20 
LOBLOLLY BAY. 
pine barrens , tracts of 50 or 100 acres are met with at intervals, which, 
being lower than the adjacent ground, are kept constantly moist by the 
waters collected in them after the great rains. These spots are entirely 
covered with the Loblolly Bay, and are called Bay Swamps. Although 
the layer of vegetable mould is only 3 or 4 inches thick, and reposes upon 
a bed of barren sand, the vegetation of these trees is surprisingly luxuriant. 
The Loblolly Bay grows to the height of 50 or 60 feet, with a diameter 
of 18 or 20 inches. From 25 to 30 feet its trunk is perfectly straight. The 
small divergency of its branches near the trunk gives it a regularly pyra- 
midal form ; but as they ascend they spread more loosely, like those of 
other trees of the forest. 
The leaves are ever-green, from 3 to 6 inches long, alternate, oval-acu- 
minate, slightly toothed, and smooth and shining on the upper surface. 
The flowers are more than an inch broad, white and sweet-scented ; they 
begin to appear about the middle of July, and bloom in succession during 
two or three months. This tree possesses the agreeable singularity of hear- 
ing flowers when it is only 3 or 4 feet high. 
The fruit is an oval capsule, divided into five compartments, each of 
which contains small, black, winged seeds. These seeds appear to ger- 
minate successfully only in places covered with Sphagnum , a species of 
moss which copiously imbibes water, and in which are found thousands of 
the young plants, which are plucked up with ease. 
The bark of the Loblolly Bay is very smooth while the tree is less than 
6 inches in diameter ; on old trees it is thick and deeply furrowed. In 
trunks which exceed 15 inches, in diameter, four-fifths of the wood is heart. 
The wood is of a rosy hue, and of a fine, silky texture ; it appears to be 
very proper for the inside of furniture, though the Cypress is generally 
preferred. It is extremely light ; when seasoned it is very brittle, and it 
rapidly decays unless it is kept perfectly dry ; hence it is entirely neglected 
in use, and is not employed even for fuel. 
The value of the Loblolly bark in tanning compensates in some measure 
for the uselessness of its wood : it is employed for this purpose throughout 
the maritime parts of the Southern States and of the Floridas. For although 
this branch of industry is by no means as extensively practised in this part 
of the country as in the Northern States, and though these regions afford 
many species of Oak, yet the species whose bark is proper for tanning are 
not sufficiently multiplied to supply the consumption. As much of the 
bark of the Spanish Oak as can be obtained, of which the price is one 
half greater, is mixed with that of the Loblolly Bay. This tree has the 
advantage of maintaining very long the circulation of its sap, so that the 
bark may be taken off during three or four months. 
I can add little to this description of the Loblolly Bay : the luxuriance of 
its vegetation, the beauty of its flowers, and the richness of its ever-green 
