There is no doubt that wood to be used for carving should be hot, pungent, and bitter: thoroughly obnoxious to wood-destroying insects. If we cannot obtain this wood in England, we certainly can abroad, and one shipload would last a long time for such purposes. Take, for instance, the _Jarrah_ of Western Australia; the _Determa_, the _Cabacalli_, and _Kakatilly_, of British Guiana; and the _Sepe_, of Trinidad: these woods are much valued where they grow, and no insects ever attack them. We do not say that they are suitable for wood carvings, but they might be tried, and we certainly know they are not likely to be worm-eaten at the end of a few years. They need not be discarded on account of their hardness; boxwood is hard, but some good carvings have been executed with boxwood. We can relate an anecdote about this wood. On 3rd June, 1867, Mr. W. G. Rogers, the celebrated wood-carver (would that he were alive now to read these words), was asked, at the Royal Institute of British Architects, if boxwood is objectionable for wood carvings,[38] and he did not reply to the question; if he had given his opinion it would have been a valuable one, coming from such an authority. We must therefore get Mr. Rogers’ opinion of this wood in another way. If the reader will refer to the “Reports by the Juries,” English Exhibition, 1851, vol. ii., page 1555, he will find the following words: “W. G. ROGERS, of London.--A cradle executed in boxwood for Her Majesty Queen Victoria, and richly ornamented with carved reliefs; also, a group of musical instruments, among which may be especially noticed a violin. These works show an extraordinary dexterity in the treatment of the material, and the ornaments of the cradle are in excellent taste. Prize medal.” We have already referred to the Report of the Commission on the Decay of Wood Carvings, and as this report is now rather difficult to be obtained, we propose condensing some extracts from it, which may prove of value to the reader. Of the three species of beetles injurious to furniture and carved work, the first, _Ptilinus pectinicorius_ is about one-fourth of an inch in length, and the male is distinguished by its beautiful branched antennae; the second, _Anobium striatum_, which is by far the commonest and most destructive, is about one-eighth of an inch long and of a brown colour, with rows of small dots down the back; and the third, _Anobium tessellatum_, is about one-third to one-fourth of an inch long, the back varied with lighter and darker shades of brown scales.