AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
341 
of their branches. They are likewise prone, 
like the coniferous ever-greens, to run up in a 
single stem to their summit, throwing out late¬ 
ral branches instead of sub-dividing into branches 
of nearly equal size. Their general defect is a 
want of density, both in their branches and 
foliage, which is remarkable in the American 
aspen. The latter, however, exceeds all other 
native species in the beauty and tremulousness 
of its leaves, which are heart-shaped and smooth. 
The Italian poplar, once a favorite tree for 
avenues, may be said, in its general growth, to 
exhibit the pattern of its tribe, but it exceeds 
the other species in density of foliage. It 
seldom or never divides the main stem, except 
when trimmed, which runs up perpendicularly 
to a great height, surrounded by lateral branches 
given out at a very acute angle. Hence its 
form approaches that of an obeli-k. Many of 
the poplars are remarkable for an agreeable 
balsamic fragrance, emitted when the tender 
leaves are bursting their hibernacles in spring. 
The birches are a peculiar genus of trees. 
The small white birch exhibits the peculiarities 
of the Italian poplar, not only in the shape and 
tremulous habits of its leaves, but also in its 
manner of growth and the arrangement of its 
branches. Like that tree it seldom divides the 
main stem, that runs up in a single branch to its 
summit. Its lateral branches are numerous, 
and given out at a wider angle than those of the 
Italian poplar. These are long and slender, and 
form a very elegant spray. The bark of the 
small branches is of a reddish color, forming a 
singular and pleasing contrast with the white¬ 
ness of the trunk. This tree, when it has a 
chance to expand, assumes more nearly a pyra¬ 
midal shape than other deciduous tree, with 
the exception of the larch. The other birches 
are not unlike the maples in their outlines, and 
the divisions of their branches. The foliage of 
the yellow birch is very graceful, and the termi¬ 
nal branches are often somewhat drooping. 
The swamp hornbeam is another tree that 
sends up a single stem to its summit, but re¬ 
sembles no other tree in its general develop¬ 
ment. It gives out its lateral branches in a 
horizontal direction, so crooked as to seem 
almost fantastical. The branches are bent 
downward, as if they had been subjected to 
some pressure from above. They do not grow 
in whorls as in the fir tribe; but they often 
exhibit this appearance, when observed at a 
distance, causing a peculiarity of shape which 
has won them the name of umbrella trees, in 
certain localities. This tree is as knotted and 
gnarled as any species of the oak, the branches 
pursuing a straggling and zig-zag course, from 
their joint to their extremities. The' foliage of 
the hornbeam is dense, shining, and brightly 
green; but in its general appearance this tree is 
rather grotesque than beautiful. 
One of the most common of our indigenous 
trees is the walnut or hickory. The differ¬ 
ent species of this genus do not greatly vary 
in their general or particular development. 
They have many of the characteristics of the 
oak, being rather prim when young, and be¬ 
coming gnarled when they are old. They are 
less inclined than the oak to spread, with the 
exception of the butternut, which seldom attains 
the size of the other species. The largest of 
this genus, and the most stately in its general 
appearance, is the butternut (Juglans amara .) 
This species is not common, and resembles the 
ash in its external habit. 
The lime tree is sub-divided like the maple, 
but not so beautifully as the elm. It is a grace¬ 
ful tree, having a tendency to increase more in 
height than in breadth. It is remarkable for a 
net-like arrangement of the smaller branches, 
as seen from a distance, against the sky for a 
back ground, and forming a very beautiful 
spray. This is a method of viewing trees, 
which may be recommended for the purpose 
of comparing the respective appearances pre¬ 
sented by the different species in winter. There 
is no great dissimilarity between the American 
and European lime, except that in the former 
both the leaves and flowers are larger, and the 
flowers whiter and more conspicuous than those 
of the European species. 
I have thus far treated only of deciduous 
trees. It remains to say a few words of the 
ever-greens, of which the coniferous tribes are 
the principal in our woods. I shall treat of 
these briefly, because, on account of their ever¬ 
green foliage, the arrangement of their branches 
is not so conspicuous as in the deciduous tribes. 
I have already stated in a former essay that the 
coniferous trees are remarkable for giving out 
their branches in somewhat irregular whorls 
from a single perpendicular trunk, and nearly 
at right angles with it. The junipers and 
arbor-vitaes, if they are to be ranked with the 
coniferaz, are partly an exception to this growth. 
They have a single perpendicular stem, with 
the lateral branches growing irregularly around 
it, and at acute angles with it. Hence there is 
more grace and less formality in the shape of 
these trees than in that of the firs. In the 
larch, which, though belonging to the coniferae, 
is not *hn ever green, the arrangement of its 
branches in whorls is not so conspicuous as in 
the ever-green species. The common cherry 
tree of our gardens is addicted to the habit of 
giving out its lateral branches in whorls, which 
are very apparent in young trees. 
While preparing these observations for the 
press, I am conscious that they are very im¬ 
perfect, and that other observers might point 
out to me many errors in my details. I submit 
them, with all their faults, in the hope of 
directing public attention to a class of observa¬ 
tions, which have not as yet been very gen¬ 
eral.^— Wilson Flagg, in Hovey's Magazine. 
-• o -- 
OLD TIME COUNTRY LIFE. 
PUNISHING THE APPLE THIEF. 
There are memories that come clustering 
about these “boys,” these “pippins,” and the 
“orchard.” Do you remember the old cider 
mill, friend Margins, and the old horse as he 
traveled round and round, moving with a slow 
and dignified tread, “hitched” to the long lever 
that turned the wooden mill, that crushed the 
apples into pummice? Do you remember the 
great “ cheese” in its bandage of straw beneath 
the press, and how, when the great screws were 
turned in the massive gallows-shaped frame,the 
rich juice of the apple came gushing out and 
running into the great tub placed to receive it? 
