64 THE TUPELO. 



eccentricities of habit. It has received a variety of names 

 in different parts of the country, being called " Swamp 

 Hornbeam," from the toughness of its wood ; " Umbrella 

 Tree," from a peculiar habit of some individuals to become 

 flattened and slightly convex at the top. Among our 

 country people it is known as the " "Wild Pear," from a 

 fancied resemblance between its foliage and that of the 

 common pear-tree. The resemblance seems to consist 

 only in the size and gloss of its leaves. In the Middle 

 and Southern States it is called the " Sour Gum," to 

 distinguish it from the " Sweet Gum," or Liquidawibar. 

 The name of Tupelo was given it by the aboriginal in- 

 habitants. 



The shapes assumed by the Tupelo are exceedingly 

 grotesque, though it is frequently as regular in its growth 

 as our most symmetrical trees. It is sometimes quite 

 erect, extending its branches horizontally and pretty 

 equally on all sides, but generally forming a more or 

 less flattened top. More frequently the Tupelo displays 

 no symmetry of any kind, extending its branches mostly 

 on one side, and often putting forth two or three branches 

 greatly beyond all the others. Many of these are con- 

 siderably twisted, inclining downward from a horizon- 

 tal position, not with a curve like those of the elm, but 

 straight, like those of the spruce, though without any of 

 its formality. The spray is very different from that of 

 other trees. Every important branch is covered all round, 

 at top, bottom, and sides, with short twigs, at right angles 

 with the branch. Some of the swamp oaks resemble the 

 Tupelo in fantastic shape, but they never have a flattened 

 top. 



The Tupelo is the very opposite of the ash in its gen- 

 eral characters ; the one is precisely regular in its habits, 

 the other eccentric and grotesque. The leaves and small 

 branches of the ash are opposite, those of the Tupelo alter- 



