178 THE PINE TREE. 
dusting with poisonous substances were of no avail. The 
larve descend into the surface cover on the ground, and 
undergo their transformation ; but fortunately, the same trees, 
so far as I have ever known, are not infested during a succes- 
sion of summers. Such repeated attacks would infallibly be 
fatal. An attack retards the growth of the trees during that 
and the following year, but I have never seen the trees killed. 
The first and second years after an onslaught, the trees 
assume a curious tufted appearance, their leaves being con- 
fined to the extremities of the branches, or to the newly- 
formed twig. 
Squirrels were known to abound in the large forests of the 
Highlands from time immemorial, without any complaint on 
their doings till of late ; but they have spread to an alarming 
extent throughout the north of Scotland, and their depreda- 
tions, by barking the succulent stems of the pine tribe, have 
become very serious, as the effect is to deprive the tree of its 
top. On many estates gamekeepers are employed in shoot- 
ing them down. In doing so, however, care should be taken 
that the shot do not perforate the leaders to a great extent, as 
that occasions a flow of turpentine, and forms a weak point, 
at which the tree is apt to snap during a gale of wind. 
Pinus sylvestris Haguenensis (Loudon.)—This is the Con- 
tinental variety of the Scotch pine, named after the great 
forest of Haguenau, situated in France and Germany, and 
extending on both sides of the Rhine to about 30,000 acres, 
and from which British nurserymen are often supplied with 
seed, not only in seasons of scarcity, but to a considerable 
extent every year. The same variety constitutes the planta- 
tions of P. sylvestris throughout France, Germany, and Prussia. 
When young, the plant in this country advances rapidly, 
rather more so than the native Scotch tree, provided the soil is 
good and well sheltered; but it is of no value as a timber tree 
in ordinary exposed plantations. We have already referred 
to it under Scotch pine. The seeds are imported annually 
at less than half the price of those of the native pine. 
Pinus s. Pumilio (Henke); P. s. Mughus (Loudon) ; P.'s. 
