184 THE USE OF WOODS. 



which, loosening on the lofty Alpine summit, comes thun- 

 dering with gradually accumulating power down the 

 mountain side, and spends its fury on the crashing but 

 conquering forests of hardy Conifer ce. 



In America we are in danger of losing sight of the utility 

 of the woods. We want the land which they cover for 

 agricultural purposes, we look on them as an incumbrance 

 on the soil, and their cutting down is a mere, question of 

 cents and dollars. Witness the disgraceful vandalism which 

 felled the noble Sequoias of California. Hence the woods 

 are disappearing on all sides, and this, too, on the most 

 formidable scale. 



But it is plain that other considerations ought to enter 

 into our calculations as to the removal of a woods, besides 

 its mere value as timber. If we remove trees from the 

 mountain side, from a low sandy coast, or from an inland 

 district only scantily supplied with water, there is no end 

 to the mischievous consequences which will ensue. By 

 such ignorant work as this, the equilibrium in the House- 

 hold of Nature is fearfully disturbed, and her wise and 

 beneficent arrangements for our own good are completely 

 frustrated. 



