THE INFLUENCE OF SOILS 39 



and tamaracks stood in the swamps. Nut-bearing 

 trees were at home in the southern peninsula and 

 in the southern portion of the northern peninsula. 

 Enormous tulip-trees, or whitewood, caused the first 

 settlers great trouble in becoming rid of them. Com- 

 pensation came with the wild fruits and berries that 

 throve from Point Keweenaw to the southernmost 

 coimties. 



The first settlers of these same southern counties 

 found attractive oak openings, — attractive because 

 of their natural beauty and because they relieved the 

 pioneer of the burden of deforesting the land. 

 "Scales' Prairie," says Charles A. Weissert, "was 

 a beautiful stretch of country about sixty acres in 

 extent, surrounded like the banks of a lake with a 

 hiffh forest and dotted with occasional islands of 

 burr oak trees which rose above grass six feet tall 

 that undulated in long billows before the breeze. 

 Into this stretch of open land deer and bear often 

 wandered, and thousands of flowers attracted swarms 

 of wild bees.'' ^ To Bela Hubbard the oak openings 

 of Oakland County apjieared as "a majestic or- 

 chard of oaks and hitkories varied by small prairies, 

 grassy lawns and clear lakes." ^ About Manchester, 

 L. D. Watkins found white, red and yellow pine, and 

 burr oaks, with hickory and a few scrub oaks on 

 the sand hills.^ 



The pioneers are constantly recurring to the charm 



'"Mich. Pioneer & Hist. Soc. Collections," XXXVIII, 665. 

 'Ihifl.. 44!). 

 ^Ibid., XXII, 264. 



