192 CAUSE OF DISEASE AMONG 



it at Dunkcld in 1741, The rapid growth of these, 

 and of others of the same species, afterwards 

 planted in succession by that nobleman, as well as 

 the valuable properties of the timber of the trees 

 that were felled, realised the high character pre- 

 viously bestowed upon the larch by foreign and 

 British authors, who were followed in their opinion 

 by others, such as Dr Anderson, Watson, Professor 

 Martyn, Nicol, Pontz, Lang, and Monteith — all con- 

 firming, and further extolling, the valuable proper- 

 ties of the tree. It is no wonder, therefore, that 

 the larch has been planted so extensively in Scot- 

 land of late years, in almost every kind of soil and 

 situation, and under every variety of circumstances 

 capable of being conceived in forest management, 

 seeing that its culture has been so much recom- 

 mended by men in whose opinions landed pro- 

 prietors put much confidence as regards forest mat- 

 ters. I say that it is in a great measure owing to 

 the advice of such men as 1 have above named, that 

 the larch has been so extensively planted within 

 the last fifty years in Scotland. According to their 

 opinion, it was one of the hardiest, and most easy 

 of culture, among our forest trees ; and proprietors, 

 relying too implicitly in this matter upon the sound- 

 ness of the opinions of such authors, planted larch 

 too indiscriminately, upon all kinds of soil, without 

 having due respect to the nature of the tree ; for 

 the larch, as well as every other tree, is influenced 



