CHAPTER XXII.
BORNEO AND THE CHINA SEAS.
The Chow, or Menkabang Penang tree, is found in the Island of Borneo, where it is said to be very abundant. It attains large dimensions, is of straight growth, and yields timber in the log of from 30 to 70 feet in length, and from 15 to 26 inches square.
The wood is of a yellowish or straw colour, close and fine in texture, straight in the grain, hard, heavy, tough, and exceedingly strong. It is used in Borneo and the countries bordering on the China seas, for the masts of junks and other vessels, for house and ship-building, and for a variety of minor purposes.
The earliest importation of the Chow, or Menkabang Penang timber, into this country was, I believe, in 1860—61, when it came direct to the London market, and thence passed into Woolwich Dockyard, to be experimentally employed for beams, keelsons, and other purposes where strong, straight timber is required in ship-building; and in this way it gave every satisfaction.
One or two cargoes of Borneo timber, including the Chow, subsequently reached this country, and were delivered at the northern ports, where they were gradually absorbed, chiefly in ship-building; but, cwing to the more extended use of iron in ships, the wood is not now inquired for, and the importations appear, for a time at least, to have ceased.
