212 



NATURAL HISTORY OF VERMONT. 



Part i. 



RED MULBERRY. 



IRON WOOD. 



WHITE BEECH. 



size for some distance. The wood of this 

 tree holds a middle place between the 

 hard and sot't wood trees. The most re- 

 markable peculiarity of this tree consists 

 in the arrangement of its woody fibres, 

 which are so united into bundles and 

 twisted and braided together, that it is 

 nearly impossible to split it. Hence it is 

 often employed for the naves of wheels, 

 and other articles, which are liable to 

 split when made of common materials. 



THE RED MULBERRY. 



.Morus rubra. 



Vermont is near the northern limit of 

 the growth of this tree, and here it grows 

 very sparingly. At the south it is said to 

 attain the height of GO or 70 feet, and the 

 wood is employed for many useful pur- 

 poses, but here neither its size nor its 

 pumbers render it of much consequence. 



er constitutes the principal part of the 

 forest, but is thinly scattered among the 

 other trees in almost all parts of the state. 

 It seldom exceeds 40 feet in heigh. t or JO 

 inches in diameter. The wood is white, 

 compact, fine grained, and very heavy. 

 It is used for making the cogs of whe**ls, 

 for mallets, and for various other purpo- 

 ses. When seasoned it makes the very 

 best of fuel, but its slow growth and lim- 

 ited quantity prevents its being an object 

 of much regard. 



HORNBEAM, OR BLUE BEECH. 



Carphms .'Imcricana. 

 This tree is not common excepting in 

 the western part of the state, where it is 

 generally known by the name of Blue 

 Beech. It seldom exceeds twenty feet in 

 height or 4 or o inches in diameter. The 

 bark is smooth and undivided, and sets 

 very close to the wood, the surface of 

 which is usually irregularly furrowed. 

 The wood is white, compact and fine 

 grained, but the tree is so small and rare 

 that little account is made of it. 



^QM«itJt^j>.... 



IRON WOOD. 



Ostrya Vlrginica. 

 Thebody of this tree, while small, is much 

 used for levers in rolling logs, and hence 

 it is frequently called Lever Wood. It is 

 also called Hop-Horjihccnn, from the re- 

 semblance of the fruit to that of the hop. 

 The growth of this tree is very slow, as 

 may be seen by the great number of con- 

 centric annual layers contained in a tree 

 ^f only a few inches in diameter. It nev- 



RED BEECH. 



Fagus ferruginca. , 



The Red Beech is found in all parts 6? 

 the state, and in some places is so much 

 multiplied as to form almost entire forests 

 of considerable extent. Its usual height 

 when full grown is from 60 to 70 feet, 

 with a diameter of 2 or 2^ feet. The 

 wood is valuable for fuel and in the arts. 

 That of the second growth in open lands 

 is strong, compact, fine grained and heavy. 

 As it is not liable to warp when well sea- 

 soned, it is very suitable for the backs of 

 cards, and is generally chosen for that 

 purpose. It is also used for shoe lasts, for 

 the wood of joiners' planes and other 

 tools, and for the handles of various kinds 

 of instruments. For fuel it is but little 

 inferior to the sugar maple, if it be sea- 

 soned and kept under shelter from rains 

 and moisture, but if exposed it is soon in- 

 jured, and the sap wood soon rots. The 

 fruit of this tree is usually abundant, and 

 as swine eat it with avidity the early set- 

 tlers of the state relied much upon beech- 

 nuts for fattening their hogs. As beech- 

 nuts are injured by the fall rains, those 

 which are designed for preservation 

 should be gathered as soon as ripe, and 

 should be thinly spread in a dry place till 

 they are thoroughly seasoned. They are 

 often eaten, but are not very highly es- 

 teemed. A rich oil may be extracted 

 from the nut. 



THE WHITE BEECH. 



Fagus sijlvestris. 

 The two kinds of Beech are distin- 

 guished chiefly by their wood and dura- 

 bility. In the Wiiite Beech the greater 

 part of the tree is sap-wood and very per^ 



