88 



FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION. 



February, 



the Linden is found from New Branswick to 

 Georgia and west to Kansas, but disappointed 

 in reading that the Yellowwood occurs onh- in 

 Kentuckj' and Tennessee, or that the Bur Oak 

 is at home on the Penobscot River, in Maine, or 

 Lake Champlain, in Vermont, in the Berkshire 

 Hills and on Ware River, in Massachusetts. 

 The Slippery Elm , also, said to be ' ' found in cer- 

 tain localities throughout the Atlantic States," 

 but is ' ' not common in eastern Massachusetts. ' ' 



Occasionally the author has to rely for dis- 

 tinctive features on summer studies. Prutius 

 virginiana and P. pennsylvanica are distin- 

 guished from P. seroii7ia ' ' by their red instead 

 of black fruit." After all, we are afraid this 

 would not be easy. 



Coming to the nuts that some trees bear, it 

 is surprising to read that "shell-barks are of 

 greater commercial value than those of any 

 other hickory. " Doubtless the author meant 

 to say, of any other hickories in New England ; 

 otherwise the Pecan (which is a hickory, but 

 not of New England) would feel hurt. The 

 nuts of Hicoria glabra are declared to be un- 

 marketable ; nevertheless the best forms of 

 these nuts are sold in the market. 



Speaking of the "hairy brown buds " of the 

 Slipperv Elm, the author saj^s, "compared with 

 the smooth hard buds on many trees, they are 

 what soft, long-haired .\ ngoras are to ordinarj' 

 cats. ' ' In choosing this simile the author has 

 broken down all lines of conventional descrip- 

 tion. 



We commend the book as a helpful contri- 

 bution to our popular literature on trees. 



G. B. S. 



Forest Trees and Forest Scenery. Bj- G. Fred- 

 erick SCHWARZ. Pp. 183. Illustrated 

 by 26 half-tones. New York: The Grafton 

 Press, 1901. Price, |r.5o 



It is not too much to say that the author has 

 chosen a subject which is almost entirely un- 

 written in this country ; but in giving his 

 thoughts he has vividly expressed the feeling 

 that is common to ever}' true lover of the 

 forest. By a painstaking analysis of the es- 

 thetic elements of forest scenery and its con- 

 comitants, he has presented the subject in a 

 way that all readers may find some new beau- 

 ties and economies in the habits of trees and 

 the conformation of forests. 



The author shows a careful stndj' and famil- 

 iarity with the trees considered. Useful facts 

 and descriptive characters of a large number 

 of native trees are deftly interwoven in the 

 discussion of his subject. Excellent illustra- 

 tions give a clear idea of the author's obser- 

 vations. 



One of the most commendable features of 

 the book is its allusions to and popular treat- 

 ment, in connection with the general subject 

 of forestry in its relation to trees and forests. 

 This will be greatly appreciated by general 

 readers, especially just now when the intro- 

 duction of conservative forest management is 

 receiving so much encouragement in this 

 country. Popular interest in this subject is 

 very great, and the book before us deserves 

 praise for its timely hints. 



A pleasing feature is the excellent printing 

 and attractive appearance of the book. The 

 illustrations are well chosen and clearly illus- 

 trate the points discussed. 



Trees of New England. By L- L- Dame and 

 Henry Brooks. Pp. 196. With plates 

 from original drawings by Elizabeth G. 

 BiGELOW. Boston : Ginn & Co. 



Messrs. Dame and Brooks have given the 

 New England public, interested in our native 

 trees, a book that has long been needed. This 

 book is a small volume which one can easily 

 put into the pocket and carry into the woods, 

 and at the same time it is the best guide to the 

 identification of our New England trees of any 

 of the smaller books heretofore published. 



Since the completion of Professor Sargent's 

 ' ' Silva of North America, ' ' a great many 

 books have been written and illustrated telling 

 about the New England trees in one way or 

 another. These books have, for the most 

 part, told about the esthetic side of New 

 England tree life, often leaving a confused 

 idea in the reader's mind of just what the 

 species are that were written about, unless he 

 were already familiar with them. None of 

 these books have enabled the amateur to 

 readily identify the New England trees in the 

 woods or open field. 



Persons interested in the woods and fond of 

 nature do not care in particvilar to be told in 

 what respects certain trees are beautiful and 

 pleasing ; they want to make these interpre- 

 tations for themselves. All this sort of writing 

 about our trees, unless it be done by a master 

 hand, such as a Burroughs or a Muir, is not 

 what the public wants who are accustomed to 

 spending their summer vacations in the woods. 

 They have long wanted a handy pocket volume 

 enabling them to know, with reasonable ac- 

 curacy, the names of the trees which they 

 come across in their tramps through the woods 

 during their summer vacations. They have 

 wanted to know the names of the trees so that 

 the}^ can intelligently talk about them to their 

 friends ; about the various ways that the dif- 

 ferent kinds appeal to them from an esthetic 

 standpoint, as well as in various other ways. 



It seems to the reviewer that this want has 

 been very well attained in the ' ' Trees of New 

 England." In this handj' volume an account 

 is given of each species naturally growing in 

 New England, and its salient characters 

 pointed out in a clear text and enforced b}', 

 for the most part, a clear and accurate full- 

 page plate from a carefulh' executed pen 

 drawing 



The habitat and range for each species is 

 given with reasonable completeness, for the 

 range of each species within New England. 

 The habit of each species is well set forth and 

 an account is given of the leaves, the winter 

 buds, and the bark. A brief account is given 

 of the inflorescence and fruit, and the horti- 

 cultural value of each species is also briefly 

 set forth. 



Ijt.is unfortunate that a brief paragraph was 

 not added to the accoiint given of each species 

 telling its economic value. Such information 



v^ 



