Arboreal Aberrations 



the stump will have disappeared, the tree will have reached 

 magnificent proportions, and outside of a little irregu- 

 larity of the tree's roots where they join the trunk, there 

 will remain no sign of abnormality of growth. 



No. 4. 



Trees, like humans, are inclined to laziness if not called 

 upon to be self-supporting. This otherwise normal 

 pine for twenty years has leaned thus indolently against 

 a rock. Undoubtedly, in years gone by, some high 

 easterly wind partially uprooted it, but the friendly 

 boulder prevented its crashing to the ground. The tree, 

 finding its position comfortable, appropriated the assist- 

 ance tendered as a lifelong privilege. One might think 

 that a strong westerly wind would set the tree back to a 

 perpendicular position, but an examination of the roots 

 disclosed the fact that the cavities left in the uprooting 

 process are completely filled by vegetation which pre- 

 cludes the possibility of the tree's ever being replaced by 

 nature. 



No. 5. 



Trees have either power to think, or instinct. This 

 picture shows the stump of a maple which was partly 

 undermined by the swift current. It leaned so far out 

 over the stream that its branches dragged in the water 

 and impeded a drive of logs floating down the river. 

 The lumber-jacks cut the tree off as revealed in the 

 picture, leaving one large and healthy branch almost 

 touching the water. This branch immediately turned 

 upward in its growth, with the object of keeping clear 

 of the flood, and is now quite a tree, calipering some 

 fourteen inches through the upright part of the trunk. 

 It draws upon the old tree's roots for nutrition. 



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