many small roots twisted together, the spaces between them being filled up with black earth. When it is dry, it burns very well. In many places, a great deal of it is used for fuel. The hills are often so steep, and rocky that they cannot be ploughed. But they bear a great deal of fine, short, sweet grass, which makes very good food for sheep and cows. This kind of land is called pasture land. Land that is ploughed it called tillage land. But in some places the hills are very steep, and so rocky that the land is not fit even for pasture. It is chiefly useful for causing brooks, rivers, and ponds to be formed. However, these very steep hills often bear a great deal of timber. There are all sorts of land from very good to very poor in Massachusetts. But there is little so poor, that it cannot be made good by working upon it. It is true, where the land is poor or rocky, the people have to work hard for a living. But I have observed, and you, if you live to grow up, may observe the same, that those who are obliged to work hard for a living, are commonly much better, as well as much happier, than those who live without working at all. Idleness, vice, and unhappiness are very apt to be together. Idle children, you know, are always in mischief; and when they have done mischief, they are often punished; and then they are unhappy. But children that love to be doing what is right and useful, are commonly very happy, because they know their conduct is pleasing not only to their parents, but to their Maker. What is said of sandy land? What sort of land is found on large swells? What sort in the vallies? What if a river runs through a valley? On what river is there much rich meadow? How may swampy land be made good? What is peat good for? What are the hills that cannot be ploughed good for? LETTER XVII. In this letter I will tell you something about the different kinds of trees that grow in Massachusetts, and what use is made of them. There are a great many kinds of trees, but I shall mention only a few of the most useful. The best kind of timber is the oak. The oak is a stout, thick tree, with dark green leaves. It bears nuts, called acorns. There are several kinds of oak, as white oak, red oak, yellow oak, and some others; but the white oak is much the most valuable. It is very tough and strong, and is used in building ships, and for other purposes for which very strong timber is wanted. Oak wood is easily split into thin pieces, and great use is made of it by coopers in manufacturing in manufacturing hogsheads, barrels, and other vessels of like kind. It is excellent fuel; and the bark of the oak is much used by tanners in making the nicest and best leather. Next to the oak the pine is the most useful. There is white pine and pitch pine. The white pine often grows very tall and straight, without a knot or a limb within forty or fifty feet of the ground. It is a beautiful tree, and is green all the year. It is used for the masts of ships. A great many pine trees are sawed into boards, and planks, or split into clapboards and shingles, or hewn into beams, and used for building houses, and barns, and stores, and bridges. Pine wood is full of pitch or turpentine, and takes fire very easily. The pitch is a sort of gum which runs out of the tree. They make tar and rosin of it. The pitch pine grows in poor sandy soils. It is valuable for fuel. The chestnut tree bears a very good nut. The wood of this tree is often split into long straight pieces, called rails, which the farmers use in making fences. The walnut tree also bears a very good nut. The wood of this tree is the very best kind of fuel, and, for many uses, it is a valuable timber. It is used for axe-handles; and being very tough, it is easily bent into bows and hoops. The hemlock is a large tree which round. Trees that are all the year is green green all the year, are called evergreens. The hemlock is not very good fuel, though it is good timber for many uses; and a great deal of hemlock bark is used by the tanners in making leather. There are several kinds of maple trees; the rock maple, and the red maple, and the white maple. The white maple commonly grows on low swampy ground. The maple is good wood to burn, and cabinet-makers often use it for chairs, tables, and bedsteads. From the sap of the rock maple a most agreeable sugar is made. The best wood for tables is the wild cherry tree, which grows large, and can be sawed into fine wide boards. The elm is a beautiful tree, and is planted on the sides of streets, and before houses, for shade and ornament. The wood of the elm is very tough, and is much used for the hubs of carriage wheels, and for other purposes. The ash tree affords a valuable timber for coaches, chaises, and other carriages. the woods. All the trees which I have been describing are called forest trees; but apple trees, plum trees, pear trees, peach trees, and others, which are planted in gardens and orchards, are called fruit trees. These trees do not grow wild in They were brought over by the white people who first settled the country. Every good farmer in Massachusetts has an orchard of apple trees. About the end of May, when the apple tree blooms, the white blossoms, covering all the trees, make a beautiful appearance. It is also very pleasant in the autumn, when the fruit is ripe, to see the trees hanging full of apples. The best of the apples are gathered and carried to market, or put into barrels to be kept till winter. The women cut a great many apples into quarters, string them upon twine, and hang them up in the sun to dry. Dried apples are used for pies. The apples which are not gathered for eating are made into cider. There is a sort of drink made pears, called perry. of What kind of oak is the best? What is oak timber used for? Oak bark? What are the two kinds of pine? For what is the white pine used? What is pitch pine used for? What is said of the chestnut? Of the walnut? What kind of trees are called evergreens? For what is hemlock bark used? |