THE BIRCHES. 



93 



Paper, Canoe, or The splendid 



White Birch. w hite-trunked 

 Bttula papyrifera. 



Betula alba, var. P a P er or canoe 



papyri/era. bircll Called 



by the less specific name of 

 white birch, is so well known 

 through its useful and beau- 

 tiful paperlike bark that the 

 identification of the tree is de- 

 pendent on no 

 other means. But 

 lest it should be 

 confused with its 

 near relative, the 

 gray or white birch 

 {B. populifolid), I 

 draw attention to 

 certain differences. 

 Unlike the gray 

 birch, the extreme- 

 ly white bark is 

 scarcely marked with 

 a distinct triangular 

 brown patch, from the 

 top of which grows the 

 branch ; indeed, there is 

 hardly any brown at all 



Taper or Canoe Birch. 



