1886.] THE FORESTAL USEFULNESS OF MILIPEDES. 745 



allowed them, they seem to suffer hut little, rushing up with clean, 

 straight stems where, in several instances, their branches are com- 

 mingled with those of the adjoining trees. 



The timber produced in this country is, Judging from specimens 

 included in a collection of the various kinds grown on this estate, 

 of good quality, being liglit, tough, and very readily worked. It is 

 of a pleasant yellow colour, remarkably fine-grained, and takes a good 

 polish. Eegarding its lasting cpialities I know but little, too short 

 time having elapsed since the timber was felled of which I write ; 

 but judging from several trials that have been made, it certainly 

 shapes well, and, I may add, has so far given perfect satisfaction^ 

 but no doubt, when more perfectly matured, these qualities will be- 

 correspondingly increased. In conclusion, from my present know- 

 ledge of Thuia gigantea as grown in this country, combined with its 

 well-known value abroad, I have every reason to believe that a 

 bright future is before it as a British timber tree, and that amongst 

 the recently introduced conifers, whether for ease of culture or 

 strong, hardy nature, it is well able to hold its own, and rank with 

 such as the Douglas fir, Corsican pine, and that too little known 

 silver fir — Ahics Nordmanniana. 



CONCERNING THE FORESTAL USEFULNESS OF 

 MILLIPEDES. 



INFORMATION on this subject has been supplied by Keller in 

 the Sioiss Periodical for Forestry (1886, No. 1). It is the 

 pair-footed millipedes which, according to Keller's observations, have 

 to be recognised as friends and allies of the forester in his battle 

 against wood destroyers. They have a long flattened body, and a 

 shield- shaped head, Avith powerful jaws, which at once declare them 

 to be flesh-eaters. Our authority has till now confined his observa- 

 tions to the " brown stone-crawler " {LitJwhuis forjicatus, L.) which 

 keeps itself mostly under stones and the bark of trees, (It need 

 hardly be mentioned that Litlioblus is not in a literal sense a 

 millipede, nor even a centipede, although so classified, since it has 

 not more than fifteen pairs of legs.) At the building of the new 

 chemical laboratory in Zurich, a great many loads of spruce firs were 

 brought in to be used as underground timbers. Many of these 

 spruces were infested with the bark beetle, Bostricluis tyijographus. 

 When the bark was scaled off, many of the swift millipedes were to 

 be seen employed in destroying the young bark beetles before they 

 were fully coloured. Of many bark beetles all that remained to be 



