upon every 
occasion where they wish to combine 
strength with durability. 
The Chlovoxylon is chiefly found in 
the mountains of the Sircars, that run 
parallel to the bay of Bengal, to the 
N.E. of the mouth of the river Godo- 
very. The tree does not attain the 
same size as either of the former, and 
the appearance of the wood is different. 
It is of a deep yellow, nearly of the same colour as box, from which it does not 
differ much in durability, and could be applied to the same purposes. 
