(£oc% (mountain TUonfcerfanb 



little toward winning new territory. On the 

 other hand, aspens, willows, gray birch, cotton- 

 wood, old-field pine, and lodge-pole pine pro- 

 duce seedlings that glory in the sunlight and 

 seek to gain more territory, — to push forward 

 the forest-frontier. 



Again and again the forest has been swept 

 away by fire ; but again and again a few aggres- 

 sive species have retaken speedily the lost ter- 

 ritory. In this pioneer reclamation the aspen 

 and the lodge-pole are leaders. The aspen fol- 

 lows the water-courses, running along the 

 muddy places, while the lodge-pole occupies 

 the dry and rocky slope of the burned area. 

 Seen from a distance the aspen groves suggest 

 bright ribbons and pockets on the sombre 

 cloak with which lodge-pole drapes the moun- 

 tain. And even beneath the trees the contrast 

 between the methods of these two agents of 

 reforestation is marked. The lodge-pole pine 

 is all for business. Its forest floor is swept 

 clean and remains uncarpeted. The aspen 

 groves, on the other hand, seem like the haunts 

 of little women. Here the floor has a carpet of 



218 



