Dr. Cecil Carus-Wilson described before the Linnean Society
in London recently some singular observations concerning the
inclusion of stones in the roots and stems of trees.
Oaks growing in a gravel pit in Kent had so many stones imbedded
in their roots that they resisted attempts to saw them. Some of
the roots are described as consisting of “a conglomerate formed
of flints inclosed in a woody matrix.” In one specimen 67 flints
were found, the largest weighing several pounds. In Norton
churchyard, near Faversham, are three old yew-trees, in two of
which flints and fragments of tiles have been seen at a height
of seven feet above the ground. In Molash churchyard are other
yew-trees which have flints imbedded in their trunks as much as
eight feet above the ground. The tissues of the wood appear to
have grown round the stones, which have been carried upward with
the growth of the trees.
(2228)
=Obstinacy=--See SUGGESTION.
=Obstruction=--See LITTLE THINGS.
=Occasion, Equal to the=--See RANK, OBSEQUIOUSNESS TO.