4i8 



MV GARDEN. 



it does not thrive very well with me. Its great excellence consists in its 

 hardiness, and in the beauty of the clusters of scarlet berries (fig. 943) 

 with which the tree is covered in autumn. In Scotland it is one of the 



greatest ornaments of the mountains ; but in 

 my garden it has not, up to the present time, 

 been of any importance. Formerly the rowan- 

 tree was an object of superstition. The berries 

 used to be tied round the necks of children 

 to preserve them from witchcraft, when the 

 following' couplet was recited : — 



" Rowan tree and red thread 

 Fig. ,43.-Mountain Ash. Drives the witches at their sped." 



From inquiries I made in Scotland this year, it appears that this 

 superstition no longer exists, and a forester, in answer to my interroga- 

 tions, declared that the " schoolmaster had driven it away." A similar 

 superstition exists to this day at Naples, where people of education and 

 position use charms of red coral for a similar purpose. 



As we naturally associate the alder and the willow with water, so we 

 connect the Beech {Fagus sylvaticd) with a dry soil. The manner in 

 which it clothes the hills at Marlow is a good example of its flourishing 

 in a dry chalky soil ; and in the neighbouring parish of Carshalton a 

 grove of beeches exists in an equally dry spot. Notwithstanding that 

 the beech loves a dry soil, it grows freely immediately outside my 

 garden, and in a position where the roots of the tree are within a foot 

 or two of the water-line. A grove of beeches is always beautiful, and 

 this tree contributes much to the beauty of the scene around us. The 

 beech-tree is readily propagated by seed. It then grows fast, attains a 

 large size, has a beautiful form, and the glossy green colour of the leaves 

 is very charming. The smooth bark tenipts the rustics to carve their 

 names upon it, from the idea that the inscription will enlarge with 

 the growth of the tree. The practice is ancient, as Virgil records 

 that lovers did the same, that their love might grow as the tree grew- 



"Tenerisque meos incidere amores 

 Arboribus ; crescent illoe, crescentes amores." 



