ifete out oaf, I^aviilg fhe locusts. In a few years ilieSe gE6d'fing8 beiiarnfe" 

 large enough to be cut and sold to the ship builders, or used for fence posts — ' 

 in which last condition they have been kaown to last fifty years, and stiU 

 appeared sound. 



The rapidity of gfo#£h alnd durability of the i'lnfaet itt the ea%t, ind'uoed 

 the farmers of the western staftes to plant the locust largely upon the prai-' 

 ries, both for a hedge plstat afnd for timbe'r. In both of which' carpsfcitres, it 

 has proved a failure'. The timber gJown on the rich pta'irie's,' is not more" 

 durable than the White oik ; and- the borer having attacked thdf tree has' 

 killed it and de'atroyed the timber, while yet adive. 



If thclocust had some good qualities, it also haJS" seVera'l fsrtiHs. It pro- 

 duces a- great nttmbe* of seeds, which are scafttered and come up just where' 

 they are not wanted. It also produces suckers fronr every roundied or knotty 

 root of the tree,- amd often a-t gre'al. distances from- it j- while spreading its' 

 fibrous roots' over the ground, it destroys' neaxly all vegetation within its' 

 jeach. It is eradicated from the' land with great difficulty. ,Its furtbeV cul- 

 ture should be discouraged, especially on all rich soils ; even if it should be' 

 grown on the nearly barren sands. The tree cannot be pronounce'd a-s en- 

 tirely hardy in WiseonsiD, as it was often effected by the' frosts;, before the' 

 borers commeneed their ravages. 



The loss of the locust is perhaps' to be' less regretted, thsm it wouM other- 

 wise be, if another and native tree shall- meet the expectations of those whc 

 have given it a partial exatoanation; in mote than supplying the plaSce of the' 

 fanling locusts 



■Whether this tree be a speeies of the glediUclmaiyioney locust) or algarobict! 

 (ea-rob- tree> which produced the wild honey of St. John, is not yet deter-' 

 mined by us-;, but* it resembles the la-tter rather than the , former tree. A-t 

 Prairie du Chien it is called "island locust," and may bte designated as 

 thorrdess honey hcnat, until its true' spebies is determined. 



The tree grows- large, often 70 feet high, with a' foliage' less than Sue-half 

 as large as- the eommon locust, and much darker grefen, the pods, are' an inch 

 broad, and from six to ten inches- long. The wood is fine' grained, compact, 

 very hard and heavy; color of heart wood, reddish brown,-between cherry and 

 walnut ; polishes highly when dry ; va-luable for cabinet- work, fof wagon 

 axles and other purposes, where firm, stiff wood iff required ; and as fuel 

 ranks with or above hickory. It is found quite' abundant on the' islands and 

 banks of the Mississippi and Wisoonsiu rivets at Prairie du- Chien; where it 

 is overflowed every year, also on the dry sand hillocks,- in both of which lo- 

 calities it flourishes vigorously. Some trees-are also growing-near Bridge- 

 port in the stony banks of the Wisconsin,, some' of which are 60 feet high, - 

 and more than a foot in diameter. Two trees- were found growing near the' 

 outlet of theMendota or Fourth Lake, in Madison, on the high bank, where it 

 received the full force of the west winds, as they swept over that sheet of 

 water and ice during the winter. A shoot from one of these was taken up ancf- 



