"VoL. II. | Flora of the Olympics. 257 
a misnomer to call this a tree. It is hardly ever more than a bush 
in the East, but our species ( Taxus brevifolia), reaches a diameter 
~of three or even four feet in moist, dark ravines. Its wood is ex- 
tremely tenacious and almost as heavy as mahogany, at least when 
‘green. On the shady, moist slopes of the Olympics it forms, at 
times, such dense thickets that it is almost impossible to force or 
even cut a way through, especially when bent down to almost a 
trailing condition by the weight of winter snows or the violence of 
spring avalanches. Near by and always to be found in moist ground 
along the shores of the Sound, was the white fir ( Abies grandis ). 
This is a beautiful tree, with its long leaves, regularly two-ranked, 
glossy and dark above, light gray or white beneath—its trunk white 
and regular till well advanced in years—its cones clustered at the 
‘summit of the tree, looking like bunches of erect red bananas, at 
times gemmed with drops of balsam which glisten like diamonds in 
the sunlight. To the lumberman, however, it stands the tree to be 
avoided, for its wood is probably the most worthless, foot for foot, 
of any of our western trees. Near by, and always present along 
the Sound banks, just above high-water mark, was found a white 
alder (Alnus rubra). The specific name isa misnomer, for the only 
time it ever looks red at all is when the reddish catkins are swinging 
on the trees in early spring. White is more proper on account of 
_ its white bark; possibly it may have derived its name from the wood, 
which assumes a reddish tinge when cut and exposed. Near at 
hand was the large-leaved maple ( Acer macrophyllum), common all 
Over our hills, and yet always a favorite from its generous foliage 
during the hotter months. Its wood is handsome and is highly 
esteemed by furniture dealers on this coast. The ‘‘ burls,’’ formed 
on these trees by various causes, furnish some of the most beauti- 
fully marked wood and capable of the finest polish of any found on 
the coast. Near at hand, and almost always in the company of the 
latter, was to be seen the vine maple (Acer circinatum). This 
plant in moist, rich bottoms well merits its name of ‘‘vine,’’ for it 
any plant pretending to be a tree, ever simulated more the “ viny ” 
nature, I should like to know what it is. Furthermore, does the 
mountaineer know a more exasperating tree to deal with when en- 
gaged j in cutting trail? Here is a clump of them bordering upon or 
overhanging this soft, miry-looking spot in your path. They are 
growing thickly together and offer a complete barrier to your fur- 
