58 
On  the  Climate  of  the  British  Islands , §'c. 
These,  therefore,  are  the  two  sources  from  whence  an  improve- 
ment in  the  climate  must  be  looked  for — draining,  and  planting 
for  shelter. 
Heat  is  mainly  communicated  to  the  atmosphere  by  radiation 
from  the  soil,  and  where  the  pulsations  of  heat  are  swept  away  by 
the  unobstructed  power  of  every  wind,  animal  and  vegetable  life 
quail  and  wither  under  the  influence.  Ireland  and  Scotland  were 
in  former  days  well  sheltered  by  timber;  but  the  indiscriminate 
destruction  of  the  forests  inflicted  a great  injury  on  these  king- 
doms, which  however  in  Scotland  has  been  partly  remedied  by 
the  extensive  plantations  raised  by  the  late  Duke  of  Athol  and 
other  proprietors,  who  have  set  an  excellent  example,  which,  if 
followed  on  the  exposed  lands  of  the  west,  would  prove  a great 
national  benefit. 
Belts  of  plantations  with  a curved  outline,  carried  along  the 
hill-sides  and  the  knolls,  are  best  adapted  to  give  the  greatest 
amount  of  shelter  and  occupy  the  least  ground ; such  is  also  the 
most  ornamental  style  of  planting.  The  belts  should  fun  across 
the  strike  of  the  prevailing  wind,  and  the  thickness  be  propor- 
tionate to  the  degree  of  exposure.  It  requires  much  care  and 
knowledge  to  select  trees  suited  to  the  soil  and  climate.  The 
pineaster  (Pinus  maritima),  the  Scotch  fir,  and  the  sycamore  are 
well  adapted  to  bleak  situations;  and  a valuable  shrub,  the  tama- 
risk (Tamarix  Gallica),  grows  rapidly  in  sandy  soil  on  the  most 
open  part  of  the  south-west  coast : in  seven  years  it  reaches  from 
10  to  12  feet  in  height,  and  is  feathered  to  the  very  bottom.  If 
planted  on  a 5-foot  bank,  it  forms  an  excellent  screen,  under 
which  a plantation  is  rapidly  raised.  I have  passed  over  large 
tracts  of  the  west,  where  the  soil  is  naturally  good,  but  where  a 
tree  could  not  be  seen  for  many  miles ; if  a proper  system  of 
planting  were  carried  out  on  such  lands,  and  in  Ireland,  it  would 
not  only  much  improve  the  climate  by  raising  the  temperature  of 
summer,  but  it  would  add  much  to  the  beauty  of  the  country, 
giving  it  that  rich,  sheltered  appearance  which  is  now  the  pecu- 
liar characteristic  of  the  midland  counties. 
Idle  climate  of  Britain  may  have  its  defects,  but  they  are  more 
than  compensated  by  the  advantages  it  confers.  The  husband- 
man can  uninterruptedly  pursue  his  avocation  at  all  seasons  of 
the  year;  the  traveller,  or  those  who  seek  health  or  exercise 
abroad,  can  be  in  the  saddle  or  on  the  wheels,  careless  of  the 
cold  of  winter  or  the  heat  of  summer.  It  perfects  all  the  sub- 
stantial necessaries  of  life  required  from  the  soil  ; and  it  has 
given  an  athletic  frame,  and  impressed  an  energy  and  perse- 
verance of  character  on  the  inhabitants,  which  never  could  have 
been  developed  amid  the  lassitude  of  an  oriental  clime,  or  be- 
neath the  rigour  of  the  northern  sky. 
