94 Trees, Stars, and Birds 



FIG. 55. Leaves and acorns of the white oak 04) and of the bur 

 oak CB). 



acorns with shallow, saucerlike cupules. Which kinds 

 of oaks have acorns that are good to eat? What birds 

 eat them? 



When the crop of acorns is abundant in parts of our 

 Southern states, the hogs that run in the woods fatten 

 on them. Cattle, deer, and squirrels also eat them. 

 The Indians esteemed them as an article of food ; in 

 southern Europe the people boil and eat them, and we 

 too should do this if we were not well supplied with better 

 food. 



Uses of oak bark and wood. In the bark of some kinds 

 of oak a dark-colored substance called tannin is deposited 

 very abundantly. This is used in tanning hides to make 

 leather. Why are untanned hides less useful than leather 

 for making shoes, harness, and other articles? Have 

 you ever seen a piece of raw hide? Corks are made 

 from the bark of an oak that grows in Spain and in 

 northern Africa. 



Oak wood is heavy, hard, and strong ; it has wide 



