209 



I will feel much obliged by your remarks on the 

 above at your convenience, and remain, — 



Dear Sir, 

 Your most obedient Servant, 



James Gow, Jun. 

 To Mr. Monteath. 



As the Turkey oak has been but lately planted to 

 any extent in this country, I have not been able to 

 make any experiment on the utility of either its bark 

 or timber ; but shall not fail to do so as soon as op- 

 portunity offers. In the mean time I consider the 

 above letter as too valuable to be withheld from the 

 public. It appears that the Turkey oak, in point of 

 strength, has the same tannin principles as the Span- 

 ish chesnut ; but I am also aware that the Spanish 

 chesnut possesses many valuable advantages over the 

 Turkey oak, both as an ornamental and timber tree ; 

 and it can also be propagated by layering, as the 

 common oak, although I have pursued a system of 

 layering from the Spanish chesnut for these number 

 of years with success, and can give many proofs of 

 it ; yet many of the nursery gentlemen, whose judg- 

 ment and experience, one would be led to think, 

 should incline them to draw a very different conclu- 

 sion, will not admit of it. A very stubborn and in- 

 controvertible proof of it came to my knowledge a 

 few days ago, and which I saw, and may be seen by 

 every one : There is on the estate of Riccarton, the 

 property of J. Gibson Craig, Esq. about six miles 

 west from Edinburgh, a very large old Spanish ches- 

 nut tree, which had two bodies or trunks a little above 

 the ground, and it is plain had sprung from one root ; 

 but one of the sides is now fallen totally into decay; 



