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FOXWORTHY. 
MAHOGANY. 
True mahogany does not occur in nature in the Orient. It is the 
product of * Swietenia mcihagoni L. and is found only in tropical America. 
It was introduced into Europe by the Spaniards in the sixteenth century. 
Since the middle of the eighteenth century it has been the most used and 
valued of cabinet woods. The much prized Chippendale and Sheraton 
chairs of the eighteenth century were made of this Avood. The continual 
demand for this wood for piano cases, fine furniture, cabinet work, etc., 
has caused it to become scarce and high in price, and efforts have been 
made to substitute other woods for it. More than twenty substitute or 
imitation mahoganies are known, and, some of them are such good woods 
that they could probably secure a good market under their own proper 
names. The true mahogany and the closely related Swietenia macro- 
pliylla King have done well in plantations in India (Gamb. 154). 
Young trees of both have also shown a fine rate of growth wherever tried 
in the Philippines. It is not improbable that these two species may 
some day be of commercial importance as plantation crops in this part of 
the world. 
The best of the substitute mahoganies belong to the subfamily 
Swietenioidece, the “mahogany subfamily” of the Meliacece. The follow- 
ing members of this subfamily are worthy of note : 
lihaya senegalensis A. Juss. (Sioie'tenia senegalensis Desv. ). This is called 
African mahogany and has supplied a large part of the mahogany on the 
European and American markets for the last twenty years (Ivew Bull. Misc. 
Inf. 1890, 168-170). Other species are also called African mahogany. The 
wood is lighter in color than the original mahogany and is also inferior to 
that wood in hardness and grain. However, it is very variable and pieces 
are found which are darker reddish-brown than the true mahogany. 
Soymida febrifuga A. Juss. ( Swietenia febrifuga Willd.), found in British 
India and Ceylon, known as East Indian mahogany. This is a very hard 
and very heavy wood, heavier than true mahogany and dark-red in color. 
It would be of great commercial importance if it could be produced in 
sufficient quantity. 
Chukrassia ( Chickrassia ) tabularis A. Juss. (Swietenia chickrassia Roxb.). 
East Indian mahogany or Chittagong wood. — British India and Ceylon, 
Burma and southern China. This is not so hard nor so heavy as the 
preceding. It would probably be of importance if found in greater quantity. 
In the subfamily G edreloidece of the Meliacece, there are a number of 
species in the genera Gedrela , of the West Indies, and Toona, of the East 
Indies, which produce odorous wood known as cedar and sometimes 
called mahogany. The toon of India, Toona serrata (Koyle) Roemer, 
is sometimes called Indian mahogany and the calantas , Toona calantas 
Merr. & Eolfe, of the Philippine Islands, has sometimes been called 
Philippine mahogany. They are more often and more correctly known 
as cigar-box woods. 
Besides those already mentioned, there are in the East several so- 
