no other claims to superiority, than what liave 

 been afforded by industry, opportunity, and an 

 uncommon degree of attachment to the subject, 

 But simple means are not always the least ef- 

 fectual ; and the country has much to regret, 

 that no public proof has yet appeared, of simi- 

 lar means having been used by others. 



The doubts, which rest upon the minds of 

 most men, both in regard to the propriety of 

 cultivating Timber, and the methods to be em- 

 ployed, are the best proofs of the necessity for 

 investigation. On a subject of such importance, 

 the uncertainty of public opinion is equally 

 detrimental and disgraceful. It is against such 

 uncertainty that the present effort is principal- 

 ly directed. If the author have furnished ma^ 

 terials or evidence sufficient to distinguish be- 

 tween truth and error, he has done his duty ; 

 and, whatever may be the event, as to the pre- 

 sent generation, posterity will remember the 

 effort with gratitude. 



