ILLUSTRATED GUIDE. / iJI 



plant is ready to take the place of the old one, the roid 

 enlarges itself, and the ovil goes on increasing. And for 

 these reasons the clearings should be re-planted. 



The second description of lands under this head in the 

 slopes of the hills and mountains. And this is a vital 

 point. The timber-trees grown on these slopes retain 

 the moisture of the soil. At their disappearance, the 

 water formed by the melted snow of spring, by the 

 summer thunder-storms, by the continuous rains of 

 autumn, raise the soil, no longer kept in its place by the 

 roots of the trees, and carry it down to the valleys below, 

 leaving the rock naked and despoiled of all its vege- 

 tation. Moreover, the water which, while the wood 

 remained, filtered gently through the soil, descending, 

 so to speak, drop by drop to the lowlands, being no 

 longer kept in check by the soil, rushes down in torrents ; 

 hollowing out deep ravines in the sides of the mountains, 

 and covering the valleys with its destructive inun- 

 dations. Such is the history of the quasi-periodical 

 floods of France, of Spain, and of other countries where 

 the forests have perished. 



Enough has been said to show the necessity of re- 

 planting the mountain-sides. Our sons and grandsons 

 will thank us for our care, and for having guarded them 

 from the disasters which recur almost every year in 

 those places where the slopes of the hills and mountains 

 have been denuded of their natural covering. The soils 

 unfit for cultivation come under the third head of lands 

 to be re-planted. Rural economy lays down the rule, 

 that every part of a farm should yield its share of profit 

 to the general stock. Now, certain soils, for divers 

 reasons, are unfit for agriculture properly so called. To 

 grow wood on them is the only way to make them pro- 

 ductive. Almost all these lands are fit for planting, and 



