Stránka:book 1922.djvu/416

386 The Book of Woodcraft . FAGACE^ — BEECH FAMILY White Oak. (Quercus alba) A grand forest tree; over 100 feet up to 150 feet high. The finest and most valuable of our oaks. The one perfect timber for shipbuilders, farmers and house furnishers. Its wood is pale, strong, tough, fine- grained, durable and heavy. A cubic foot weighs 46 lbs. I found that when green it weighed 68 lbs. to the cubic foot and of course sank in water like a stone. Called white from pale color of bark and wood. Leaves 5 to 9 inches long. Many of them hang all winter though dead so the White Oak contributes a little to the golden glow of the snowy woods, though not to the extent of the Black Oak. Its acorns ripen in one season. They are sweet and nutritious and eagerly sought after by every creature in the woods from bluejays, wild ducks, mice and deer to squirrels and schoolboys. There can be little doubt that at least three out of five nut trees were planted by squirrels, chiefly the gray squirrel. All through autumn before snow falls the industrial Bannertail Gray works to bury for future use the choicest nuts he finds on the ground; ignoring the coarse and bitter, he makes sure of the sweet and delicate. Those that are not so disposed of, are usually eaten by deer, bears and other wild things. The various oaks have long competed for the squirrels' attention to their product. The Bur Oak acorn attracted by its size. Chestnut Oak by its split- ability and the White Oak by the sweetness. For a time the White