e 
42 Origin, Extension and Continuance of Prairies. 
freely admitted, the carpet of grass will be from six to eight feet in 
height, Should this grass be burnt during the fall season, or at any 
dry time through the winter or spring, and the practice annually con- 
tinued, the ground would become more and more prepared for the 
production of a still more luxuriant crop of grass, when not only the 
dead timber would be consumed, but those trees that are alive would _ 
suffer by the fire and in a few years be killed, unless they stand on 
the borders of ponds of water, or on some very unproductive spots; 
in either case the grass is found to be short and puny, and insufficient 
to support a flame that would affect a tree. In extensive prairies, We 
often observe little clusters of trees, which, by occupying peeuliar 
situations, are enabled to avoid the consuming flames of .a burning 
prairie. os 
In a few years, all the trees. which come within the reach of the 
; will be killed, and thus the forest is annually dilapidated, until 
no ‘signs of it remain, except those which appear in the holes in the 
land left by the standing trees, and in the little hillocks made by the 
roots throwing up the ground when they are laid prostrate by the 
wind. The hillock will be, in time, brought down by the action of 
-yain3 but on a very level piece of land the holes left by the burnt 
stumps will remain, and perhaps would never be entirely obliterated. 
The prairie, which is now in its infancy, continues to make annue 
encroachments upon the surrounding forests. The grass of this prai- - 
rié becomes closely set, and may be from ten to twelve feet in height. 
It pushes close up under the trees of the surrounding forest, and eve- 
ry fire acts injuriously upon the nearest trees; and as they are killed, 
the grass not only surrounds them, but passes on and crowds hard 
- upon other trees, so that the prairie is constantly increasing, and woul 
always exist and extend its borders while fire was applied. Me 
FIRES IN THE PRAIRIES. . ? 
'. It is difficult to conceive of the horror excited at -the sight of a 
burning prairie. It is an ocean of fire, whose billows roll and heaves 
and run together, when the mountain of pyramidal flames ascends 
and drives detached bodies of fire seemingly into the very clouds. 
‘The whole horizon appears to be on fire ; the earth and the sky are. 
hidden by the flames, and the eye can reach no point beyond their 
boundary: When the wind is brisk, the burning grass ascends and 
gives the appearance, as though the heavens were filled with fire- 
brands; and such is the rapidity with which the fame moves ovet 
