CHAP. CV.

C'OUYLa'cEjK. que'kcus.

1717

Genus I.

QUE'RCUS L. The Oak. Lin. Syst. Monce'cia Polyandria.

Identification. Lin. Gen., 495. j Juss., 410. j FI. Br., 1025.; Tourn,, t. 349.; Lam., t. 779.; Gtertn.,t. 57.

Synonymes. /'lex Tourn. Sfiber Tourn. \ Derw, Celtic ; Aaack, or Ac, Saxon ; Al, Alon, or Allun,Hebrew ; Drus, Greek ; Chene, Fr. ; Eiche, Ger. ; Eik, Dutch j Quercia, Ital. ; Encina, Span.

Derivation. From auer , fine, and cuez, a tree, Celtic , according to Lepelletier : but, according toothers, from the Greek word choiros , a pig ; because pigs feed on the acorns. The Celtic namefor this tree (Derw) is said to be the root of the word Druid (that is, priest of the oak), and of theGreek name Drus. The Hebrew name for the oak (Al, or Alon) is said to be the origin of the oldEnglish word llan (originally signifying an oak grove, or place of worship of the druids, and after-wards, by implication, a town or parish), and also of the Irish words clan and clun. In the Book ofIsaiah, xliv. 14., idols are said to be made of Allun, or Alon ; that is, of oak. ( Lowth's Trans.)

Description. The oaks are trees of temperate climates, mostly of largesize, and, in point of usefulness to man, only to be equalled by the pine andfir tribe. The latter may be considered the domestic, and the former thedefensive, trees of civilised society, in the temperate regions throughoutthe world. The oak, both in Europe and America, is the most majesticof forest trees. It has been represented by Marquis (liech. Hist., &c.)as holding the same rank among the plants of the temperate hemispheresthat the lion does among quadrupeds, and the eagle among birds; thatis to say, it is the emblem of grandeur, strength, and duration ; of force thatresists, as the lion is of force that acts. In short, its bulk, its longevity, andthe extraordinary strength and durability of its timber, attest its superiorityover all other trees;, for buildings that are intended to be of great duration,and for the construction of ships. In one word, it is the king of foresttrees. The trunk of the oak is not, in general, remarkable either for itslength, straightness, or freedom from branches, except when it is drawn upamong other trees. In an open situation, the larger species send out nu-merous very large horizontal branches, so as to form a head broader than thetree is high. The branches, in many of the species, are tortuous towardstheir extremities, and furnished with numerous twigs, or spray. The mainroot of the oak, in most species, descends perpendicularly to a considerabledepth, unless the subsoil be unpropitious : but it also extends horizontally aswidely as the branches ; thus taking a firmer hold of the ground than any othertree, with the exception, perhaps, of the walnut, and one or two others. Thesurface roots, in only one or two species, throw up suckers. The leaves varyin different sections of the genus. In what are called oaks by way of emi-nence, such as Quercus ifobur, Q. rubra, and Q. Cerris, which may be con-sidered as the heads of three great families, they are of a shape which is rarely,if at all, to be found in any other genus of plants. The lanceolate leaves ofthe willow, the cordate leaves of the poplar, and the pinnate leaves of theash or the acacia, are to be found in many genera; but not so the lobedand sinuated leaves of the oaks of the three sections above mentioned. Inother sections, such as that represented by Q. Phellos and Q. /'lex, the leavesare entire, and may be considered as exhibiting commonplace forms. Inmost of the species, and especially in the larger trees, the leaves are deci-duous ; but in some sections, as in Q. /'lex and Q. virens, they are evergreen.The flowers are in all inconspicuous, without corollas, and, in general, ap-pearing with, or before, the leaves. The female flowers are, as in most amen-taceous plants, less numerous than the male flowers; and, while the maleflowers are, for the most part, on pendulous catkins, the female flowers are inmany cases sessile. The fruit is in all an acorn; a name in common use, and aform every where known in the temperate climates of the northern hemisphere.This fruit is as distinct in its character and appearance from all other fruits,as the leaves of the common oaks are from all other leaves. The form andsize of the nut of the acorn do not differ nearly so much as might be ima-

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