Colonial Secretary’s Office,
Auckland, December 20th, 1856.

HIS Excellency the Governor directs

the following Report of trials made
at the Royal Mint Sydney, of some of the
woods of New Zealand, to be published
for general information.

As a knowledge of the qualities of the
various woods of the Colony would be
productive of much public advantage, the
Government of New Zealand will with
much pleasure receive any information
—accompanied, if possible, by specimens
—relative to woods with respect to which
there may be but little or only local
knowledge, with a view to further experiments being made of their respective
properties (as dying, tanning, &c.,) as
well as of their relative strength.

Specimens should, whenever possible,
be of the dimensions recommended, viz,
not under 5 feet 6 inches in length, by
3 x 2 inches in scantling.

By his Excellency’s command,

E. W. STAFFORD.

REPORT OF EXPERIMENTS ON
NEW ZEALAND WOODS.

The following woods, from New Zealand, have been tested as to their capability of bearing pressure applied to the
centre while supported at the two extremities.

7. Manuka or
   Tea Tree | Leptospermum Scoparium
8. Mangaia |
9. Rewa Rewa | Knightia Excelsa
10. Kohe Kohe | Laurus Kohe Kohe
11. Mapau | Suttonia Australis
12. Tawa | Nesodaphne Tawa
13. Tawiri |
14. Kahika | Podocarpus Excelsa
15. Towhai | Leiospermum
16. Matai | Dacrydium

The above Woods were sent from New
Zealand, having been selected and forwarded to this Colony at the request of
the Governor General, for the purpose
of experiment. Of the first four on the
list, three specimens were sent; of the
last three, one specimen; and of the remainder, two.

The first experiment was made with a
view of obtaining a rough approximation
to the value of each description of wood.
The second was conducted with more
care. Those woods specimens could
not be obtained of greater scantling than
1 9-10ths inches square were subjected
in the first place to a strain of 3 cwt.
applied at the centre point. After
an hour, the weight was removed
and the effect of the pressure on the
elasticity, if any, was noted. To those
woods which the first trial had indicated
to be superior, an additional 28 lbs.
was now applied, and to the remainder
56 lbs. At the end of the second hour
the examination was repeated and was
followed by a similar addition of weight,
and so on till the piece was broken.

To the specimens of larger scantling,
viz. 1 9-10ths by 3 inches, 8 cwt. was
applied in the first place, and 66 lbs.
added at the end of each hour.

An arrangement was made by which
the amount of deflection produced by the
weight applied was multiplied on a dial.
By this means, a difference in deflection
of 1-20th of an inch, or a deterioration
of the elasticity to the same amount, was
rendered apparent.

Attempts were made by various means
to determine in each case the position of
the neutral axis, but without any reliable
result being obtained. In the majority
of cases, the neutral axis appeared to be
somewhat below the centre line, and
within a confined limit as to weight
applied to be stationary. In some woods,
however, the neutral axis was situated
far above the centre. No. 6 of the Table,
for instance, bent like a rope round the
point when the strain was applied; the
fibres on the convex side elongating with
readiness. In every case, the addition
of weight beyond a certain point altered
sensibly the position of this axis. On
the whole the results obtained were so
anomalous as to induce me to abandon
for the present the investigation of this
portion of the subject.

Of the woods tried, I consider there
are but six (Nos. 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 12 of the
accompanying table) which the experiments have shown to be eligible for the
purpose of resisting cross strains. As I
am unacquainted with New Zealand
woods, it is possible that even some of
those which these experiments have
shown to possess the necessary quality
may not be procurable in size or quantity
sufficient for building purposes. Though
those woods only which I have mentioned
appear, as far as I have been able to