166 VOICES FROM THE WOODLANDS. 



and wooden spoons, and the berries, when dried and re- 

 duced to powder, make wholesome bread; ale and beer 

 brewed with them, when ripe, are said by Evelyn to form 

 an incomparable beverage, and if infused in water, an acid 

 liquor, somewhat resembling perry, which is drunk by the 

 poorer people in different parts of Wales. When distilled, 

 twelve pounds of berries yield two quarts of spirit; the 

 pulp, after distillation, affords excellent nourishment for 

 cattle ; and the bark, when collected in autumn, is proved, 

 by recent experiments, to be better adapted for the tanning 

 of leather than even that of the oak. 



Such are the different uses of the roan-tree ; and how 

 very picturesque is the tree itself, when seen among its 

 brethren of the forest, or standing singly in autumn, 

 against a back screen of grey rocks, with its glowing 

 vermilion fruit hanging in rich clusters ! Beautifully, too, 

 is the same wild tree, contrasted in many a lone spot, 

 among rocks and waterfalls, with the white-beam tree, or 

 white-leaf tree, characterized by its fine straight stem, and 



