"a few notches on old trees." 195 



from 20 to 30 ft, ill diameter, and some much ra.ore. The 

 fruit is called monkej-bread, and is of the size of a citron. 



In Calaveras County, North America, and in the Yosemite 

 Valley, near San Francisco, are certainly (and this without 

 query) some of the most remarkable trees in the world, the 

 sequoia trees. The S. gigantea, or Wellingtonias as we term 

 them often in this country, belong to the natural order Coni- 

 ferse or pines. They are appropriately termed " Mammoth 

 Trees." They grow in sheltered valleys at high elevations, 

 viz., 4,000-7,000 ft. above the sea level. The Mammoth 

 grove of Calaveras consists of from 90-100 trees of 

 gigantic proportions, varying in ^height from 300-400 ft. 

 One of the most notable is named " The Mother of the 

 Forest." It rises to the height of 3*27 ft., but is dead and 

 barkless. Its girth near the base is 75 ft. I dare say some 

 of you may recollect seeing the skeleton of an enormous tree 

 in the Crystal Palace at Sydenham, until the portion of the 

 Palace and this tree were destroyed by fire in 1866. This 

 skeleton was the bark of this very tree, stripped off for 110 

 feet of its height. The bark itself measured in thickness 

 about 18 inches. Another tree, "The Father of the Forest," 

 is a huge prostrate trunk, which measures in girth 110 ft. In 

 falling the trunk broke off at the height of 300 ft., and at 

 that point the girth is 40 ft,, and taking the average taper 

 of the surrounding trees, this dead giant may reasonably be 

 computed to have exceeded 400 ft. in length, or better, in 

 height. Inside the fallen branch there is a tunnel 35 ft, 

 long, and from 8 to 10 ft. high. The ^' Pioneer's Cabin," 

 a cavity in the trunk of another giant, is large enough to 

 accommodate a numerous party at dinner. 



The "Three Graces" grow within a few feet of each 

 other, and are famous for their symmetry and beauty. 

 They are of about an equal height, 265 ft. In San Fran- 



