Vol. VIII. No. 91. 
IMPERIAL INSTITUTE JOURNAL. 
and is eagerly sought for by the Indians during its season (about April) when, with 
characteristic carelessness, the trees are cut down in large numbers merely for the sake of 
obtaining it. Weight, about 56 lb. per foot cube. 
12. Bullet OR Bully Tree (Dipholis Montana J, is a native of Jamaica and Cuba ; 
it grows to 4 feet diameter, and the wood is hard, close-grained, and heavy. It is largely 
employed in general construction, is durable, and much used for sawing into boards, 
planks, scantlings, and shingles. There are several varieties, not all belonging to one species. 
The term bullet or bully trees seems to be a vulgar classification for any hard, heavy, or close- 
grained timber. 
13. Bread Fruit ( Artocarpus incisa), which is found in most of the islands, is a timber 
tree some 20 feet high with beautiful large leaves. It has been imported into the West Indies 
from the South Sea Islands. The wood is pretty when polished, and suited for furniture, 
boards, and internal house work. The fruit is called the “ daily bread ” of the negro, and is a 
staple article of food, being usually cut into pieces and roasted or baked. It yields a good 
starch, too, for ordinary purposes. Another kind of bread-fruit tree, with great leaves, is 
found in the higher forests. The wood is slate-coloured, with a straight grain, and splits 
easily ; hence it is excellent for making laths. 
14. Breadnut (Brosimum Alioaslrutn , Sw.) This tree, a native of Jamaica and other 
islands, is about 80 feet high, generally straight, with a diameter of about 2 feet, and grows 
abundantly in the interior. The timber is good, and makes capital boards, which take a high 
polish, and furnish beautiful flooring. The heartwood has a rich brown colour, with very 
durable qualities, and is excellently fitted for ornamental work of all kinds. The nuts and 
leaves form a valuable fodder, readily eaten by horses and cattle. 
15. Caconies ( Ormosia dysacarpa). Found in Dominica. A large tree, 3 or 4 feet 
diameter, common in the forest, the wood being useful for all kinds of house work, inside 
and out, rafters, posts, etc., and for any other purpose for which lumber is employed. It is 
called the “bead 1 ’ or “necklace” tree, on account of the seeds being used for personal 
adornment. These are very hard and roundish, beautifully polished, and of a bright scarlet 
colour with a jet black spot at one end. They are considered of value in Europe, and they 
might be made an article of export. 
16. Calabash ( Cresccntia Cujete). Found in most of the islands. The tree is compara- 
tively small, about 30 feet high and 18 inches diameter, pretty growing, with peculiarly 
arranged small leaves clustering close to the horizontal branches. The wood is hard, tough, 
and pliant, and, being almost black, takes a fine polish. Being of crooked growth it is only 
employed for small work, such as handles of tools, carriages, cattle yokes, etc., and in British 
Guiana for bullet-proof stockades. Weight 54 lb. per foot cube. Crushing strength, 1 -42 tons 
per square inch. The shell of the fruit is converted by the peasants into cups and water 
utensils. The expressed juice of the pulp is a purgative. Value about £5 per ton. 
17. Carapa ( Carapa Cuiancnsis). Found in Trinidad and British Guiana. Avery 
abundant and useful wood, bearing a considerable resemblance to cedar. It is strong and 
coarse, and is much used for house building and furniture. The tree is from 2 to 3 feet 
diameter, and will reach 120 feet in height ; value on the spot £ 8 per ton. There are two kinds, 
the white and the red. Carapa, or caraba, is also known as crabwood. The seeds yield the 
well-known “crab-oil,” and the bark is used for tanning. 
