THE ANNUAL EXCURSION. 75 



being tall, straight, clean and beautifully grown. The cubic 

 contents of this area are much greater than that of any other 

 area of Scots pine seen during the Excursion. Near at hand 

 there are numbers of larches measuring over loo feet in height 

 and girthing up to 8 feet. There are also many good hard- 

 woods including good specimens of Juglafis regia. 



General comment was made on the extent and excellence of 

 the afforestable land in this neighbourhood. The valleys are 

 very wide, and the levels are comparatively low, while the soil 

 is ideal. 



Mr F, J. Cochrane, factor for Dr Farquharson, and Mr Geo. 

 Cocker, ground officer, conducted the party. 



Friday, June 2^th. 



The concluding day of the Excursion was spent in the part 

 of the valley of the Dee between Banchory and Aberdeen, and 

 afforded a great variety of interest, including as it did visits to 

 Silverbank Sawmills at Banchory, to Crathes and to Durris. 

 At Silverbank Sawmills, which belong to Messrs A. and G. 

 Paterson, Mr Donald Munro conducted the party. The visit 

 afforded members an opportunity of seeing the quality of the 

 timber they had been inspecting, in the growing condition,' for 

 the past three days. An exhibit of much interest and educational 

 value was provided by Mr Munro, in a large selection of trees 

 and boards showing the nature and the extent of the damage 

 done by squirrels. The exhibits were such as to impress 

 members with the seriousness of the matter. 



Crathes. — A short visit was paid to Crathes Castle, the 

 residence of Sir Thos. Barnett, Bart., of Leys, where the party 

 was under the guidance of Mr J. C. Dunbar, factor. Woods 

 similar to those inspected on previous days were again seen. 

 There are also many large specimen trees, singly and in groups. 

 The special feature of the place is the magnificent yew hedges 

 in and around the gardens. They are at least 12 feet high and 

 from ID to 12 feet thick. They are skilfully trimmed, and are 

 still very vigorous and healthy. They were planted in 1596, at 

 the time of the completion of the castle. 



DuRRis.— The estate of Durris, belonging to Mr H. J. Baird, 

 affords much of both silvicultural and arboricuftural interest, 

 so much in fact that the Society could only see a very small 

 proportion of the woods and trees worth seeing, in the short time 



