466 THE NATURAL HISTORY 



are fine old specimens. The Broad-leaved Elm ( Ulmus 

 montana) is more rarely met with as a timber tree. 

 This is one of the forms known as the Wych elm, and 

 there are two very fine ones on the estate, one in the 

 Park on Steel's Hanger, and the other in the Round 

 copse at the foot of West Harting Down. It is also 

 sparingly distributed as an underwood in the covers, 

 and in this stage of its growth the woodmen call it the 

 Wych Hazel. 



There is a very fine and picturesque example of 

 the 'Birch (Betula alba) in the park near Padswood, 

 and a smaller one nearer Padswood bottom, but the 

 home of the species is on the sand at West Heath, 

 where it is found abundantly, it is also met with 

 as an underwood in the covers on the chalk, and in 

 one or two other localities. 



The Scotch' Fir (Pinus sylvestris) ; the Larch (Larix 

 Europcza} ; the Spruce Fir (Abies excelsa], and other 

 coniferous trees, may be included in our list, but as, 

 with the exception of the Scotch Fir, they are cul- 

 tivated plants, we need only say that they are well 

 established with us, both on the chalk and on the 

 sand, and if the monotony of a fir plantation is not 

 always very pleasing to the eye, its valuable timber 

 is fully appreciated. 



The Field Maple (Acer campestris) is one of the 

 most striking objects in our "fading many-coloured 

 woods" in the autumn, and its rich golden-yellow 

 foliage then stands out in bright contrast with the 

 surrounding shades of dark green and russet brown. 

 There is a very large, old, rugged specimen in the 

 Deer Paddock, with a fine wide-branching head, the 

 trunk of which, at three feet from the ground, 

 measures ten feet and a half in circumference. Many 

 others are found in the Park fence, between Bridger's 

 Pond and the Little Green Lodge, in Lady Holt 

 Park, in the Round Copse, on the eastern slope of 

 West Harting Down, adjoining the Harting Crofts, 



