1885.] FORESTRY COLLECTION. 15 



third of the whole piece, cut down and removed from the top ; in 

 this way the inner vertical and the horizontal surfaces are shown at 

 once. Only half of each of these exposed portions is polished in 

 order to illustrate the effect of the treatment ; the top of the 

 remaining upper portion is neatly finished by bevelling. 



The dimensions of specimens range from 2 inches to 6 feet 

 in diameter, the California pine showing the latter large measure- 

 ment. A plank of redwood {Sequoia semjjervirens) is also included, 

 which measures 8^ feet in width. 



Without extension to the innumerably multiplied varieties, the 

 collection will represent every native species of this country. Each 

 specimen is to be accompanied by a placard giving both the local 

 and the scientific name, the study being rendered of further advan- 

 tage by numbering in duplicate trees of corresponding species in 

 Central Park. The plan includes also the publication of a descrip- 

 tive catalogue. Another useful feature in addition will be that of 

 the drawings of leaves, flowers, cones, fruits, etc., which are being 

 prepared by Mr. Faxon at the Arnold Arboretum. These are to be 

 hung in the exhibition, each above a corresponding specimen in the 

 wood, while a different illustrative series will consist of pressed 

 leaves forming an herbarium. 



A course of observations connected with the work may prove 

 scientifically of some aid in arboriculture. In the preparation of 

 the wood at the Arsenal, exact diagrams are drawn from the 

 horizontals as the cuttings are made, and representing the increase 

 in diameter for succeeding years of the tree's existence as indicated 

 by the rings. It is hoped that the record may serve toward a 

 solution of such questions as whether dry seasons affect some or all 

 trees as causing slower growth, and all the data for comparative 

 study are filed away for reference. 



A record of the age and diameter of every tree represents in a 

 general way the comparative rates of growth. A tree three hundred 

 and sixty-nine years old which is only 1 5 inches in diameter is 

 an example of slow growth. This is the Pinus cclidis or edible pine 

 from Arizona, called also nut pine, and of which the seed, resembling 

 in dimensions a good-sized bean, is used by the Indians for food. 

 The Western shell-bark hickory (Carija sulcata) from AUenton, 

 Missouri, which is three hundred and forty-one years old, has a 

 diameter of 37 inches; another tree only one hundred and fifty 

 years old with a diameter of 40 inches represents a different habit 

 of growth. This is the Tilia americana or basswood, from the same 

 locality as the last-named species. 



The oldest tree in the collection, and which has felt the snows of 

 four hundred and ten winters, represents a species remarkable for 



