16 SYLVAN WINTEK. 



see two Oaks with an equal number of limbs, the 

 same kind of head, and twisted in the same form : 

 and it is from these large'r parts that the most 

 beautiful varieties result.' * 



Conspicuous, of course, amongst the leafless 

 denizens of the forest is the Oak, and its rugged- 

 ness and grandeur impress, alike, all who look 

 upon it with interest. It appears to and does hold 

 the ground as no other tree does. Its. power is 

 amazing its enormous tap-root penetrating the 

 ground and holding it in place so firmly as to 

 enable it to defy the tempest. From its great 

 bole fashioned with such peculiar strength and so 

 admirably adapted to meet the force of hurricanes 

 spread, in their enormous amplitude, the limbs ; 

 from these the twisted branches, and from the 

 branches the contorted spray. Of the especial 

 stoutness of the ' King of the Forest ' Gilpin has 

 something characteristic to say. In speaking of 

 this he remarks : ' A second characteristic of 

 the Oak, of which Virgil takes notice, is the 

 stoutness of its limbs; its fortes ramos. We 

 know no tree, except perhaps the Cedar of 

 * ' Forest Scenery,' page 4. 



