This is one of the most useful woods in India for the purposes of the carpenter, and is to he found chiefly along the foot of the Himalaya mountains, and on the Vindhyan hills near Gaya, the best being obtained from Morung.

The wood of the saul is strong and durable, but rather coarse-grained, with particularly straight and even fibre. It dries very slowly, and the wood continues to shrink for several years after other woods have become dry; therefore timbers of small scantling are very liable to warp in drying, unless some means be adopted to prevent it. Such is the size attained by this noble tree that the Nepal ferry-boats, which used to contain from ten to fifteen men, with horses and cattle, were hollowed out of single logs. It takes 100 years, however, for the tree to attain this size.

The saul wood is used chiefly for floor-beams, planks, and roof trusses, and it can be obtained in lengths of from 30 to 40 feet, and from 12 to 24 inches square.

The weight of a cubic foot is 61 1/2 lbs. when seasoned, and 55 lbs. when perfectly dry.

The cohesive force of a square inch is 11,500 lbs.; the crushing force per square inch is 8500 lbs.; and the breaking weight in the middle of a specimen, 1 inch square, supported at both ends, with a bearing of 1 foot, is 881 lbs.

584. Teak (Tectona Grandis)

See description of timber used in England, Art. 581.