150 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



is less agreeable to the palate of consumers generally than the 

 product of the cane. To manufacture it requires a great ex- 

 pense, not only of labor, but of fuel ; and hence it probably 

 cannot be sold at a distance for a price which will enable it to 

 compete with the imported article. 



The sap of the tree, or maple juice, as it is called, is greedily 

 coveted by wild and domestic animals, who break through en- 

 closures for the sake of obtaining it, and is generally an agree- 

 able and wholesome beverage. I have been informed, however, 

 of one instance in which it proved to be of a highly intoxi- 

 cating quality. This circumstance occurred about thirty years 

 since, in the western part of the State of New York. All the 

 sap procured from the maple trees of an extensive district 

 was found to have undergone a vinous fermentation, and chil- 

 dren who drank it freely were in some cases rendered de- 

 lirious for two or three days. I ,have heard of no other 

 instance of this phenomenon, nor have I learned that any 

 probable explanation has been given of its cause. 



The last of our forest trees which we shall notice is one of 

 which we need say but little, either in the way of description 

 or recommendation; we mean our American elm. In a 

 strictly economical point of view this tree is of little value, as 

 neither its wood nor its bark is employed to a great extent in 

 the useful arts. It is subject to the disadvantage of being at- 

 tacked by the canker worm, and is one of the first trees to shed 

 its foliage in the autumn. It is a tree, also, which proves 

 rather a troublesome inmate in small gardens and enclosures, 

 as it spreads its roots far and wide, and frequently protrudes 

 them above the surface of the ground, so that it completely 

 monopolizes a large extent of soil. But where a proper space 

 can be allotted to it, there is no tree which rivals it in grace 

 and majesty. Michaux pronounces it to be decidedly the most 

 magnificent vcgctabre production of the temperate zone. Few 

 who have seen this tree in favorable situations will question 

 its right to this preeminence. 



Every one must have noticed the noble elms standing singly 

 on the commons of so many of our villages. These are gen- 

 erally the relics of our original forests ; and the care with 

 which they arc now preserved and protected furnishes a strik- 



