CHAPTER VIII 



The Forest 



''Besides the motives that have been assigned for 

 these plantations, it may be added that the Grand Khan 

 IS the more disposed to make them, from the circum- 

 stance of his dreamers and astrologers having declared 

 that those who plant trees are rewarded with long life'' 



— Marco Polo 



ONE does not associate a forest with sand 

 dunes and salt marshes but The Forest 

 has become such an intimate part of my 

 life in these regions, I would fain record here its 

 history and charms. All naturalists love a forest 

 for its varied collection of trees, for the vegeta- 

 tion of its floor, for the birds and animals it shel- 

 ters within its borders, and for its general charms 

 of darkness and quiet as well as for its sweet odors 

 and its varied voices To create such a region 

 within the limits of a twelve acre lot of grass land 



on the side of a glacial gravel hill, bordered by 



162 



