THE BIRCH 



LL the associations of the Birch tree are with open country, 

 preferably the open country of the North of England, 

 where it grows upon the edge of some wild moorland ; 

 there the fragrance of its leaves mingles with the scent 

 of the ling, and the call ol the grouse or the solitary cry of the 

 curlew alone break in upon the soft rustle of its foliage stirred by 

 the breeze. 



It will grow among the crags on a hill-side, in thin unprofitable 

 soil, exposed to all the winds or heaven, in fact where scarcely any 

 other tree could thrive. Yet the note of its character is essentially 

 one. of delicacy ; and from the smooth stem with its sweeping line 

 and gradual curves, to the twigs that carry light leaf-stalks and dainty 

 leaves, its gracefulness has no rival among forest trees. 



The silvery trunk, furrowed and rough at the base, rises from a 

 bed of bracken and seems to harmonise with the grey boulders near 

 it. In places the thin papery bark peels away in circular strips round 

 the stem, accentuating its rounded shape, and displaying the pink and 

 yellow tints of an inner layer. The flowing line of the trunk is 

 hardly interrupted by the lower branches, so few and slender are they, 

 but continues upwards for two -thirds of the height of the tree, when 

 it divides in slightly curved lines at an acute angle. This is the 

 typical angle of ramification in the Birch, except in the lower and 

 older branches, where it becomes rather more obtuse. The branches 

 are long and clearly marked, and separate into lesser branches of a 

 copper or chestnut colour, which bend downwards, and give off dainty 

 polished twigs of purple brown. Placed somewhat apart on these 

 pliant twigs, so that thev are never dense enough to hide the branch 



