Evelyn’s sylva. 
29 
smooth and polisht; for then it appeared to 
have a very lovely grain like that of some 
curious close wood. 
' Next it (resembl’d wood) in that all the 
smaller and (if so I may call those which 
are onely to be seen by a good glasse) 
microscopical pores of it, appear (both when 
the substance is cut and polish’d transverse¬ 
ly, and parallel to the pores) perfectly like 
the microscopical pores of several kinds of 
wood, retaining both the shape^ and position 
of such pores. 
^ It was differing from wood. 
^ First, in weight, being to common water, 
as 3J to 1 whereas there are few of our 
English woods that, when dry, are found to 
be as full as heavy as water. 
‘ Secondly, in hardnesse, being very near 
as hard as a flint, and in some places of it 
also resembling the grain of a flint; it 
would very readily cut glass, and would not 
without difficulty (especially in some parts 
of it) be scratch’d by a black hard flint: it 
would also as readily strike fire against a 
steel as also against a flint. 
c 5 
