222 
PRUNING AND THINNING. 
[Part IV. 
bute of a tree 
is a mistake of 
De Candolle. 
branchless stem as a distinctive characteristic of 
a tree. All trees which grow singly on sheltered 
lawns, if permitted, have branches down to the 
ground, and from the lowest parts of their 
stems ; and most beautiful objects they are! 
Nay, if circumstances permit, trees will throw 
out branches to an indefinite extent below the 
ground on which they stand. This may be seen 
on the side of a chalk-pit, or any other bank suf¬ 
ficiently precipitous to prevent the browsing of 
cattle. The branchless stem is the result of 
injury from the hand of man, or beast, or neigh¬ 
bouring trees, The single exception to this rule 
is the Italian pine; and a most beautiful and a 
most picturesque object the branchless stem is! 
This Claude and Salvator, and all landscape 
painters, show us. And, as I have said, for 
beauty we should have every variety of growth ; 
but if we desire profit, if we desire clean timber, 
we must not go to nature for it. Clean timber 
is no more a product of nature than a field full 
of clean wheat is. Nature’s sole mode of prun¬ 
ing is killing the branches; and the timber of 
the Italian pine, the only branchless stem formed 
by nature, is more full of flaws and huge mov¬ 
able knots, than the timber of any other tree 
whatever. But in all cases except the Italian 
