CHAPTER IX. 
MEMORIAL TREES 
REE planting to honor the heroic dead of the Great 
1 War, or others, has given the world a new form of 
monument—the memorial that lives. 
The memorial tree is clothed in the finest of human 
sentiment. In its ever renewing growth it stands forth 
as a thing alive, a simple symbol to keep forever green 
the memory of those in whose honor it is planted. For 
to-day and for generations yet unborn, the message of the 
memorial tree is the message of life. 
That the memorial tree should altogether supplant 
other forms of monument is neither to be expected nor 
desired. Memorials of stone or bronze will always have 
their place. The massive beauty of the Washington Mon¬ 
ument, the impressive dignity of the Grant Tomb and the 
graceful outline of the Arc de Triomphe are enough to 
prove the enduring worth of memorials of this character. 
Even with such memorials, however, the memorial tree 
plays an important part. For bringing out the artistic 
symmetry of such structures in their full value, an environ¬ 
ment of trees is indispensable. By enhancing the beauty 
of the surroundings they give an added worth and 
meaning to the stateliest edifice reared by human hands. 
One of the most appealing features of the tree as a 
memorial is that this form of expression is possible to 
everyone. The memorial tree is suited to the require¬ 
ments of the city as a whole or to the needs of the one 
person. It may express the reverence of a community, of 
a group or an individual. In either form it is ideal. 
It has been gratifying to see the world’s response to the 
claims of the tree as the most fitting memorial to those who 
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