234 



Arboretum Britannicwn. 



one, and of which I meant Strutt to have made me a sketch, for 

 ^4. ii ^ the purpose of starting this very question) never since my recol- 

 ^ lection bore a berry in the world. On examining the flowers 

 (which the trees in question produce in abundance) I find they 

 are all imperfect in the styles. The beautiful Polyommatus 

 Argiolus (azure blue butterfly) delights to hover about and 

 settle on the holly; and the caterpillar, I am told, feeds on it, 

 though I never discovered it. What minute insect is it that 

 destroys the leaf, eating the substance betvveen the two skins ? 

 See specimens.* 



Do you know any peculiar purpose to which the wood of 

 the common guelder rose ( Fiburnum O'pulus) is applied ? I ' 

 found it out quite by accident, as follows : — A few years ago I 

 was felling a small coppice, in which a good deal of riburnum 

 occurred among other brushwood; and my woodman, who has 

 always a pride in making a shilling extra for his master if he pos- 

 sibly can, told me that he had found a customer for all the dog- 

 wood or dog tree (so he called the Fiburnum) he could supply, 

 and that he sold it for more than it would bring when cut up, 

 as usual, "into kids and faggots. His customer, he said, bought 

 the wood for the purpose of making it into skewers for the 

 ^ watchmakers. (See a specimen, /g. 34.) This puzzled me 

 '^'^ much, and set me to enquire of the manufacturers at Coventry 

 what they wanted them for; when I was informed that they 

 use these skewers to clean out the pivot-holes of the works of 

 a watch, and that they prefer this wood to all others for the pur- 

 pose, and always keep a stock of skewers in the manufactory. 

 What particular quality there is in this wood, that renders it 

 preferable to others for this purpose, T could not learn.-]- Talking 

 of skewers reminds me what very nice natural ones are formed by 

 the thorns of the common quick or hawthorn ; of which I enclose 

 a few of my own scraping as specimens, {fig. 35.) The cook 

 should always be supplied with these, to fix, e. g., a paper over 

 the fat of a piece of roasting beef, or for any other purpose where 

 a small skewer is required, and where she (nasty woman!) 

 would, but for these thorns, use pins, and, of course, stick them 

 first in her mouth. Pray recommend these natural skewers ; 

 they are so clean and tidy, and easily procured ; they only want 

 to be scraped of the bark while fresh. Were I a labourer's 

 child, I would get many a shilling by selling these thorns, and 

 I think the higher orders would be ready to buy them.;]: 



The wood of the crab is, I believe, particularly good for mill- 

 work, cogs of wheels, &c. 



You must not fail to notice all sorts of insects (injurious and 



otherwise) that feed on the various trees and shrubs. The oak, 



I believe, affords food to more insects than any other plant we 



have. A great many of our beautiful Lepidoptera (moths espe- 



I cially) feed on it in the larva state. 



y The Athenian poplar (i. e. what we call by that name, but 



* We sent the leaves to Mr. Haworth, who says that they " are infested 

 by a hymentoperous intercutaneous insect; but I cannot tell you the 

 name, unless I saw the insect in its imago state. The leaves contain only 

 the empty pupse." — Cond. 



■\ The riburnum O'pulus is preferred by the butchers about the metro- 

 polis for skewers. The spray is collected by poor persons, and made into 

 skewers of about six inches long, which are sold by the bushel to the 

 buyers. — J. M. 



\ We have written to a party, who has engaged to place a few hundreds 



