FOREST TREES AND FOREST SCENERY 



find it impossible to live at high alti- 

 tudes and on rocky ridges or to subsist 

 upon rough, poor soil. Consequently 

 we shall find some Muds of trees ex- 

 clusive, gregarious only among them- 

 selves, while others mingle freely in 

 the general concourse. 



Through the persistency, therefore, 

 of the vital forces of nature, through 

 a suitable climate or situation, through 

 the power of adaptation and the deli- 

 cate adjustment of many details, the 

 vast armies of trees, like migratory 

 races, have at last accomplished their 

 purpose and found their several homes ; 

 and to us the varied aspect of the for- 

 ests, as we traverse the extended terri- 

 tory of our country, is in a manner 

 explained. There are stretches of land 

 over which the tree growth is dense 

 86 



