THE BEECHNUT. 45 



value of the wood and nuts. It is true, however, that 

 our native beech is not environed with ancient myths 

 and stories of love and war, neither is it celebrated in 

 poetry and song, yet it has, doubtless, played just as 

 noble a part in human affairs a"mong the pre-historic 

 races of America as those recorded of its European con- 

 temporary. As the beech in Europe is found in the 

 forests of Great Britain, Norway, Sweden, France, Ger- 

 many, and southward to Constantinople, Palestine, Asia 

 Minor and Armenia, it was well known and highly ap- 

 preciated by all the early inhabitants of these countries, 

 and is frequently referred to by the earlier writers of 

 Greece and Rome who touch upon the rural affairs of 

 their times. It is supposed that Theophrastus refers to 

 the beech under the name of Oxua, and Dioscorides 

 as Phegos, and the latter author places it among the 

 oaks, in which he was not far out of the way, because 

 the beech is a member of the oak family in our modern 

 classification. Virgil and Pliny speak highly of the 

 little triangular nuts, and the people of their times set 

 considerable value upon beechnuts as an article of food. 

 Pliny also assures us that at the siege of Chios, the be- 

 sieged inhabitants lived for some time entirely on these 

 nuts. We are inclined to think, however, that both 

 Virgil and .Pliny are in error when they tell us that 

 the beech was propagated by being grafted on the 

 chestnut. They were probably led astray in this by 

 some romancing gardener of their time, for we even 

 have* some of the same ilk with us at this day. Pliny 

 refers to the beech several times in his writings, and 

 places a much higher value upon this nut than he does 

 upon the chestnut ; in fact, speaks rather contemptu- 

 ously of the latter, and seems to be surprised that nature 

 should have taken such care of the nuts, which he calls 

 "vilissima," as to enclose them with a prickly involucre 

 or bur. 



