The woods used in furnishing are - deal, mahogany, rosewood, walnut, birch, maple, beech, white and yellow pine, satin-wood, cedar; and oak. lime, and pear, which are used for carving. Of these woods, deal is the cheapest and rosewood the dearest.

For bedroom furniture, japanned (or painted) deal is quite good enough. It is much cheaper than mahogany or birch, and looks fresher than birch after a lapse of years, if it is taken care of and kept clean.

For people who can afford it, an inferior kind of walnut-wood is very nice in bedrooms. But good mahogany, if it is not too expensive, is the best investment, for (with care) time improves it, and it will always, if sold, bring nearly its original price. Deal is used for the tables in kitchens, etc.

There are two kinds of mahogany - Spanish and Honduras. Spanish is the best; it is darker in hue, and the grain has a curl or wave in it which is considered a beauty, and regulates its price. It has a fine close texture, is very hard and strong, and does not break easily, nor does it warp or twist. The weight of mahogany is the best test of its value, the heaviest being, in general, the best. Sometimes mahogany is veneered over cedar or pine - that is, thin slices of the more valuable wood are glued on to other wood of less value. The Honduras mahogany has a coarse, loose, and straight grain and is not so valuable. Tricks are practised occasionally, by which Honduras mahogany is made to look the colour of Spanish. It is stained to the colour before it is polished. The same deceit is practised on birch, which is thus made to take the appearance of mahogany. The young housekeeper, to avoid being thus imposed on, should deal with a first-rate firm incapable of dishonesty. Buying cheap and showy furniture is a great mistake, as it never lasts, and costs more in the end for repairs, or replacement, than good articles would cost at first.

Rosewood is a dark hard wood, with a slight curl or wave in the grain. It is most used in veneers, but the solid wood is sometimes used.

Walnut, at the present time, rivals rosewood in use for drawing-room furniture. It is a very lovely wood, very close grained, compact and hard, and it takes a very high polish.

Birch is an American wood, of a pale yellowish brown, which, when polished, has a silky lustre that is very pleasing. By staining, it can be made to resemble Honduras mahogany, as we have said. It is much cheaper than rosewood or mahogany, and makes pretty chairs, etc.

Maple, also an American wood, somewhat resembles satinwood, but it is much darker, and the grain has more curl. It has knobs in it called birds' eye. It is used very much for picture-frames, and is not very common in furniture, but the writer possesses a remarkably handsome chest of drawers of maple.

Beech is a close tough wood, much used for the framework of chairs, bedsteads, and tables. It is rather paler than birch, and may be known by its having on it little specks of darker brown.

White and yellow pine are much used at present, japanned or painted, for bedroom suites, and look very nice, but the stain is apt to fade, and if the wood has not been very well seasoned, the furniture is apt to crack and fall to pieces. We think honest deal japanned, far preferable to pine.

Satin-wood is very beautiful for small fancy tables, cabinets, etc. etc., or inlaying. It was once fashionable in furniture, and still (we think) gives an air of distinction to a room, as its use is not quite of to-day.

Cedar is of a dark colour, resembling pale mahogany, and has a sweet aromatic smell. Chests of drawers made of it, and veneered with mahogany, are very nice, as cedar keeps away moths.

Oak is either British or foreign; the latter is known by the name of wainscot, and is used for kitchen tables in great houses. British oak is darker in colour than wainscot. Oak is used for carved furniture of the best and most expensive description.

Lime is seldom used except for carving.

Pear resembles pine.

Cane is split, and makes chair-bottoms for bedrooms.

Veneered articles of furniture are cheaper, and often lighter to move than those made of solid wood. By looking underneath a table, the purchaser can see if it is veneered or solid. Veneered goods are often preferable to solid, not only because they are cheaper, but because there is less risk of their splitting or warping.

The purchaser of veneered goods should catch the light upon them so as to see if the surface is perfectly flat. If it is not so, he should not purchase them - any inequalities of surface are caused by the veneering being badly done, or the wood underneath not having been seasoned.

Buhl-WORK consists of woods inlaid with metal (generally lacquered or gilt brass), or with ivory, tortoiseshell, etc. etc.

Marquetry resembles mosaic work, or Tunbridge-work - i.e. a pattern is formed by blocks of coloured wood being joined together. Marquetry is not so minute as mosaic work.

Parquetry is a coarse kind of buhl-work used for floors.

Almost all articles of modern wood furniture are French polished - dining-tables are sometimes excepted on account of hot plates, etc. marking the surface.