VIII. 1. THE RIVER POPLAR. 247 



four to five and a half long, right-angled, hollowed or heart- 

 shaped at base, widening suddenly to their extreme width, and 

 gradually but roundingly tapering to the point, which is en- 

 tire, and often considerably prolonged, with a slender, sharp ter- 

 mination ; margin undulating, and bordered by large prominent 

 rounded serratures, each ending in a large gland turned towards 

 the end of the leaf, and separated by deep rounded bays ; smooth 

 and dark green on both surfaces; with white mid-rib and veins 

 which are irregular and much branched, and equally prominent 

 on both surfaces. 



Dr. Barratt tells me that when in flower, the tree seems cov- 

 ered with aments of a light red color, becoming paler when ex- 

 panded, at which time they are from three to five inches long. 

 This tree occurs on the banks of the Connecticut, above and 

 below Springfield, on the Chicopee, at Chicopee Falls, and in 

 various places on the Agawam or Westfield River, in situations 

 liable to be overflowed in spring. On the Connecticut and its 

 tributaries, it is called the river poplar. 



There is a striking difference in the appearance of those 

 branches which are vigorous, and those which are not, the for- 

 mer being strongly angled, the latter often not perceptibly so. 



Michaux thinks this tree the same that is called cotton wood 

 by Cass, who accompanied Lewis and Clarke to the Pacific, 

 and by Pike in his account of the northern part of New Spain ; 

 the cotton wood of Carolina being too tender a plant to bear 

 the intense cold of the regions in which this tree was found 

 growing. The Mandans, 1500 miles from the mouth of the 

 Missouri, feed their horses, during the winter, on its young 

 shoots. 



The river poplar deserves to be introduced into cultivation as 

 an ornamental tree. It is much the tallest and most graceful 

 of those which grow naturally in New England. Its foliage is 

 equal to that of the Balm of Gilead in size, and superior to it 

 in depth of color; and the abundance of its aments in spring, 

 and the rich colors of its leafstalks and young branches, when 

 growing in somewhat dry situations, make it a beautiful object. 

 By selecting cuttings from the sterile tree, the evil complained 

 of in the cotton of the Balm of Gilead will be avoided, and the 



