110 TREE PLANTER'S MANUAL. 



the sport of a barbarian and the enjoyment of a savage? No doubt future 

 ages will look on the wanton killing of birds in this period with the same 

 surprise and disgust that we feel on reading the stories of the animal con- 

 tests in the Roman arena. Prof. Samuel Aughey. 



TIMBER-TESTING MACHINES. 



Already we have "testing machines" to determine the tenacity of the 

 fiber and the influence of different degrees and methods of seasoning. In 

 the government building of the World's Fair, I noted the effects of heavy 

 blows struck at different angles on the same and other varieties of wood. 

 There was demonstrated practically, what some of us at least may have 

 observed, that the qualities of the soil and climatic conditions really enter, 

 so to speak, into the very constituency of the wood. We are certain lum- 

 ber trees for building purposes, and particularly for cars, bridges, etc., can 

 never be developed on poor or water-soaked soils. We cannot put our 

 waste places to so good a use as to plant trees thereon as shelter-belts, as 

 thickets to economize evaporation. So far they pay, also for fuel. But if 

 we would raise trees for their mechanical utilities, we must give them rich 

 and properly-drained soils. 



ROADSIDE TREES IN FRANCE. 



The planting of trees along the public roads of Prance is considered wor- 

 thy of statistical mention. At present the total length of public roads in 

 France is 18,750 miles, of which 7,250 are bordered with trees, while 4,500 

 miles are already being planted, or will shortly be planted. On the remain- 

 ing 7,000 miles the nature of the soil does not admit of plantations. The 

 number of trees already planted amounts to 2,678,603, consisting prin- 

 cipally of elm, poplar, acacia, plane, ash, sycamore and lime trees. 



NEBRASKA FORESTRY. 



Data, as near accurate as may be, show that the acreage in Nebraska 

 since the extinguishment of the Indian title to lands, and the passage of 

 the Kansas-Nebraska act, in 1854 is, in round numbers, about 2,021,543 

 acres. We have planted about 6,065,689,750 trees. We reckon 3,000 trees 

 to the acre, 4 feet by 4. It is safe to say that the spontaneous tree growth 

 in the territory and state since fires have not been permitted to run over 

 the prairies, has increased over the original timber area quite one-half as 

 much as has been planted. Thus the total increased timber area or acreage 

 for the forty years has been, say, 3,032,319 acres. Ex-Oov. Furnas. 



HOW TO MIX. 



Rule 1. The main growth, i. e., the one that occupies the larger part of 

 the ground, must be of a kind that improves soil conditions, namely, a 

 densely foliaged, shade-enduring kind, which does not lose its shading 

 capacity with age. 



Rule 2. Densely foliaged kinds may be grouped together, if the slow 

 grower will endure the shade of the rapid grower, or can be protected 



