TREES IN CITIES AND TILLAGES. We. constantly hear complaints from citizens that the. trees they have spent so much money in, having; planted and cared for, give but little satisfaction. A large majority die in the course of a few years, or at least become dingy and unhealthy from the effects of the smoke of the bituminous coal used so universally in the West. Evergreens are especially sensitive to disability from this cause. Among deciduous trees, the elm soonest shows. blackening and stoppage of the pores, although all lose vigor to a greater or less degree from this cause, and notably all those having rough or hairy leaves, and this, undoubtedly, from the fact that these rough surfaces are not so easily washed by rains and glowering as are the smooth and glossy leaved varieties. It is unfortunate,. for in no place is the sanitary need of oxygen giving plants more necessary than in our densely populated cities. Among the trees that longest resist the effects of city air, the cottonwoods bear the palm. The most serious objection to, this tree is, the habit of discharging cotton, as the downy covering of the seeds is called. This, however, may be obviated, by selecting cuttings from the male tree, which does not throw off this substance. It has the added advantage of being healthy in a great variety of soils. The Plane (button wood) is also a most eligible tree for street planting in soils congenial to it. Its. habit of throwing off its old bark annually, thus leaving its trunk smooth, gives this tree a peculi arly clean and fresh appearance, possessed by none outside this family. It also exposes a large leaf surface to the atmosphere, and exhales oxygen correspondingly. Ash leaved maple, Acer
negundo, so far as our observation goes, also does well as a street tree. In fact all the maples do so measurably. The fact that the Ash leaved maple never grows to a great size we do not con sider a special disability. It grows quickly, and that is what is wanted. If it were generally understood, great size is not what is wanted in. street trees. These may be well for parks, and also waste places, but our streets and yards should be planted with smaller, quick-growing varieties, that will stand the smoke and dust of cur crowded thoroughfares. In villages and country places, the inhabitants may have a wider selection. Here elms and hard maples, beech, -sycamore and linden, the oaks, walnuts and hick cry, may have full scope to grow and spread, giving shade and adding grandeur to the scenery. It is one of the pleasantest features of farm life that the prairie home may be shaded with varie ties that in time will become giants, and yet which will, while growing, shade the lawn about the homestead, and furnish a grateful resting place from the noonday heat, or a pleasant place where the family may gather after the labors of the day to enjoy the summer twilight while -engaged in pleasant chat, or listening to the evening song of the birds which are drawn thither. No less pleasant is the merry music of these feathered messengers at early dawn, when their joyous warblings fill the fragrant morning air with melody.