_GIANT AND NUT PINES_.
Great was the surprise of Edith when Miss Harson gave the little sleeper
a gentle shake and told her that it was time to be up. But the birds
without the window told the same story, and the little maiden was soon
at the breakfast-table and ready for the day's duties and enjoyments,
including their "tree-talk."
"Are there any more kinds of pine trees?" asked Malcolm.
[Illustration: "AWAKE, LITTLE ONE!"]
"Yes, indeed!--more than we can take up this summer," replied Miss
Harson. "There is the Norway pine, or red pine, which in Maine and New
Hampshire is often seen in forests of white and pitch pine. It has a
tall trunk of eighty feet or so, and a smooth reddish bark. The leaves
are in twos, six or eight inches long, and form large tufts or brushes
at the end of the branchlets. The wood is strong and resembles that of
the pitch-pine, but it contains no resin. The giant pines of California
belong to a different species from any that we have been considering,
and the genus, or order, in which they have been arranged is called
_Sequoia_[19]. They are generally known, however, as the 'Big Trees.' In
one grove there are a hundred and three of them, which cover a space of
fifty acres, called 'Mammoth-Tree Grove.' One of the giants has been
felled--a task which occupied twenty-two days. It was impossible to cut
it down, in the ordinary sense of the term, and the men had to bore into
it with augers until it was at last severed in twain. Even then the
amazing bulk of the tree prevented it from falling, and it still kept
its upright position. Two more days were employed in driving wedges into
the severed part on one side, thus to compel the giant to totter and
fall. The trunk was no less than three hundred and two feet in height
and ninety-six in circumference. The stump, which was left standing,
presented such a large surface that a party of thirty couples have
danced with ease upon it and still left abundant room for lookers-on."
[19] _Sequoia gigantea_.
When the children had sufficiently exclaimed over the size of this huge
tree, their governess continued:
"It is thought that these trees must have been growing for more than two
thousand years, which would make them probably two hundred years old at
the birth of our Saviour. Does it not seem wonderful to think of? There
are other groups of giant pines scattered on the mountains and in the
forests, and some youthful giants about five hundred years old."
"I suppose they are the babies of the family," said Clara; and this idea
amused Edith very much.
"There is still another kind of pine," said Miss Harson--"the Italian,
or stone, pine. It is shaped almost exactly like an umbrella with a very
long handle. The _Pinus pinea_ bears large cones, the seed of which is
not only eatable, but considered a delicious nut. The cone is three
years in ripening; it is then about four inches long and three wide, and
has a reddish hue. Each scale of which the cone is formed is hollow at
the base and contains a seed much larger than that of any other species.
When the cone is ripe, it is gathered by the owners of the forest; and
when thoroughly dried on the roof or thrown for a few minutes into the
fire, it separates into many compartments, from each of which drops a
smooth white nut in shape like the seed of the date. The shell is very
hard, and within it is the fruit, which is much used in making
sweetmeats. The stone-pine is found also in Palestine, and is supposed
to be the cypress of the Bible. The author of _The Ride Through
Palestine_[20] speaks of passing through a fine grove of the stone-pine,
'tall and umbrella-topped,' with dry sticks rising oddly here and there
from the very tops of the trees. These sticks were covered with
birdlime, to snare the poor bird which might be tempted to set foot on
such treacherous supports; and if the cones were ripe, they would be
quite sure to do it. Here is the picture, from the book just mentioned.
Italian pine is a prettier name than stone-pine, and this is the name by
which it is known to artists, who put it into almost every picture of
Italian scenery.
"'Much they admire that old religious tree
With shaft above the rest upshooting free,
And shaking, when its dark locks feel the wind,
Its wealthy fruit with rough and massive rind.'"
[20] Presbyterian Board of Publication.
[Illustration: STONE-PINE--"FIR" _(Pinus maritima_)].
"But how queer it sounds to call fruit _wealthy_!" said Malcolm.
"It is odd," replied his governess, "only because the word is not now
used in that sense; but the fruit is wealthy both because of its
abundance and because it can be put to so many uses. Let us see what is
said of it:
"'The kernels, or seeds, from the cones of the stone-pine have always
been esteemed as a delicacy. In the old days of Rome and Greece they
were preserved in honey, and some of the larders of the ill-fated city
of Pompeii were amply stored with jars of this agreeable conserve, which
were found intact after all those years. The kernels are also sugared
over and used as _bonbons_. They enter into many dishes of Italian
cookery, but great care has to be taken not to expose them to the air.
They are usually kept in the cones until they are wanted, and will then
retain their freshness for some years. The squirrels eagerly seek after
the fruit of this pine and almost subsist upon it. They take the cone in
their paws and dash out the seeds, thus scattering many of them and
helping to propagate the tree.
"'There is a bird called the crossbill that makes its nest in the pine.
It fixes its nest in place by means of the resin of the tree and coats
it with the same material, so as to render it impervious to the rain.
The seeds from the cones form its chief food, and it extracts them with
its curious bill, the two parts of which cross each other. It grasps the
cone with its foot, after the fashion of a parrot, and digs into it with
the upper part of its bill, which is like a hook, and forces out the
seed with a jerk.'"
[Illustration: PINE-CONE (_Pinus Sylvestris_.)]
The children enjoyed this account very much, and they thought that
stone-pine nuts--which they had never seen, and perhaps never would
see--must be the most delicious nuts that ever grew.
"What nice times the birds have," said Clara, "helping themselves to all
the good things that other people can't reach!"
"They are not exactly 'people,'" replied Miss Harson, laughing; "and, in
spite of all these 'nice times,' you would not be quite willing to
change with them, I think."
No, on the whole, Clara was quite sure that she would not.