CHAP. CV. CORYLA‘CEH. QUE’RCUS. 1717 
Genus I. 
a] a1 elelala 
QUE’RCUS L. Tue Oak, Lin. Syst. Monce‘cia Polyéndria. 
Identification. Lin. Gen., 495.; Juss., 410, ; Fl. Br., 1025. ; Tourn., t. 349.; Lam., t. 779.; Gertn., 
Patera Tex Tourn. ; Siber Tourn. ; Derw, Celtic; Aaack, or Ac, Sazon; Al, Alon, or Allun, 
Hebrew ; Drus, Greek ; Chéne, Fr. ; Eiche, Ger. ; Eik, Dutch ; Quercia, Ital. ; Encina, a 
Derivation. From quer, fine, and cuex, a tree, Celtic, according to Lepelletier: but, according to 
others, from the Greek word choiros, a pig ; because pigs feed on the acorns. The Celtic name 
for this tree (Derw) is said to be the root of the word Druid (that is, priest of the oak), and of the 
Greek name Drus, The Hebrew name for the oak (Al, or Alon) is said to be the origin of the old 
English word d/an (originally signifying an oak grove, or place of worship of the druids, and after- 
wards, by implication, a town or parish), and also of the Irish words clan and clun, In the Book of 
Isaiah, xliv. 14., idols are said to be made of Allun, or Alon ; that is, of oak. (Lowth’s Trans.) 
Description. The oaks are trees of temperate climates, mostly of large 
size, and, in point of usefulness to man, only to be equalled by the pine and 
fir tribe. The latter may be considered the domestic, and the former the 
defensive, trees of civilised society, in the temperate regions throughout 
the world. The oak, both in Europe and America, is the most majestic 
of forest trees. It has been represented by Marquis (Rech. Hist., &c.) 
as holding the same rank among the plants of the temperate hemispheres 
that the lion does among quadrupeds, and the eagle among birds; that 
is to say, it is the emblem of grandeur, strength, and duration; of force that 
resists, as the lion is of force that acts. In short, its bulk, its longevity, and 
the extraordinary strength and durability of its timber, attest its superiority 
over all other trees, for buildings that are intended to be of great duration, 
and for the construction of ships. In one word, it is the king of forest 
trees. The trunk of the oak is not, in general, remarkable either for its 
length, straightness, or freedom from branches, except when it is drawn up 
among other trees. In an open situation, the larger species send out nu- 
merous very large horizontal branches, so as to form a head broader than the 
tree is high. The branches, in many of the species, are tortuous towards 
their extremities, and furnished with numerous twigs, or spray. The main 
root of the oak, in most species, descends perpendicularly to a considerable 
depth, unless the subsoil be unpropitious: but it also extends horizontally as 
widely as the branches ; thus taking a firmer hold of the ground than any other 
tree, with the exception, perhaps, of the walnut, and one or two others. The 
surface roots, in only one or two species, throw up suckers. The leaves vary 
in different sections of the genus. In what are called oaks by way of emi- 
nence, such as Quércus Robur, Q. ribra, and Q. Cérris, which may be con- 
sidered as the heads of three great families, they are of a shape which is rarely, 
if at all, to be found in any other genus of plants. The lanceolate leaves of 
the willow, the cordate leaves of the poplar, and the pinnate leaves of the 
ash or the acacia, are to be found in many genera; but not so the lobed 
and sinuated leaves of the oaks of the three sections above mentioned. In 
other sections, such as that represented by Q. Phéllos and Q. I‘lex, the leaves 
are entire, and may be considered as exhibiting commonplace forms. In 
most of the species, and especially in the larger trees, the leaves are deci- 
duous ; but in some sections, as in Q. J‘lex and Q. virens, they are evergreen, 
The flowers are in all inconspicuous, without corollas, and, in general, ap- 
pearing with, or before, the leaves. The female flowers are, as in most amen- 
taceous plants, less numerous than the male flowers; and, while the male 
flowers are, for the most part, on pendulous catkins, the female flowers are in 
many cases sessile. The fruit is in all an acorn; a name in common use, and a 
form every where known in the temperate climates of the northern hemisphere. 
This fruit is as distinct in its character and appearance from all other fruits, 
as the leaves of the common oaks are from all other leaves. The form and 
size of the nut of the acorn do not differ nearly so much as might be ima- 
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