18. Cashew (Anacardium occidcntalc) grows in most of the islands. A short and 
spreading tree 30 to 40 feet high, and about a foot in diameter. The wood is red, moderately 
hard, and close-grained. Weight, 61 lb. per foot cube. Crushing strength. 376 tons per 
square inch. Produces a black juice used for staining floors, etc., as a preservative from the 
attacks of ants, and in bookbinding to protect from moths ; it likewise makes an excellent 
marking ink. The juice from the bark is astringent, and is used as a flux for soldering 
metals. A gum is obtained from the tree similar in its properties to gum arabic, and a very 
intoxicating drink can be made from the buds and leaves. The kernels yield a valuable and 
nutritious oil, and are a great delicacy when roasted. 
19. Coccus, or West Indian Ebony ( Brya ebeniis), a native of Jamaica and Cuba. A 
small tree, 15 to 20 feet high, with drooping branches, and rarely found with a diameter over 
8 inches. It has a hard deep-coloured heartwood, close-grained, and is exported. Used 
for handles of tools, etc. 
20. Cocoanut ( Cocos nucifera ). These palms are greedy of salt, and essentially belong 
to the sea-shore, although they will thrive at a considerable distance inland. The tree is 
slender, without branches, and from 40 to 80 feet high, ending in a plume of fronds, the stem 
being usually wavy from the effects of the wind. The wood when matured is of a most 
peculiar texture, consisting in cross section of a multitude of dark brown specks in a lighter 
ground, and of a streaky appearance longitudinally. It is strong and heavy, and exceedingly 
pretty when polished, but most hard to work, although when freshly cut it is spongy. When 
well seasoned it will last for a long time underground. Weight, 70 lb. per foot cube. It is 
known in commerce as Porcupine wood (from its speckled colour resembling purcupine 
quills), and is adapted for walking sticks, fancy articles, frames, furniture, rafters, and for 
inlaying, but the tree is generally too valuable to cut down for such purposes, or for timber. 
The wood in the green state is very porous and spongy, having a great degree of resistance to 
rifle shot. In the native wars of Samoa it was much employed in the building of defensive 
works. Cocoanut oil is pressed from the dried kernel of the nut, and the strong fibrous 
husk, called coir-fibre, which covers it, is much used for matting and cordage. A dye can be 
extracted from every part of the plant, producing a dirty brown colour. It is the most valued 
of the palms because of its numerous economic properties. Sunlight and exposure to regular 
breezes are most beneficial to the cocoanut tree, and its cultivation is a very profitable 
industry. 
21 . Contrevent ( Lucuma multijlora). Grows in Trinidad, St. Lucia, etc. This is 
a noble timber tree, producing an excellent hard wood for mill rollers, frames, furniture, and 
house building. 
22. Corkwood, West Indian (Ockroma lagopus). Found in Jamaica, Trinidad, St. 
Lucia, etc. A tree which grows to two feet diameter, and 20 to 40 feet high, and is only to 
be found in the open or cleared land. The wood is white, with a hole in the heart, and is 
softer than ordinary cork, for which it is utilized as a substitute for stopping bottles, by 
fishermen to float their nets, and for other purposes where light wood is required. The bark 
gives a useful fibre, for rope-making. A soft cotton or down comes from the seed envelopes, 
and is employed for stuffing pillows, etc. It is termed Down Tree in Jamaica. 
23. Determa, from the Moraballi creek, Essequebo river, British Guiana. Grows best 
on clayey gravelly soil, and is more plentiful in the Moraballi creek than in any other part of 
the colony below the rapids. The average height is 100 feet, and it can be had to square up 
to 30 inches. The wood is of a colour resembling cedar, and is used for planking boats, 
constructing railway carriages, and for many other purposes requiring a light and strong 
wood. Determa is also employed for the masts and spars of vessels, which are procurable 
from 70 to 90 feet long, and 14 inches diameter at the smallest end. Logs have been obtained 
42 inches square. 
[July, 1902.] 183 
24. Dogwood ( Piscidia erythrina). Occurs in British Honduras, Jamaica, St. Lucia, 
etc. A straight tree, growing to a height of ioo feet and 30 inches diameter. The wood is 
hard ; it is employed for rollers of native sugar mills, and is converted into charcoal for 
gunpowder. It is tough and elastic, and used in cart building for the body and wheels. 
