EVERGREENS 205 



cypresses, sequoias, arborvitaes, junipers, yews, 

 and gingkos. Once the first four covered most 

 of our country, but easier germinating, faster 

 growing trees crowded them out, and "like the 

 wild Britons when the Saxons invaded Eng- 

 land," they fell back to the bogs and waste 

 lands, the mountaiiis and the shifting sand 

 dunes, where broad-leaved trees cannot grow. 



There are about twelve species of the pine 

 east of the Kocky Mountains. It is one of the 

 most widely known evergreens. Legend tells us 

 that once the pine was a beautiful maiden. 

 Pan, the forest piper, loved her and used to 

 woo her with his loveliest music. One day Bor- 

 eas, the wild north wind, overheard some of his 

 sweet strains, and was very angry, for he, too, 

 loved the maiden. He caught her up quickly, 

 in a jealous frenzy, and flung her down the 

 mountain. But the gods had pity for the 

 maiden and changed her into a pine tree. So 

 she has gone on for ages blessing man with the 

 choicest gifts. And think of the countless thou- 

 sands of birds and squirrels she has fed and 

 sheltered ! 



Among all the pines, the white pine is the tall- 

 est, stateliest, and the best known. Its wood is 

 light and soft-grained and takes a beautiful pol- 

 ish, making it such a favorite for furniture 



