■ •^^ 



336 Account t>f three Tmief'Trees luhich 



The following is a Letter I received from my worthy friend the Rev. Thomas Gifborne, 

 author of feveral ufeful publications : 

 « Dear Sir, 



" Yoxall Lodge, Oft. 10, 1795. 

 ** I have this evening received a letter from m^ brother-in-law, Mr. Babington, re- 

 fpe(Sling the meafurements of the iron oaks at Hillerfdon, near CuUompton, where he now 

 is : I fubjoin what he fays on the fubjeft, and have pleafure in finding the refult fo ho- 

 nourable to the tree which you recommend. 



" I am, Sir, &c. 



" Thomas Gisborne. « 



«* To-day I have meafured fome of the oaks about three feet and a half from the 



ground ; and give you the refult, which I thought would be fair and fatisfailory, in tlie 

 following way :— — 



** No. of Englifli oaks. Circumference. 



Feet. Inches. 



8 " 31 I 



9 . 30 I 



9 32 8 



16 a6) 93 10 



; Average circumference 3 7^- 



** No, of iron oaks. Circumference. 



Feet. Inches. 



6 31 6 



6 • — 32 10 



6 31 9 



18 18) 96 



Average circumference 5 4 



** As circles are as the fquares of their circumferences, pieces of the buts, at this 

 height, a foot long, would be to each other 331877:4096. Now, fuppofing the iron 

 oaks to carry their buts as much higher than the others as their fubllance below would 

 lead us to expe£l: (and they feem, in fa£l, to do this or more), there muft be four or five 

 times as much wood in them as there is in the Englifli oaks. An old labourer here in- 

 forms me, that all were planted at the fame time, between forty and fifty years fince. 

 They ftand in rows, ten feet afunder, and the trees are twenty feet from each other in 

 each row. I meafured fuch trees as firft prefented themfelves, with' the exception of one 

 or two which feemed unhealthy. They are on a fteep bank and a gravelly foil. The 

 trunks of the iron oaks are covered with a lighter mofs, on the whole, than fixes kfelf on 

 the EngKlh oak ; but make a fine appearance. I meafured many outfide trees, and oh- 

 ferved that the iron oak feemed to have as great a fuperiority over the other, in this fitua- 

 tion, as it has when furrounded by neighbours. As to the height, the iron oaks very ge- 

 nerally out-top the others, and are the mailer trees j but you know that in a plantation^ 

 Header tree will pften be nearly as tall as its fturdy neighbour. \ 