The root bark is employed in the United States as a narcotic, and locally to stupefy fish, A 
variety of this wood, which is slightly harder, is known by the Indian name of Javin. 
25. Dukala-Balli, from the Moraballi creek, Essequebo river, British Guiana. This 
is a rare tree and grows in clay and sandy soil. It attains a large size, the average height 
being 120 feet, and it will square, free of sap, 20 inches. The wood is of a deep red colour, 
heavy and close grained, and is used for making articles of furniture, bedstead posts, etc. 
It takes a fine polish, and is durable. 
26. Dukuria, from the same place, is plentiful throughout the colony and grows in 
dry soils. The average height is 90 feet, and it will square 16 inches free of sap. It is used 
for house-framing and many other purposes, and is a very serviceable wood. There are two 
kinds of Dukuria, fine- and large-leaved. 
27. Flambeau, or Torch wood ( Tecoma starts), found in the majority of the islands, is 
a small tree, but the wood is extremely durable, hard, and heavy, with the annual rings 
distinctly marked in cross section. It is obtainable in lengths of 20 feet and over, and 7 
inches at butt. Excellent for posts and outside work, such as fences, for which it is 
commonly employed on War Department lands. There are two sorts — black and white. 
Drugs are procured from the wood, which blazes brightly when burnt ; hence it is used for 
flambeaux, or torches. 
2S. Foglekop, from the Itoori-bisci creek, Essequebo river. Grows in sandy soil, 
and is a light coloured close-grained wood of little weight. It is plentiful on the Essequebo 
and Pomeroon rivers. It furnishes boards used for indoor work, doors, partitions, etc. The 
average height is 70 feet, and it will square 12 inches. Foglekop bears a small eatable fruit, 
the seeds of which contain oil. 
29. Fukadie, from the Moraballi creek, Essequebo river. The tree grows on sandy 
soil to about So feet, and it can be had to square 16 inches free of sap. It is used for house- 
framing, and is durable for indoor work. Fukadie is very plentiful on the Itoori-bisci 
creek, and generally in Essequebo. 
30. Fustic (Chlorophora tinctoria). Found in the majority of the islands. Grows 
rapidly, forming a fair-sized tree in five or six years, and living in almost any soil. The 
wood is close grained, hard, tough, and of a bright and extremely pretty canary yellow 
colour. It produces handsome cabinet work, panels, etc., and is the finest for hubs of 
wheels, but is chiefly exported as a yellow dye-wood, especially from Jamaica. Weight, 42 
lb. per foot cube. Eight tons per annum have been exported from St. Lucia to the United 
Kingdom. About 100 tons are exported annually from British Honduras. This tree (called 
bois diorange by the natives in some of the islands) must not be confounded with the orange 
fruit tree, though fustic also possesses a small sweet fruit. 
31. Galba ( Calophyllum calaba). Found in Jamaica, Trinidad, St. Lucia, etc. An 
evergreen, which makes fine hedges because of its rapid and vigorous growth ; height 50 to 
60 feet, and 2 to 4 feet diameter. The wood is of a white to reddish colour, hard and 
durable, and texture often pretty. It is good for constructional purposes, shipbuilding, and 
heavy machine work ; for posts, furniture, and felloes of wheels. Bears exposure to moisture 
and lasts well in water. Weight, 46 lb. per foot cube. Value on the spot £$ per ton. 
The seeds yield an oil for lamps, and drugs are prepared from the resinous juice. Galba is 
also known as crabwood. 
32. GranadilLA. — Grows in British Honduras, the height being about So feet, and 
diameter 2 feet. It rises 50 feet without a limb, and is, therefore, a conspicuous forest tree. 
