Trees for Railroads. 355 



warmer in winter and cooler in summer, besides giving excellent 

 facilities for ventilating- every portion. 



TREES FOR RAILROADS. 



BY WILLIAM BACON. 



Several articles upon this subject have recently been brought 

 before the public, which leads us to suppose that the public mind 

 is waking up on the subject, however drowsj'' corporations may 

 remain in the matter. Some have argued the benefit which would 

 result from the operation by the protection the roots would give 

 the roads, a consideration of no small account in many places, 

 not only to the corporation, who expend more in every five years 

 in repairs to such embankments, than would be necessary to plant 

 trees to keep them in preservation for a century. Then, there 

 are, in many places, deep excavations, from whose slopes every 

 spring and autumn, and often in heavy rains in summer, the earth, 

 for many years, is working towards the track and requiring" much 

 labor for its removal. Sometimes as we have seen, these slopes 

 wash, and wearing away the adjoining lands at the loss of fence, 

 and it may be of the animals by consequent exposure. Here a 

 clump of trees, spread over the slope, would prevent the mischief 

 at a much less cost than the labor attending the neglect. 



Again, we have seen it noted somewhere that by this setting 

 out trees on the line, this may no doubt be accomplished, but 

 years must elapse before the timber from recently planted trees 

 would become fit for the purpose. They would much sooner be 

 fit for food to drive the machinerj'', and for this purpose alone 

 would no doubt well pay the cost of planting, and a good per cent- 

 age on the amount expended in planting out. 



Such are two of the considerations in favor of such an improve- 

 ment. Another is, that where such trees have become vigorous in 

 their growth, they would, except in very dry times, remedy one of 

 the most unpleasant attendants of rail travelling — the dust. By 

 shading the road a portion of the time, they would keep the earth 

 cooler, and so prevent the rapid evaporation which is the sure at- 



