OAK SUITED FOR SCOTLAND. 



199 



I might have left the question to be decided by 

 these alone, as they are of such a nature that they 

 may be easily repeated by any one who is so inclined. 

 But as the matter seemed susceptible of being set 

 at rest without reference to any experiments what- 

 ever, I thought it would detract nothing from the 

 value of this work to insert the facts which may be 

 used for that purpose. 



I need hardly seek to guard against misrepresen- 

 tations, by stating, that I never meant to assert that 

 oak will grow indiscriminately on any soil. There 

 is, undoubtedly, much land, in Scotland, which wiU 

 produce no kind of wood ; nay, which will not even 

 bring our hardy national emblem, the thistle, to per- 

 fection. Our mountains, for instance, after they 

 reach to a certain height, become so destitute of ve- 

 getable mould, while the air is so keen and piercing, 

 that the heath itself disappears. Even on less 

 elevated ground, pieces of invincible sterility are 

 found. But exclusive of all such, we have mil- 

 lions of acres remaining, on which, with proper ma- 

 nagement, we need not despair of seeing the oak suc- 

 ceed as well as it did in former ages. 



