144 FAMILIAR TREES 



now they are commonly used at dessert, or in sugar- 

 plums and cakes instead of almonds. If not kept 

 in the cone, however, the abundant oil they contain 

 becomes speedily rancid. They are known in French 

 as " pignons," whence the tree gets its name of " Pin 

 pignon." On the islands in the Sea of Marmora, 

 where the tree is very common, the cones are 

 exposed to fire to make them open and drop out 

 the seeds, which are known in Turkish as " fistik." 

 Besides being much eaten by squirrels, they form 

 the chief food of the cross-bill, a bird which 

 occasionally visits this country, and whose beak is 

 specially modified for their extraction from the 

 cone. 



Where this Pine occurs in large groves of fine 

 trees, such as those which form one of the great 

 beauties of the ancient city of Ravenna, " Queen of 

 the Marshes," where these trees extend for miles, 

 the rustling and sighing of the boughs in the wind 

 has often arrested the attention of the poet. 



TRANSVERSE SECTION OF NEEDLE LEAF OF STONE FINE. 



