THE LONGEST-LIVED TREES 205 
existence, and partitioned them in three stages, a 
simplification of the seven stages of human life 
mapped out by Shakespeare : 
The Monarch Oak, the Patriarch of Trees 
Shoots rising up, and spreads by slow degrees. 
Three centuries he grows, and three he stays 
Supreme in state, and in three more decays. 
Multiply these years by two, and you have neared the 
asserted age of Wellingtonias. 
The Yew Tree, the Cedar, and the Deciduous 
Cypress, among others, all lay claim to probabilities 
and possibilities of an arrival at longevity; but, more 
often than not, there is produced only’ insufficient 
data in the way of evidence on their behalf that 
would scarce serve to satisfy the most complaisant 
and cousin-connected of Old Age Pensions Committees 
ever congregated in the please-all atmosphere of a 
local tribunal. 
The Bo Tree (Ficus Religiosa), sacred to Buddha, 
Prince of Siddartha, in Ceylon, claims an existence 
of 2,000 years; but, as it is no native, nor even na- 
turalized, subject of Great Britain, it must be at once 
nonsuited here, and any pros and cons, in the nature 
of evidence adduced, declined politely but firmly. 
with thanks. 
We must say a word upon the probable scenic 
effect of this tree in our country-sides. You not 
uncommonly hear disparaging remarks made about 
their toy Noah’s Ark, or Christmas Tree appearance, 
and, so far as they have gone with us, this is a shape 
they have assumed. We must enter this plea on 
their behalf upon this charge, that the average length 
of their life is estimated at from 1,500 to 2,000 years. 
A Wellingtonia at fifty years—and this approximates 
the age of those grown in our British Isles, has only 
completed ypth or 7th perhaps of its life ; while many 