Do you remember how, with a straw, the ur¬ 
chins, as they came along on their way home 
from school, filled themselves with sweet cider 
from the bung of the barrel ? Do you remem¬ 
ber how, in the long winter nights you sat 
around the fire-place wherein logs were blazing, 
and how the pitcher of cider, and the platter of 
doughnuts were placed upon the old cherry 
table that sat out in the middle of the kitchen, 
and how you helped yourself to the cider and 
the doughnuts, and how happy each one was as 
he sat with his pewter mug of cider in one hand 
and a doughnut in the other before that old- 
fashioned kitchen fire-place? Those were plea¬ 
sant times. But they are memories now. And 
then the apple parings or “ bees,” as they were 
called, when the young men and maidens came 
together to pare apples, and talk and laugh and 
play old-fashioned plays, and say soft things to 
one another and eat pumpkin pies, and be happy 
after the fashion of the country people when 
you and I were young. Primitive times those 
were, friend Margins, and our proud daughters 
and city dames would turn up their noses hugely 
were they to be present at an old-fashioned ap¬ 
ple-bee, such as they used to have out in old 
Steuben, when the country was new, and the 
fashions were primitive. 
We remember, when we were young, there 
was a favorite tree in our father’s orchard which 
bore choice winter apples. It was called the big 
tree, because it was the largest in the orchard. 
The fruit of this tree was always left until the 
last and was gathered with great care. There 
was a worthless fellow living in the neighbor¬ 
hood who one year coveted a portion of the 
fruit on the “ big tree,” and was not deterred 
from its acquisition by the divine command¬ 
ments: “Thou shalt not steal.” A quantity of 
the apples disappeared one night, and the tracks 
of whoever stole them had a strange resemblance 
to those made by the heelless boots of di,-honest 
neighbor. There were two inseparable friends 
on the old homestead in those early days; the 
one a “ colored gentleman” by the name of 
Shadrach, who came to our father’s possession 
in payment for a debt, and who ran away regu¬ 
larly two or three times a year, and then as re¬ 
gularly ran back again, just as his master began 
to indulge the hope that he had got rid of him 
for good. The other was a great dog, half mas¬ 
tiff and half bull, of a noble presence and a fear¬ 
less courage. Drive and Shadiach were insep¬ 
arable. They worked and played together, slept 
together in the same loft, and Shadrach never 
ate a meal while the dog lived, at least at home, 
without sharing it with his canine friend. He 
would talk with Drive for hours, when they 
were alone, although the dog didn’t say much 
himself, yet Shadrach said a good many things, 
and laid down and argued out a great many 
queer propositions, against which Drive uttered 
not a word of dissent. 
One chilly night in October Shadrach and 
Drive had been out along the corn-fields on an 
unsuccessful coon-hunt. On their return the 
dog dashed off through the orchard, and in a 
minute or two commenced barking, and Shad¬ 
rach of course supposed he had treed a coon on 
one of the fruit-trees. Now Shadrach had an 
abiding faith in spiritual manifestations, and 
stood in mortal fear of “ the gentleman in black,” 
and all manner of spooks in general. Upon ar¬ 
riving at the “ big tree,” by the foot of which 
Drive sat, and looking up among the branches, 
he saw there in the darkness a great black ob¬ 
ject, with something that seemed like a winding 
sheet in its hand. Shadrach’s hair began to 
curl as he looked, and hallowing, “Seek him!” 
to Drive, broke like a quarter-nag for the house. 
He broke breathlessly into the kitchen, exclaim¬ 
ing—“Massa, Massa! Drive got de debble in de 
big apple tree.” “ What is that, you woolly- 
pated rhinoceros?” replied his master. “Drive 
got de debble treed on de big apple tree,” re¬ 
peated the negro. A torch was lighted, and 
upon going into the orchard, there sat our thiev¬ 
ing neighbor among the branches, with a bag 
half filled with the coveted fruit. Our father 
said not a word to him, but after giving Shad¬ 
rach certain directions, returned quietly to the 
house. Old Shadrach laid his jacket down by 
the roots of the apple tree, and ordering Drive 
to watch it, said to the occupant of the tree, 
“Look hae, you brack tief, you comedown, and 
Drive eat your head off sartain. Ugly dog dat. 
Eat a white tief up like a coon, sure. Roost up 
dare like a turkey, yah ! yah!” Shadrach went 
to his loft, and laid himself quietly away. When 
the day broke, there was the thief in the tree, 
and there was Drive watching him. When the 
sun rose they were there. The negro gave 
Drive his breakfast, and left him his jacket and 
the man in the tree to watch. Our father and 
the “boys,” of whom we were one, went to 
husking corn in the orchard. Ten o’clock came, 
and there was the dog at the roots, and the man 
perched among the branches of the “ big apple 
tree.” The horn sounded for dinner, and when 
we returned the two were there still. The thief 
called beseechinglv to our father to let him come 
down. “ Well,” was the reply, “ why don’t you 
come down ?” “ This infernal dog will eat me 
up if I do,” said the thief. “ Very likely,” was 
calm rejoinder, and we went on husking the 
corn. Once or twice the occupant of the apple 
tree, after coaxing and flattering the dog, at¬ 
tempted to descend, but Drive’s ivory warned 
him of his peril, and he went back to his perch. 
There was never another human being in such 
ecstacies all the day as was that negro. Yah! 
yah! he would break out in an uncontrollable 
cachination, and then roll and halloo, and yah! 
yah! among the corn-stalks until you could hear 
him a mile. The sun went down behind the 
