FOREST TREES 
an eminent degree the grandeur and 
strength which he describes and for 
which we commonly admire the tree. 
Of all the oaks’ the white oak is 
the most important. This tree will 
impress us differently as we see it 
in the open field or in the dense forest. 
Where it stands by itself in the full 
enjoyment of light, it has a round- 
topped, dome-shaped crown, and is 
massive and well poised in all its parts. 
Quite as often, however, we shall see 
it gathered into little groups of three or 
four on the greensward of some gently 
sloping hill, where it has a graceful 
way of keeping company. The groups 
are full of expression, the effect is di- 
versified from tree to tree, yet harmoni- 
ous in the whole. In the denser forest 
the white oak often reaches noble pro- 
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