THE BLACK WALNUT AND BUTTERNUT. 
THE black walnut {Juglans nigra) 
is found in the rich, deep soils, 
from western Massachusetts, 
west to southern Minnesota 
and southward to central Texas and 
northern Florida. It is not found 
along the gulf or Atlantic coasts to 
any extent, but abounds west of the 
Allegheny mountains, especially in the 
Mississippi Valley. The tree grows 
rapidly and to a great size, one speci- 
men on Long Island having attained a 
circumference of twenty five feet. 
The wood is dark-colored, becoming 
almost black when properly seasoned, 
and was formerly extensively used for 
cabinet work, inside finish, gun stocks, 
and many ornamental purposes; it is not 
in so much demand at present, as other 
cheaper woods maybe had which seem 
to answer the purposes quite as well, 
but it is still numbered among our val- 
uable forest productions. 
The nut has a thick, hard shell, 
which is deeply and unevenly corru- 
gated with rough, sharp points and 
ridges, and is almost too well known to 
admit of description. The kernel is 
large and sweet, but has usually a 
rather strong, rank taste, less oily than 
the butternut. An oil is expressed 
from its kernel which is known as nut- 
oil, and is much used by painters as a 
drying oil. A kind of dye is also man- 
ufactured from the husk* or outside 
cover, of the nut. 
The butternut, as its name Juglans 
cinerea implies, is somewhat related to 
the black walnut, in fact, rare instances 
are recorded in which the two species 
have become mixed, forming a tree 
which resembled both species. It is 
found in about the same regions fre- 
quented by the black walnut, but ex- 
tends further east and north into New 
Brunswick, Maine, Quebec, and Onta- 
rio, and does not extend quite so far 
west. It is most abundant in the 
Ohio River Valley. It is not so 
plentiful in the forest as the black 
walnut, and where it is so found does 
not fruit well. Its favorite resort is 
an open grove or along a fence 
row. Attempts to cultivate it gener- 
ally yield only disappointment, but un- 
der right conditions the trees are very 
fruitful, one tree having been known to 
produce forty bushels in a single sea- 
son, and trees bearing twenty bushels 
are frequently reported. 
The fruit is longer than that of the 
black walnut and tapers to a point at 
both ends, with the ridges somewhat 
more pronounced, but aside from the 
difference in shape they present a sim- 
ilar appearance. 
THE EDIBLE PINE. 
THE edible pine, or piflon (Pinus 
edulis), is only one of many va- 
rieties of pin enuts which grows 
on the Pacific Slope of the 
United States and in Colorado, New 
Mexico, Arizona and Mexico. 
The pine nut has a rich, marrowy ker- 
nel in a shell that varies in thickness 
from that* of a chestnut to that of a 
hazel-nut. The form and size of the 
nuts also vary greatly according to the 
species. They are but little known to 
the people of the eastern states, but 
in some of the cities of California they 
are marketed in large quantities. The 
larger ones are valued for dessert and 
confectionery purposes and will doubt- 
less become popular in the East. 
They are well known to the Indians 
and have formed a staple article of 
their diet for centuries. Their method 
of harvesting them is very simple. 
They collect the cones after they have 
fallen from the trees, then heat them un- 
til they open, then rattle them out upon 
their blankets. 
Of the twenty-four species of pine 
which grow along the .Pacific Slope 
one-half furnish seeds that are es- 
teemed by the Indians as food. When 
a Mexican Indian starts out on a long 
trip across the country and does not 
wish to burden himself with food he 
fills a small pouch with piflion nuts and 
can subsist on a small number of them 
for a remarkably long time. 
