6 THE FRUITS Of THE COUNTRY-SIDE 



HAWTHORN (Cratcegus Oxyacantha). 



Skirting, then, our hedgerow we soon encounter the 

 hawthorn, the subject of our first illustration, a shrub of 

 abundant occurrence, well known, therefore, doubtiess to 

 most of our readers, but scarcely to be omitted from our 

 series on that ground. 



While the hawthorn is undoubtedly indigenous and 

 may be found taking its place amongst the other trees 

 in our forests, we are most of us, perhaps, more especially 

 familiar with it as a valuable material for making hedges, 

 and that this use of it is of very considerable antiquity 

 may be gathered from the fact that the Anglo-Saxon name 

 for the plant is " hasg-thorn," the hedge-thorn. That it 

 may claim a place, however, amongst British forest trees 

 must not be overlooked, as specimens are on record, having 

 trunks with a circumference of ten feet, and a height of 

 some fifty feet. The timber Is of firm texture and capable 

 of taking a fine polish. 



These old thorns, and some of them are known to have 

 been in existence over two centuries, are ordinarily very 

 picturesque in appearance, as their stems are extraordinarily 

 contorted and interwoven, and we may often, on bleak 

 hillsides, find specimens of perhaps not more than ten or 

 twelve feet high, yet looking as venerable as forest trees 

 centuries old, with their stems closely wreathed together 

 and thickly covered with grey lichen. 



Returning to our hedgerow, however, we find that this 

 same freedom of interweaving of the branches makes the 

 hawthorn of great value as a hedge-maker.' We have but 



' Seeing that Fencing and Enclosing of Land is most evident to be 

 a piece of the highest Improvement of Lands, and that all our Plantations 