Produces a hard, dark-red wood, with a beautiful fine grain, and easy to work. Being 
abundant it is used for furniture and house decoration. This tree must not be confounded 
with the vine Granadilla bearing a luscious fruit. 
33. Greenheart, or Bibiru ( Nectandra Rodiasi) , comes principally from British 
Guiana, but it also grows in Trinidad, Jamaica, and Dominica. The tree is 60 to 100 feet high, 
and up to 2 feet diameter, yielding balks 50 to 60 feet long, and iS to 24 inches square with- 
out a knot. It grows in clay soil near the rivers and creeks, especially the Moraballi creek, 
Essequebo river. There are three varieties of greenheart, yellow, black, and mainop, all 
most serviceable and durable woods if cut when mature. It should be specified to be from 
logs of not less than two feet in diameter, as trees of less thickness are young and sappy, and 
such wood is liable to shrink and split. The timber comes into the market roughly hewn, 
much bark being left on the angles, and the ends of the butts are not cut off square. The 
section is of fine grain, and very full of fine pores, like that of a cane. The annual rings are 
rarely distinct. The heartwood is dark green or chestnut coloured, the central portion being 
deep brownish-purple or almost black ; the sapwood is green, and often not recognizable 
from the heart, while the general appearance of the wood is a greenish-yellow colour. 
Greenheart is close, hard, durable, and said to be the strongest timber in use. It is apt 
to split and splinter, and therefore requires great care in working, but it is tough and elastic, 
and a small beam, 3 ft. by I in. by 1 in., has withstood a central load of 10 cwt. without 
breaking. Breaking weight, 1,424 lb. ; crushing weight, 12,000 lb. Weight, 60 lb. per foot 
cube. Greenheart is one of the eight first-class woods at Lloyd’s, and is unsurpassed by any 
other in British Guiana. It is used for marine works, such as piles, piers, jetties, dock gates, 
and for shipbuilding in kelsons, knees, planking vessels, etc. It contains an essential oil, 
and many authorities state that on this account it resists the attacks of the teredo navalis , or 
ship-worm. This, however, is doubtful, and it has been found to be much eaten away by 
molluscs in sea-water at St, Lucia, when used for piles. But it appears that in any case 
worms will only penetrate the sapwood. The presence of the oil causes the timber to burn 
freely, so that in Demerara it is known as “ torchwood.” From the bark and seeds 
“ bibirine ” is extracted, and the Indians use the seeds medicinally in cases of diarrhoea, and 
sometimes for food, when ground and mixed with other meal. Because of the great demand 
for greenheart and the want of legal restriction to prevent the cutting of the young trees by 
wood-cutters and charcoal burners, it is becoming extremely difficult to procure good timber, 
and its preservation is worthy of the attention of the Colonial Legislature. 
34. Gri-GRI ( Martinesia caryotoefolia ). Found in Trinidad, Jamaica, St. Lucia, 
etc. A sort of small cane palm rising 20 feet high, with rings on the trunk. The wood is 
streaky and almost black : it furnishes a beautiful veneer, and makes handsome walking 
sticks. A fibre is produced from this tree which is said to be even stronger than that from 
the gru-gru. The cabbage is very sweet, and may be eaten raw. 
35. Gru-gru, Grou-grou, or Groo-groo ( Acrocomia lasiospatha). Also called the 
Macaw palm, or Great Macaw tree. Found in Trinidad, Jamaica, St. Lucia, etc. It is 
bigger than the gri-gri, with trunk 30 to 45 feet high, covered with black spines, and sup- 
porting a solid head of feathery leaves. The outer part of the trunk is black as ebony, hard, 
heavy, and durable, and susceptible of a high polish. The wood possesses the characteristic 
of never bending, warping, or curling longitudinally. It furnishes a beautiful veneer, and 
might be used for furniture and cabinet work. It is sometimes run into mouldings, its dark 
colour forming a fine set-off to a panel of pine, and it likewise makes handsome walking 
