THE OAK. 



45 



hardy as the spruce ; though, from its having been 

 first cultivated in gardens as an ornamental ever- 

 green, it is often described as being of a delicate 

 constitution. It is a beautiful tree, especially when 

 young. It receives its name from two stripes of a 

 silvery tint on the lower side of its dark-green 

 leaves. 



BALM OF GILEAD. 



The Balm of Gilead Fir is an American. Its 

 leaves are of a yellowish-green, and its buds have an 

 agreeable scent, — whence its name. It is not of 

 great account as a timber tree. 



{^Besides the kinds already enumerated, the fol- 

 lowing have been recently introduced into our fo- 

 rests : the Pinaster, the Stone-pine, the Siberian 

 stone-pine, the Cedar of Lebanon, the Weymouth 

 pine, and the Corsica pine. 



THE OAK. 



Of the Quercus, there are said to be nearly fifty 

 species, some of which are deciduous, and some 

 evergreen. It is the common or British oak only, 

 the noblest tree of the forest, that is spoken of in 

 this volume, which, as every one knows, is a deci- 



