TREES IN THE LIFE OF A CITY 3 



mire the fine public buildings, every one will admit that the 

 chief attractions of Washington are the beautiful avenues of 

 shade-trees, which make it one magnificent park. 



The eighty-six thousand trees of the city of Paris consti- 

 tute one of its glories. They are not only the most potent 

 factor of the city's beauty, but also illustrate most strikingly 

 the possibilities of cultivating a large variety of trees in 

 streets and public places of large cities under adverse condi- 

 tions. The Prefect of the Department of the Seine, who has 

 jurisdiction over the trees of Paris, writes me that the soil 

 along the Paris streets is generally very poor. That the 

 trees of that city succeed is largely due to the great care 

 taken in setting them out and maintaining them. 



In the more recently developed suburban towns, where 

 property is high, the houses are built near together and 

 close to the street-line, so that there is not much of front 

 lawn. On such streets the uniform planting of trees relieves 

 the harshness of the perspective of a row of bare houses. 

 Besides softening the hard lines of buildings, the trees, 

 because of their beauty, are a continuous source of pleasure. 

 They have a restful effect and possess an unceasing inter- 

 est at all seasons of the year. In the winter, we can study 

 their outlines, branching, bark, and buds. In the spring, 

 we look forward to the appearance of the tree flowers. In 

 the summer, the trees are in the full majesty of their beauty. 

 In the fall, before they lose their leaves, the trees attract our 

 attention by the brilliant coloring of their autumn livery. 



From the viewpoint of health, we need but recall a few 

 well-known facts. Trees help to purify the air by absorb- 

 ing the carbonic-acid gas that is exhaled by man, and 

 giving back the pure oxygen he needs. The animal and the 

 vegetable world therefore complement each other, and one 



