168 Mr. J. W. Dawson on the Destruction and 



so long as any vegetable soil remains, young plants continue 



already have passed through a rotation similar to that above de- 

 tailed, and that the seeds deposited by former preparatory growths 

 may retain their vitality, and be called into life by the favorable 

 conditions existing after a fire. This is a point, however, requir- 

 ing for its establishment a series of experiments which I have 

 not yet been able to undertake. 



If, as already suggested, forest fires, in the uncultivated state 

 of the country, be a provision for removing old and decayed 

 forests, then such changes as those above detailed, must have an 

 important use in the economy of nature, since by their means 

 different portions of the country would succeed each other in 

 assuming the state of " barrens/ 7 producing an abundance of 

 herbs and wild fruits suitable for the sustenance of animals which 

 could not subsist in the old forests ; and these gradually becom- 

 ing wooded, would keep up a succession of young and vigorous 

 forests. «$ 



3dly, The progress of restoration may be interrupted by suc- 

 cessive fires. These are most likely to occur soon after the first 

 burning, but may happen at any subsequent stage. The re- 

 sources of nature are not, however, easily exhausted. When 



fires pass through young wood^some trees always escape ; and 



to 



spring up, though not so plentifully as" at first. Repeated fires, 

 however, greatly impoverish the soil, since the most valuable 

 part of the ashes is readily removed by rains, and the vegetable 

 mould is entirely consumed. In this case, if the ground be not 

 of great natural fertility, it becomes incapable of supporting a 

 vigorous crop of young trees. It is then permanently occupied 

 by shrubs and herbaceous plants ; at least these remain in exclu- 

 sive possession of the soil for a long period. In this state the 

 burned ground is usually considered a permanent barren ; a name 

 which does not, however, well express its character, for though 

 it may appear bleak and desolate when viewed from a distance, 

 it is a perfect garden of flowering and fruit-bearing plants, and of 

 beautiful mosses and lichens. There are few persons born in the 

 American colonies, who cannot recall the memory of happy 

 youthful days spent in gathering flowers and berries in the burnt 

 barrens. Most of the plants already referred to as appearing soon 

 after fires, continue to grow in these more permanent barrens. 

 In addition to these, however, a great variety of other pl ants 

 gradually appear, especially the Kalmia angustifolia or sheep 

 laurel, which often becomes the predominant plant over large 

 tracts. Cattle straying into barrens deposit the seeds of cultivate" 

 plants, as the grasses and clovers, as well as of many exotic 

 weeds, which often grow as luxuriantly as any of the native 

 plants. 



