are even now so valuable that they are cut into veneer, and I have a magnificent specimen of such in a sheet 8 feet long by 18 to 20 inches wide which has been mounted for me as a table by Messrs. Marsh, Cribb, and Co. of Leeds.
The reason why it is neglected for all these purposes is apparently as follows:—The tree is usually grown in the form of a bush, and does not often become tall and straight enough to form clean timber. It is not usually planted close enough to become drawn up into clean poles, and is rarely felled except when in the way, or when it has become decayed and unsightly.
No tree is so deceptive in appearance as an old yew tree. Not only is it usually full of holes and shakes, but the heartwood is generally more or less unsound when over a foot in diameter. Some defects are usually present in an old yew tree, and even when clean and sound, the heartwood is not so good in colour as the younger wood or the slabs; and as the bark grows over and covers all these defects it is generally impossible to say how much, if any, of the timber of a large yew will be useful until it is sawn through the middle.
It seems to be soundest and best in colour when of moderate age and not over 12 to 18 inches in diameter, though the slabs from old trees of which the heartwood is pale, shaky, or faulty often show the finest and most twisted grain.
