PICEA, OR THE SILVER FIRS. 45 



along the upper surface, and furnished with two faint hollow 

 glaucous bands on the under side, separated by the keeled mid- 

 rib, which, with the thickened but seldom reflected margins, 

 are pale green ; the larger leaves are frequently more than aa 

 inch long and one line broad, with the ends always more or 

 less bifid or rounded, slightly glaucous beneath, and very thickly 

 arranged on the upper side of the branchlets, on dilated foot- 

 stalks, more or less twisted, while the lesser foliage, which are 

 always on the more slender and twiggy branchlets, are lance- 

 shaped, very acute pointed, less densely placed along the spray, 

 more scattered round the shoots, much narrower, quite glaucous 

 below, and seldom more than half an inch in length on the 

 adult trees, and very similar to those of Picea Cephalonica, but 

 both forms and all modifications from the one to the other are 

 generally produced on the same branch ; much, however, de- 

 pending on the vigour or position of the branches and the age 

 of the trees, as to the shape and size of the foliage. The male 

 catkins are in groups, surrounding the summit of the adult 

 shoots, and sessile, while the cones are axillary, solitary, and 

 always erect on the upper side of the top branches, very re- 

 sinous externally, and quite similar to those of Picea Cepha- 

 lonica in size and shape, with the scales an inch or more wide, 

 incurved and rounded on the upper margin, bracteas projecting 

 beyond the scales, ear-shaped, flat, reflected, mucronate, and 

 lacerated laterally on the edges, and with a long central reflected 

 point. 



A handsome tree, rarely exceeding 60 or 70 feet in height, 

 and 2 or 3 feet in diameter, with an ample spreading head and 

 smooth stem, covered with a pale yellowish brown bark, scarcely 

 or ever having on its surface any of those blisters containing 

 resinous matter, so commonly to be found on all the Silver 

 Firs. It is found plentiful in many parts of Greece, forming 

 extensive forests, at elevations varying from 1,500 to 4,000 feet> 

 but more particularly in the southern parts, such as on the 

 sacred Apollo and on the celebrated and mighty mounts called 

 Parnassus and Olympus, where in olden times mankind went 

 in crowds to be deluded, and giants piled up in hopes to scale 



