28 LANDSCAPE-GARDENING 



France, for example, it has been necessary to spend 

 millions to reforest mountains and foothills that 

 had become worthless through erosion and to pre- 

 vent the destruction of land below. Such de- 

 struction would result from its becoming covered 

 with the material washed from above. The re- 

 foresting would bring back not only beauty but 

 safety. Many countries once prosperous have 

 become, through the destruction of their forests, 

 like deserts and almost uninhabitable. The 

 United States should avoid a catastrophe of this 

 kind. The loss of beauty always accompanies 

 the destruction of a forest. This is one of the 

 many cases where beauty and utility are closely 

 connected. The forest is valuable for the \vood 

 and timber it produces and for the protection it 

 gives, but it is also valuable for its beauty ; and 

 this chapter would call especial attention to this 

 attribute which it possesses, and base on it a plea 

 for the preservation of woods. This plea would 

 be for the protection of the undergrowth as \vell 

 as of the larger trees. 



In subsequent chapters attention will be called 

 to the various elements of natural beauty. In 

 this chapter a general discussion of the subject 



