6 
THE BRITISH OAK. 
in the Dean forest; and Ringdon, in Swindon, Wilts, though 
disafforested, can yet show noble trees of this form. Indeed 
throughout England it is difficult to meet with many examples 
of any other form, except in Wyre forest, Worcestershire, 
where the tree next to be described is perhaps the more general, 
and it would also appear that in the New Forest the Q. sessili- 
jiora is also frequently met with. 
Quercas Robur sessiliftora may be generally described as of a 
more upright and formal habit. Limbs straighter and less 
gnarled. Bark usually smoother than the former. The leaf 
has many sinuosities, and is set on a comparatively long leaf- 
stalk (petiole) — (Plate II. fig. a). 
The fruit on the contrary is so nearly sessile that it may be 
said to have little more than the indication of a peduncle 
(fig. b). 
We have already stated our opinion that the sessile-fruited 
oak does not usually attain the huge dimensions of the pedun- 
culate form ; but on the other hand we incline to the belief that 
it grows more rapidly, and is best adapted for a lighter soil 
than the latter. There are conditions which might to a greater 
or less extent affect the quality of its timber, but we do not 
think that there is much difference in this respect. We believe 
that theh- wood has been used indifferently, and the quality is in- 
fluenced by surrounding circumstances. Selby, in his “ History 
of Forest Trees,” states on this head, “ The result, perhaps, of 
some original constitutional defect, or arising from the nature 
of the soil, situation, or other local peculiarities of the ground 
upon which the timber has been raised, such at least is the 
result of our own experience, as we have met with oak of the 
peduncled kind, its timber possessing all the inferior qualities 
attributed to, and supposed to be possessed exclusively by 
Q. sessiliflora.” The longer, straighter spars of the Sessilifiora, 
in days when oak was so uniformly used for roofs, seem to have 
pointed out this variety for roof-timbering, and hence some of 
the finest ancient timbered roofs of this country have been 
ascertained to have been formed from its wood. With respect 
to these the opinion long prevailed that they were formed 
of the wood of the Spanish chestnut. This, however, is but a 
poor timber tree, as long before it could afford so large a scant- 
ling as would be required by the roof of the Parliament House 
at Edinburgh or of Westminster Abbey (both of which were 
supposed to be of chestnut), the chestnut would begin to decay 
at the heart ; in fact just at the period when the heart-wood of 
oak begins to harden, that of the chestnut would appear to 
deteriorate. 
Quercus Robur intermedia , having a petiole intermediate in 
length between the other two varieties described, and a peduncle 
