DENDROLOGY. 113 



our roads, an article of domestic and political economy, as well 

 as a public ornament and comfort. 



Most kinds of domestic animals are excessively fond of the 

 sap of the maple, and frequently break through their inclosures 

 to get access to the vessels containing it. 



If the sap be exposed for a few days to a warm sun, it is 

 formed into vinegar of a good quality. Maple beer, which is a 

 pleasant beverage, is also made from the same material, by the 

 addition of yeast and the essence of spruce. 



Striped Maple. Acer striatum. 



In Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, the state of Maine, New 

 Hampshire and Vermont, this maple is known by the name of 

 JMoose Wood: in New Jersey and Pennsylvania it is called 

 Striped Maple. This last denomination, which is preferable, as 

 being descriptive, we have thought proper to adopt. It makes 

 its first appearance in about latitude 47 degrees, and abounds in 

 Nova Scotia, the state of Maine and New Hampshire, where it 

 fills the forests. In approaching the Hudson it becomes more 

 rare, and beyond this boundary, it is confined to the mountainous 

 tracts of the Alleghanies, on which it is found, in cold shaded 

 exposures, aiong the whole range to their termination in Georgia. 



In many of the forests of Maine and New Hampshire, the 

 striped maple constitutes a great part of the undergrowth ; for its 

 ordinary height is less than 10 feet, though it sometimes exceeds 

 more than twice this stature. The trunk and branches are- clad 

 in a smooth, green bark, longitudinally marked with black stripes, 

 by which it is easily distinguishable, at all seasons of the year, 

 from whence it derives its specific name. It is one of the earliest 

 trees whose vegetation announces the approach of the genial 

 season. Its buds and leaves, when beginning to unfold, are rose- 

 colored, and have a pleasing effect; but this hue soon changes 

 to green. On luxuriant trees, the leaves are of a pretty thick 

 texture, and finely serrate. They are four or five inches broad, 

 rounded at the base, and divided into three deep and acute lobes. 



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