Imperial Forest of Bialowleza. 291 



tains, in marshy places, between hard-wood, on the plains; 

 larches on quadersandstein. 360,000 Prussian acres, in lease, 

 in Poland are covered by the common spruce, generally alone, 

 at times mixed with red beech and oaks, and often rising up in 

 gloomy shades, in which are aspens and birches. 



The tree most worthy of the notice of the botanist is the yew, 

 Taxus bai cata, in Polish Cis. On account of the utility of its 

 wood it has become very scarce, but was formerly very common 

 in Poland and Lithuania. Not only are there many villages 

 whose names are derived from Cis, but in the great forests there 

 are well preserved roots of this tree, which bear out the suppo- 

 sition that the trunks to which they belonged must have possess- 

 ed great height and thickness. Even in the vegetable earth of 

 the forest of Bialowieza there are old roots of the yew, although 

 neither so numerous nor large. Among the hard- wood trees 

 there are two common species of oak, the Quercus Rohur and 

 pedunctdata, in tolerable numbers, and furnishing magnificent 

 specimens ; the former is the most common. The beech (Fa- 

 gus sylvatica) is more abundant, and generally in the vicinity 

 of the oak. This species bears the same relation to this district 

 as the red beech (F. atro-rubus, Duroi) to Germany, and both 

 are distinguished from those of south Europe by their beauty 

 and height. The entire absence of the red beech in this forest, 

 is another proof that geographic latitude does not invariably de- 

 termine the Hmlts of plants; as in Poland, Avhere this tree 

 is rare, we see some specimens on the northern frontiers of 

 the kingdom ; in Lat. 53° 3', and in liat. 51', there are 

 woods of it, extending even to some thousand acres. In the 

 same latitude in Lithuania there is no trace of this tree. Ac- 

 cording to Count Plater, the beeches in the whole kingdom of 

 Poland cover a space of 45,000 Prussian acres. The common 

 birch (Betula alba), is scattered through the whole forest. El- 

 der, both the black (Alnus glutinosa) and the white (Al. in- 

 canaj, with a great variety of grasses, grow along the sides of 

 the streams, and especially in the lower situations. 



The small-leaved lime (Tilia parvifblia) is very common in 

 the Sarmatian plains ; it was formerly more abundant, but even 

 still forms large groups. The month of July is known in Po- 

 land by its flowering at that period. It is very common in the 



