THE ASHES 



insect poisoned plants. Occasionally these 

 berry-like clusters have been gathered as seeds, 

 by mistake, instead of the true fruit, a mistake 

 which does not seem remarkable when the fruit- 

 like appearance of the clusters is considered. 



The wood of the white ash is heavy, tough, 

 and strong, and is much used for agricultural 

 implements, tool handles and oars, for the in- 

 terior finish of houses and in the construction 

 of carriages. Emerson tells of an ash which 

 was felled in Granville many years ago, the 

 wood of which furnished three thousand rake 

 stalks. The tree from which I took the fol- 

 lowing photograph, stands on a farm in Sterling, 

 Massachusetts, and measures over fourteen feet 

 in circumference, five feet from the ground. 

 This trunk illustrates the massive strength 

 which gives the ash its one aesthetic quality. 



This tree resembles the white 



6 Ash Wny as ^" > ^ ui * s distinguished from 

 Fraxinus pennsyi- it by the down on the recent 

 shoots. It is a smaller tree than 

 the white ash, more spreading in shape. The 

 twigs are less coarse and branch more fre- 

 quently, with less space between the buds, 

 shorter internodes, on shoots of the same age. 

 Buds inconspicuous, smaller and blacker than 

 those of the white ash. Bark closely fur- 



37 



