180 



Here we hare a strong condemnation of the sessiliflora oak, coining from 

 one who may be supposed thoroughly acquainted with this subject ; at the 

 same time it is obviously an opuiion based merely upon hearsay evidence, and 

 not supported by facts. 



Thus we have on the one side the evidence of practical men inquiring for 

 the timber best suited for the various purposes to which it is applied in the 

 course of their professional practice ; and if we could be quite sure that the 

 opinions given were based upon trustworthy specimens of these two species of 

 timber, we ought to accept them without much hesitation ; but considering 

 how easily the two species may be mistaken, the one for the other in the dry 

 state, and in the face of the evidence given on the other side by eminent 

 botanists and others, we may fairly suspend our judgment. 



We now come to the testimony on the other side of the question, and the 

 first instance I shall give is the writer of the botanical articles in the Penny 

 Cychpcedia, whose valuable contributions are too well known to need any 

 eulogy on my part. He says, speaking of Quercus sessiUflora, " We have 

 already stated that the timber of this tree has been supposed, although erro- 

 neously, to be inferior to that of Q. pedunculata. Experiments as to strength 

 and toughness have shown that there is no material difference between the 

 two in these respects; and the durability of the wood of the sessile cupped oak 

 is attested by the well-known fact that the roof of Westminster HaU is 

 constructed of it, and not of chestnut, as has been sometimes said. It has 

 been found to be the timber of some of the most ancient buildings in this 

 country and elsewhere. An immense beam in an old house in Shropshire, 

 now called Stonehouse, was Q. sessiliflora, and the oak usually obtained from 

 bogs, where it must have lain for centuries, has often proved to be the same. 

 The wood may be easily known by its medullary rays, or silver grain, being 

 so far apart that it cannot be rent, and this gives it a peculiar aspect. Q. 

 sessiliflora is found all over England now, but nowhere in much quantity. 

 It is, however, more abundant in the west than elsewhere, and constitutes 

 the greater part of the oak of North Wales. It is a much handsomer tree 

 than the Q. pedunculata, and grows considerably faster, and therefore is by 

 far the most advantageous for the planter." 



The next writer whom I shall mention is Sir William Hooker, in whose 

 British Flora, while speaking of the Q. sessiliflora, we find the following : — 

 " The wood of the present species is said to be much inferior to the last (Q, 

 pedunculata), and a general opinion having prevailed that it has been more 

 extensively planted, especially in Scotland, no little alarm was in consequence 

 excited lest our forests should be thereby deteriorated. An eminent modern 

 author has however lately expressed his opinion that it is the Q. sessiliflora 

 which yields the best timber for shipping. This subject deserves the serious 

 consideration of the planter." The eminent modern author referred to by 

 Sir W. Hooker is Mr. H. T. Cooper, author of the Botany of the County of 



