364 



MEANS OF SPEEDY WOODING 



of their length, and not more than five or six feet 

 asunder. They should be rendered still more secure 

 by means of supporters, with their ends driven into 

 the earth, and nailed to the uprights within half a 

 foot of their tops, and sloping at an angle of about 

 forty-five degrees. The posts, both upright and 

 sloping, should, if possible, be of larch, as that sort 

 of timber is by far the most durable for this pur- 

 pose. The bars, which these posts are intended to 

 support, may be either composed of harks, as they 

 are termed, that is, the boards having the bark re- 

 maining on one side, which are the outside parts of 

 a log sawn off to bring it to the square ; or they 

 may consist of long slender spars, such as the thin- 

 nings of a fir plantation from sixteen to twenty 

 years old. A paling composed on these principles, 

 will, with occasional repairs, last twelve or fifteen 

 years ; after which period the trees, though they will 

 still be liable to injury from cattle, if left unprotect- 

 ed, vdll not be in such danger of utter destruction 

 as at an earlier stage of their progress. With ma- 

 terials of the same kind as those now mentioned, 

 many varieties of ornamental rustic work, in paling, 

 may be executed, and which may be employed in 

 such situations as are much exposed to view. Not 

 only must sheep and cattle of every kind be ex- 



