stene: hurricane in Rhode island 
13 
four lanes. At times, however, it was a question whether the engine 
would continue to drive the auto forward or the wind would drive it 
backward. The wind must also have varied considerably in different 
sections, otherwise it is hard to explain the wholesale destruction of 
rugged trees in some places and the escape of much weaker trees in other 
areas. 
Since the storm, many Rhode Islanders have been asking themselves 
and others what lessons the results of the storm may have for those who 
are to set out new trees or replace old ones. Some are inclined to feel 
that no matter what trees we plant they cannot be depended on to stand 
up successfully in all cases against such storms as that of September 21. 
Furthermore, they say “Why worry, the next preceding storm occurred 
123 years ago in 1815 and the only other storm in our history which 
made any lasting impressions occurred 180 years before that. If we are 
to have these storms in the future a century or two apart, what is the 
necessity of trying to plant particular kinds of trees resistant to similar 
storms?” “This is especially pertinent since any variety we plant may 
become undesirable at any time because of attacks by epidemic plant 
diseases or by injurious insects of newly introduced species, or of old 
species with newly acquired appetites for the trees we set out.” 
This argument is not well founded. The last storm and the one of 
1815 were outstanding because of a combination of tidal wave and wind 
destruction. Storm damage to trees has been more frequent. The 
writer a short time ago helped make a survey of the recent storm damage 
in Rhode Island and during an interview with an aged farmer’s wife, she 
stated that she well remembered the last great hurricane which caused 
similar damage. She was not, however, referring to the storm of 1815, 
which most people think of as the only great storm of earlier history, but 
to one which occurred in 1868. Most of us can recall wind damage to 
trees more recently than that and of considerable frequency. 
The recent hurricane has tested trees for storm resistance and also for 
resistance to killing of foliage by salt as they have rarely been tested 
before and it would seem highly desirable to take stock of results as 
proposed for this conference and to make use of this information in 
future planting. There is especially need at all times for information, 
such as we may now compile, among those desiring to set out trees in 
seashore plantations and for this alone, if for no other purpose, the com¬ 
pilation of observations is worth while. 
Damage to trees resulted from several factors connected with the 
