of the Northern Forest 67 



do we see it in all its strength. On the southern slopes 

 of this mountain chain, much finer trees than any in 

 England or France begin to appear, and as the traveller 

 goes southward he finds the Chestnut still increasing 

 in size and beauty towards southern Italy and Sicily. 

 There, in the lower girdle of woods, Cork trees and 

 Evergreen Oaks prevail, often growing out of the lava ; 

 but in a higher zone of this woody girdle, at an eleva- 

 tion of between 3,000 and 4,000 feet, the Chestnut is the 

 great tree. The elevation and the soil (consisting chiefly 

 of ashes in an impalpable powder) suit it well, trees in 

 that region being of gigantic growth, numbers of them 

 far above the average size of the forest trees of Europe. 

 The Chestnut will grow well on sandy or brashy slopes 

 where Oak or Pine would fail. 



The Hornbeam. This beautiful tree is one of the 

 neglected children of the woods. Compared with some 

 countries we have a limited tree flora, and it is therefore 

 remarkable that any of our own trees should be so 

 neglected by planters as the Hornbeam is. 



It is a native of the southern parts of England, but not 

 of Ireland or the north, and it inhabits a vast region in 

 central and northern Europe and Asia. It is said to 

 like a clay soil, but judging by its rarity in the heavy 

 Wealden country south of London, it does not seem to 

 like a compact soil, while it is abundant at Epping, on 

 more open soil. Some coolness of soil is no doubt 

 necessary to it. Free sandy loams suit it better than the 

 compact soils of the Weald, nor does it care for very hot 

 ground, any more than for marsh lands, or those of 

 a peaty nature. 



The finest Hornbeams seldom exceed 70 feet in 

 height, with about the same spread of branch and a stem 

 F 2 



