44 



taken, for fear of misconstruction of my motives, or I could 

 mention some who are losing many^ many thousands, by their 

 neglecting to cut away trees in time,- — ^there are many in- 

 stances in this county, particularly in the East-riding. 



It is not well, when endeavouring to divest people of old 

 prejudices and customs, to encumber them with elaborate 

 details; men are apt and prone, when such a system is 

 adopted, to view the matter as too abstruse for their con- 

 sideration, and leave it to cold neglect. My details will be 

 found as few as possible. It is the object of the present 

 paper to place before the gentlemen of England the advan- 

 tages of cultivating timber, — ^by a great number little regarded 

 or even thought of. 



I have endeavoured to bring the public to try, what I may 

 term an issue — viz. timely thinning of trees — without allowing 

 the mind to be distracted with other considerations. I have 

 brought what evidence I was able, to entitle me to a verdict ; 

 and when the mind is directed to one subject, its powers are 

 not concentrated in vain, since the faintest rays, if collected 

 into a focus, can produce some illumination. It would almost 

 seem to be the intention of man to prevent a tree becoming 

 timber, rather than to encourage it. 



. Visible representations strike the mind more forcibly than 

 mere descriptions. It is therefore presumed that subse- 

 quent illustrations will be an acquisition, by bringing vividly 

 to the imagination objects of which only an imperfect idea 

 could otherwise be formed, and that they will consequently 

 render the^e observations more intelligible to the general 

 reader.' ■ i 



I tread, I believe, an untrodden path; but I could wish that 

 all might travel the same, and convert it into a highway. I 

 am well assured that there is not any subject more deserving 

 of the attention of mankind than arboriculture. Perhaps not 

 in any way can money and time be expended to more advan* 



