Cypress is a soft, easily worked wood, that does not warp badly but is likely to contain many fine checks. It nails well and is very durable. Hence it is much used for shingles, posts, railway ties, and conservatory construction. As seen in slash grain boards, it is often beautifully figured by the fine lines of summer wood between the broader spaces of spring wood. It has a reddish brown color and no resin ducts. Its beauty makes it a desirable wood for interior finish and for many pieces of furniture. Price in N. Y. C, 1913, per M. $65.

Spruce is a straight grained, strong, light, elastic, and rather soft wood, which shrinks and warps but little, is easy to plane and saw, but hard to chisel neatly across the grain because the spring wood is so much softer than the summer wood that it crushes before it cuts. It nails fairly well. It is used chiefly for construction, for ladders, for paddles, and other articles requiring both strength and lightness and, preferably, for paper pulp. It is the wood from which sounding boards are made because it is very resonant. It can be substituted for many uses of pine. The color is dull white, and the rings not noticeable. Very strong, light, furniture can be made of it. Price, in N. Y. C, 1913, $50 per M.

2Further information about measuring lumber can be found in the author's Handwork in Wood, pp. 48 and 109. The Manual Arts Press, Peoria, III.

White oak is now the wood most commonly used for interior finish and furniture. It is very strong, quite heavy and elastic, and hard. It is rather hard to work and to nail, and checks and warps considerably, unless carefully seasoned; but when once worked up is without a rival on account of its strength and beauty. The color is a light brown. The rings are plainly defined by pores, which make a pleasing pattern in slash sawn boards. Its great distinction lies in the pith rays, which are broad, conspicuous, and irregular. They are often an inch or more wide and many inches long. These rays are very hard, almost like horn. They are brought to plainest view in radial (or rift) boards, and hence quarter sawing, tho uneconomical, is commonly practiced to obtain the most effective "grain." As the wood is becoming more scarce, inferior species are mixed in, smaller trees are cut, and radial veneers are more and more used. In staining, the pores absorb much more color than the summer wood or the pith rays, and hence, no wood is capable of such contrasts of grain when stained as oak. Price in N. Y. C, 1913, $135 per M.

White ash is a heavy, strong, elastic, hard wood, used especially for handles of farm tools, oars, barrels, etc. It splits badly in nailing. It is used considerably for inside finish and furniture both on account of its strength and the beauty of its figure when slash sawn. The "grain" is due to the massing of the pores in the spring wood. It is the hardest and best of the ashes. Black or brown ash is much easier to work, and is sufficiently strong for most furniture. Price, in N.Y.C., 1913, $85 per M.

Yellow poplar or white wood grows with a tall straight trunk unsurpassed in grandeur by any other eastern American tree. This furnishes clear knotless boards, often 15" to 18" broad. It is a general utility wood, largely taking the place once held by white pine, and is used for cheap furniture, interior trim, and carriage bodies. It is light, brittle, soft, easy to work, nails very well, has medium strength, and does not warp badly when properly handled. The pith rays are quite noticeable, but are not made much use of for decorative purposes. The rings are distinct but not prominent, and the color is greenish or yellow brown. It is a good wood to keep in stock for all sorts of purposes, and an ideal wood to carve. In the south, magnolia is often sold with and for yellow poplar. They belong to the same family: Price in N. Y. C, 1913, $80 per M.

Sweet gum. Except for one quality, sweet gum would be one of the most useful woods. It has an even texture, is comparatively easy to work, takes a beautiful finish and polishes well, is an ideal wood for carving, and with a little care can be nailed well. It has a beautiful chocolate hue varied by uneven deposits of coloring matter. But it twists and warps more than any other common wood, and hence for commercial purposes is largely used in veneers. For small articles of household use, it is an excellent wood. Price in N. Y. C, 1913, $75 per M.