Respecting the other woods used in the manufacture of furniture, we have nothing special to say, except of the oak—the emblem of our native land. This tree yields a most useful and durable wood, and as it not only defends our country by supplying our "wooden walls," but gives to us the floors of our houses, furnishes our good substantial tables, and comfortable arm-chairs, it will be well for us to know a few facts about this celebrated tree. It is said that there are no less than one hundred and fifty species of the oak. The importance of the growth of oaks may be gathered from the fact, that the building of a 70-gun ship would take forty acres of timber. The building of a 70-gun ship is estimated to cost about £70,000. Oak trees attain to the age of 1,000 years. The oak enlarges its circumference from 10½ inches to 12 inches in a year. The interior of a great oak at Allonville, in Normandy, has been converted into a place of worship. An oak at Kiddington, served as a village prison. A large oak at Salcey, was used as a cattle fold; and others have served as tanks, tombs, prisons, and dwelling-houses.
The Mammoth tree, which is exhibiting at the Crystal Palace, is one of the great wonders of the vegetable creation. It is the grand monarch of the Californian forest, inhabiting a solitary district on the elevated slopes of the Sierra Nevada, at 5,000 feet above the sea-level. From 80 to 90 trees exist, all within the circuit of a mile, and these varying from 250 to 320 feet in height, and from 10 to 20 feet in diameter. The bark is from 12 to 15 inches in thickness; the branchlets are somewhat pendent, and resemble those of cypress or juniper, and it has the cones of a pine. Of a tree felled in 1853, 21 feet of the bark from the lower part of the trunk were put in the natural form as a room, which would contain a piano, with seats for forty persons; and on one occasion 150 children were admitted. The tree is reputed to have been above 3,000 years old; that is to say, it must have been a little plant when Samson was slaying the Philistines. The portion of the tree exhibiting at the palace is 103 feet in height, and 32 feet in diameter at the base.
Tea is the leaf of a shrub (Thea Chinensis). The plant usually grows to the height of from three to six feet, and resembles in appearance the well-known myrtle. It bears a blossom not unlike that of the common dog-rose. The climate most congenial to it is that between the 25th and 33rd degrees of latitude. The growth of good tea prevails chiefly in China, and is confined to a few provinces. The green and black teas are mere varieties, depending upon the culture, time of gathering, mode of drying, &c. Coffee was used in this country before tea. in 1664, it is recorded, the East India Company bought 2lb. 2oz. of coffee as a present for the king. In the year 1832, there were 101,687 licensed tea dealers in the United Kingdom. Green tea was first used in 1715. A dispute with America about the duty upon tea led to the American war, out of which arose American independence. The consumption of tea throughout the whole world is estimated at above 52,000,000 lbs., of which the consumption of Great Britain alone amounts to 30,000,000. (See [1225]).
"Every man should eat and drink, and enjoy the good of all his labour, it is the gift of God."—Ecclesiastes iii.
Coffee is the berry of the coffee plant, which was a native of that part of Arabia called Yemen, but it is now extensively cultivated in India, Java, the West Indies, Brazil, &c. (See [1224]).
The first coffee-house in London was opened in 1652, under the following circumstances. A Turkey merchant named Edwards, having brought along with him from the Levant, some bags of coffee, and a Greek servant who was skilful in making it, his house was thronged with visitors to see and taste this new beverage. Being desirous to gratify his friends without putting himself to inconvenience, he allowed his servant to open a coffee-house, and to sell coffee publicly.