THE LONGEVITY OF TREES. 93 
trunk into independent portions, appearing like the remains 
of as many distinct trees, is not in itself improbable. The 
ancient Yew in Fortingal churchyard, Scotland, presents 
a striking instance of the kind. Indeed, Brydone’s guide 
assured him ‘“‘ that, by the universal tradition and even testi- 
mony of the country, all these were once united in one stem; 
that their grandfathers remembered this, when it was looked 
upon as the glory of the forest, and visited from all quarters ; 
though, for many years past, it had been reduced to the ruin 
we beheld. We began to examine it with more attention, 
and found that there is an appearance that these five trees 
were once really united in one. The opening in the middle 
is at present prodigious, and it does indeed require faith to 
believe that so vast a space was once occupied by solid tim- 
ber. But there is no appearance of bark on the inside of 
any of the stumps, nor on the sides that are opposite to one 
another. . . . I have since been told by the Canon Ricupero, 
an ingenious ecclesiastic of this place, that he was at the ex- 
pense of carrying up peasants with tools. to dig round the 
‘Castagno di cento cavalli’; and he assures me, upon his 
honor, that he found all these stems united below ground into 
one root.” } 
It appears, however, that Brydone has not fairly represented 
the worthy Canon Ricupero’s opinion; for he thought it prob- 
able that these present trunks were offshoots from the per- 
sistent base of a more ancient stem; a conclusion which is 
fully sustained by the observations of several competent nat- 
uralists, such as Duby,? Brunner,’ and Philippi.’ Every one 
knows how readily the Chestnut will throw up shoots from 
the root; and Philippi says it is a general custom in Sicily 
to cut them down after they have attained a considerable 
size, when the new stems that are thrown out from the base 
shortly become trees again. Other considerations would pre- 
1 “Tour through Sicily and Malta.” 
2 De Candolle, “ Phys. Vég.,” ii. p. 992. 
3 « Excursion through the East of Liguria, Sicily, and Malta.” 
* « Ueber die Vegetation am tna” ; in “Linnea,” vii. p. 727 ; and in 
“Comp. to Bot. Mag.,” i. p. 90. 
