lyo *The Statural Hijlory 



78. Befide the Elms at St. Johns knit together at the root, there 

 are two Beeches in the way from Oxford to Reading, near a place 

 called Cain-end, more ftrangely joined together a great height 

 from the ground: for the bodies of thefe Trees come from diffe- 

 rent roots, and afcend parallel to the top, but are joined together 

 a little before they come to bough, by a tranfverfe piece of tim-r 

 ber entering at each end into the bodies of the Trees, and growing 

 jointly with them, for which reafon 'tis commonly called the 

 Callow-tree, though the piece that intercedes them lies fomwhat 

 obliquely ; How this fhould come to pafs many have wondered, 

 but the problem I guefs may be eafily folved, only by allowing 

 the tranfverfe piece of Timber to be one of the boughs of the Tret 

 to which its lowermoft end ftill joins, which whilft young and 

 tender, might bear fo hard againft the body of the neighboring 

 Tree, that with the continual motion of the wind, it might not 

 only fretitfelf afunder, but gall off the barktoo of the other 

 Tree ; which clofingup again in calm weather at the rifing of the 

 fap, might well include fo near a neighbor, firft within its bark', 

 and after fome time within the wood it felf : which 1 have obferr 

 ved to have been done but very lately in New College Gardens, 

 where the boughs of two different Sycomores are thus grown to- 

 gether, only by bearing hard on one another, and interchangably 

 fretting away each others bark, and then doling up again at the 

 rifing of the fap. 



79. There have alfo fome accidents befallen the Ajb and Wil- 

 low, not commonly met with the former whereof in a Clofe of 

 one Mr. Coker, of the Town of Biffeter, grows frequently out of 

 the boal of the other, yet not as 'tis ufual amongft other Trees, 

 but fo that the roots of the Ajhes have fome of them grown down 

 through the whole length of the trunks of the Willows, and at laft 

 fattening into the earth it felf, have fo extended themfelves that 

 they have burft the Willows in (under, whofe fides falling away 

 from them and perifhingby degrees, what before were but the 

 roots, are now become the bodies of the Afies themfelves. But 

 this happens only to Willows that have been lopt at fix or feven 

 foot high ; the Willows at Enfion, in the walks near the Rock, 

 whereof there are feveral about 50 foot high, being incapable I 

 fuppofe of any fuch accident. 



80. Befide this unufual growth of the Aft, I have met with 



other 



