FOREST TREES, 177 
to that of the Black Spruce, but is sawed into lumber 
and is used for the spars and masts of vessels. It is 
not esteemed for fuel, as it snaps frequently in burn- 
ing, like the Chestnut. 
This species is a very elegant tree, while young. 
Its shape is regularly conical, its habit of growth 
very compact, and the hue of its foliage a lively glau- 
cous green. On old trees, and in poor, dry soils, the 
foliage is thin and scanty. It is only as an orna- 
mental tree that its cultivation can be recommended. 
For useful purposes, the Black Spruce and the Nor- 
way Spruce are every way superior. 
2. Abies nigra—Black Spruce, Double Spruce. 
Leaves, short, scarcely more than half an inch 
long, stiff, somewhat appressed to the branches, dark 
green; cones, ovate, or ovate-oblong, one to one and 
a half inches long, edge of the scales thin, wavy or 
notched. 
The Black Spruce is indigenous to the colder parts 
of North America, and is most abundant in the 
British Provinces and the northeastern parts of the 
United States. Itis found chiefly in swampy lands, 
in mountain valleys, and wherever the soil is humid, 
deep and black. In such situations it sometimes 
constitutes the entire growth of wood. I have seen 
it growing in masses, the trees varying from a few 
inches to two feet in diameter, and so thickly crowded 
that a team of horses could not be driven among 
them. The smaller trees had a mere tuft of branches 
on the top. It is found southward, along the sum- 
