204 ox THE OLD AXD EEMARKABLE 



saw drauglits tell of its vigour having been spent." Other large 

 and old oaks still thrivinGj on this island will be found on refer- 

 ence to the appended returns. 



As we have already seen in considering the old sycamores in 

 Scotland, that many fine specimens are either ascribed to the 

 planting by the hand of the unfortunate Mary Queen of Scots, 

 or as commemorating^ eventful incidents in her historv ; so in 

 like manner, we find that the oak has also its appropriate patron, 

 many trees in different parts of the country being called 

 " Wallace's Oaks," and associated in tradition with incidents in 

 the life and chequered career of Scotland's great liberator. Sir 

 William Wallace's oak in Torwood near Stirling, has been in the 

 annals of Scotland immemorially held in veneration. In this 

 ancient Torwood, it stood in a manner alone, there being no 

 trees, nor even the ruined remains of any tree to be seen near it, 

 or that could be said to be coeval with it. The tradition of its 

 having afforded shelter and security to Wallace when he had 

 lost a battle, and was escaping the pursuit of his enemies, probably 

 served to secure its preservation, when the rest of the vv^ood at 

 different periods had been destroyed. In 1771 it had fallen into 

 a state of advanced decay, having at some previous date separ- 

 ated down the middle, and one half having entirely mouldered 

 away. The other half, however, remained, and was then at one 

 point about 20 feet in height; what the tree ever was above this 

 is lost in obscurity. From the peculiar mode of renovation of 

 old trees already referred to, a young bark had shot upwards 

 from the root in several places, which had thrown out fresh 

 shoots developing into branches, towards the upper part of the 

 old shell of the trunk. This healthy young bark spread like a 

 callus over several dead parts of the old trunk and over an old 

 arm. It measured then, so far as the cjirth of the tree could be 

 estimated from the size of the half that remained, about 22 feet. 

 It had never been tall, having forked into several large limbs 

 about 10 feet from the ground, thus affording at the division a 

 very likely and convenient place of concealment for a fugitive. 

 From information kindly furnished by the Eev. J. M'Laren of 

 Larbert, we further learn reo-ardino: this historical and interestinf^ 

 tree. He writes as follows: — "The real Wallace oak is gone for 

 ever. It stood in what was a part of the Torwood some cen- 

 turies ago, but the knoll which it occupied has been long separ- 

 ated from what is now called the Torwood by ground which has 

 been cleared, and is quarter of a mile from the present wood. 

 The old forester (a^tat 72), who has lived nearly all his days in 

 the Torwood, cannot remember ever having seen "the veritable 

 tree'; but Mrs Stirling of Glenbervie, who is also of a similar age, 

 remembers well having accompained her late husband and a 

 young Oxonian, who was filled with zeal about Wallace, to see 



