72 INSECURITY OF OUR FORESTS. 



condemns large estates, which, if divided into small farms, 

 would support a greater number of human beings. In- 

 deed, the question is very difficult to answer, how large a 

 proportion of the territory of any country may be kept 

 in forest consistently with the greatest amount of agricul- 

 tural prosperity. But he who believes that every acre of 

 waste land is so much drawback upon national wealth 

 must have very imperfect views of nature's economy- 

 Even if our continent were circumscribed within bounds 

 as narrow as those of Great Britain's isle, the woods ought 

 to be preserved to a certain extent, though they might 

 check the increase of our population. The superfluous 

 lands of the British nobility have saved their coimtry 

 from many evilsthat could not have been foreseen when 

 their estates were originally divided. The very selfish- 

 ness of princes and lords has prevented the extirpation 

 of European forests. If, two centuries ago, England had 

 been parcelled out to the people in farms of one hundred 

 acres, there would hardly be a tree remaining at the pres- 

 ent time, certainly not a forest in the whole island. 



To assist in calling attention to the importance of our 

 forests, I have devoted a considerable number of these 

 essays to the science of vegetable meteorology. I shall 

 treat, under its several heads, of the uses of trees in pre- 

 serving a general fulness of streams, and an equal supply 

 of moisture to all parts of the surface ; for sustaining the 

 vitality of the atmosphere, and for charging it with vapor, 

 thereby increasiag the frequency of showers and pre- 

 venting long-continued droughts. Considering them also 

 as electric agents, I shall mark the importance of a cer- 

 tain disposition of them to prevent showers from being 

 wasted upon the ocean and large inland collections of 

 water. I shall speak of their relations to temperature 

 and climate, to show in what manner the clearing of the 

 forest may ameliorate, and how, on the other hand, it may 



