THE LOCUST. 137 



The leaflets, varying in number from nine to twenty- 

 five on a common stem, have a singular habit of folding 

 over each other in wet and dull weather and in the night, 

 thus displaying a sensitiveness that is remarkable in all the 

 acacia family. The Locust is not highly prized by land- 

 scape gardeners, who cannot reconcile its defects to their 

 serpentine walks and their velvety lawns. But I am not 

 sure that the accidental deformities of the Locust may 

 not contribute to its picturesque attractions, when, for ex- 

 ample, from its furrowed and knotted trunk a few imper- 

 fect limbs project, and suspend over our heads a little 

 canopy of the finest verdure. 



Phillips says of the Locust, that, when planted in shrub- 

 beries, it becomes the favorite resort of the nightingale, to 

 avail itself of the protection afforded by its thorns. There 

 are many other small birds that seek the protection of 

 thorny bushes for their nests. On the borders of woods, 

 a barberry or hawthorn bush is more frequently selected 

 by the catbird and the yellow-throat than any other 

 shrub. I have observed that the indigo-bird shows a re- 

 markable attachment to the Locust, attracted, perhaps, by 

 some favorite insect that lives upon it. The only nests 

 of this bird I have ever discovered were in the branches 

 of the Locust. It is worthy of notice, that, notwithstand- 

 ing its rapid and thrifty growth in favorable situations, 

 this tree never occupies exclusively any large tracts of 

 country. It is found only in small groups, scattered 

 chiefly on the outside of woods containing different spe- 

 cies. The foliage of the Locust, like that of other legumi- 

 nous plants, is very fertilizing to the soil, causing the 

 grassy turf that is shaded by this tree to be always green 

 and luxuriant. 



