Under the Oaks and Elsewhere 



In a recent geological report it is stated that 

 the largest white oak in New Jersey is nearly 

 twenty-five feet in circumference, and its spread 

 of branches more than one hundred feet. I re- 

 member an oak much larger, but size is not 

 everything from a wise rambler's point of view. 

 Much smaller trees will meet his needs, but they 

 must be oaks. "We can meet with people any- 

 where, but mere humanity does not suffice. We 

 demand congeniality. To grasp my meaning 

 better, try the trees as you find them, maples, 

 ashes, cedars, and then halt in a grove of oaks. 

 Possibly the former will please, but surely the 

 latter will wholly satisfy. That the Druids held 

 the oak tree sacred is a myth, but one too pretty 

 to brush aside. There is a sweet reasonableness 

 in many a pagan rite. 



I am continually told that oaks are not plant- 

 ed because of so slow a growth. It is not a valid 

 reason. Not so long ago I planted the acorn 

 that is now an oak tree, in the shade of which I 

 find comfort. The planting of an oak is the 

 performance of work that lasts; yet how few 

 are planted! We are too busy with soft wood 

 that perishes before our eyes. 



Trees are ever something more than Nature's 

 221 ^ 



