g0 OUR FORESTS AND WOODLANDS 
Its uses, and its national importance formerly, may 
be estimated from the following appreciation of 
it in Holinshed’s Description of England (chapter 
xxil.): ‘Howbeit as everie soile dooth not 
beare all kinds of wood, so there is not anie 
wood, parke, hedgerow, grove, or forrest, that is 
not mixed with diverse, as oke, ash, hasell, haw- 
thorne, birch, beech, hardbeame, hull, sorfe, 
quicken aspe, poplers, wild cherie, and such like, 
whereof oke hath alwaies the preheminence, as 
most meet for building and the navie, where- 
unto it is reserved. This tree bringeth foorth 
also a profitable kind of mast, whereby such as 
dwell neere unto the aforesaid places doo cherish 
and bring up innumerable heards of swine. In 
time of plentie of this mast, our red and fallow 
deere will not let to participat thereof with our 
hogs, more than our nete: yea our common 
pultrie also if they may come unto them. But 
as this abundance doth proove verie pernicious 
unto the first, so these egs which these latter doo 
bring foorth (beside blackenesse in color and 
bitternesse of tast) have not seldome beene 
found to breed diverse diseases to such persons 
as have eaten of the same.’ 
