Thanks, guys. I was worried about poplar's strength but the lumber dealer said it would
be fine and it was about half the price of the ash. I agree that it should be fine
because 1) there are 14 slats, each 3 1/2" wide and 3/4" thick for a full-size bed; and 2)
the construction of the mattress should always spread pressure over several slats and 3)
no one in the family is "super-sized" enough to sue a fast-food chain. I'm going to leave
them unfinished.

I put the first coat of varnish on the bed yesterday, it took on a nice honey color over
night. Of course, last night I was reading Krenov (Fine Art of Cabinetmaking) saying that
he would never put such an ugly "wet yellow" finish on beautiful ash. Well, too bad. He
doesn't use run of the mill slab-cut boards either...