The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1866-06-30
Ornamental Trees.

10 the Editor OF the Press:
Those of our citizens who are SO fortunate
as to own the houses they dwell in find them
selves brought into more various relations
with the city government than those who are
only tenants. OF these numerous relations
we shall now treat of only one-the dealing
of a branch of this government with the
trees, which the owners of dwellings have pro-
cured, set out, and watched over for series
sometimes for scores OF years; and with re-
gard to these, it is not my purpose to COM
ment as to the wisdom and equity of this
management with the trees, or to find fault with
any supposed hasty, arbitrary, inequitable,
and on the whole, injudicious course they
sometimes take with them. The purpose of
the writer of this article is only to give cor
rect brief sketch Of his individual experience
during thirty years or more in relation to his
trees. H- A
In the spring of 1924, he placed in front of
his house which stands on the corner of two
princip n streets, a row, chiefly of elms; and in
addition another elm tree on turning the cor
ner. About thirty years ago, those which had
escaped the rayages Of the boys were large
enough to afford desirable shade; and being
well proportioned had become ornamental,
and as such elected remarks from passers by.
! One of the finest of them, the one last des-
cribed, was brought to an early end at that
time as follows. A man was found cutting a
serpentine track in the gutter by the side of
the tree, and was told, if he proceeded, he
would cut off the main root. He said he
hoped that what he cut off would not damage
the tree, but he must do as he was ordered
He did scout off the roots, and the next
northwest wind blew the tree down.
A few years after this, it was decided by the
city authorities that the lowerend of the street
on which the house stood should be raised
not lopered-and it was raised somewhere
from IL to Is inches where the largest tree
stood-and in the process of raising 1t, root
as large as ones thigh was cut off The wri-
ter was told in answer to remonstrance, that
the tree would not feel it. But in two or three
years, the dead limbs which were thereby pro-
duced for want of the previous supply Of sap,
were the consequence, as the writer had pre-
dicted.
About ten years later still, their successors
in the city government, or that branch to which
street management belonged, decided to have
culvert at this corner, and two more at the
corresponding corners but instead of having
the one at this corner where it should have
been (if made at ally, at the corner where it
now is, 12 feet distant, they took a fancy to
have it within 8 feet of the tree, and cut off
another root as large as on the former occa-
sion-but on the same day and almost within
the same hour, after cutting off the root, con-
clu1ed to dig nine feet further from the tree,
where for the purpose of culvert there
was no occasion to disturb the root at ALL
The consequence of these repeated, needless
acts has been that the annoyed party has had
to cut offas many, he thinks, as a hundred
dead limbs while there have been none, or
next to none, dead on his other trees.
And now, June 1866-he finds men employ
ed in digging for cesspool between that cul-
vert and the tree in question, cutting off thee
or four more roots as large as ones wrist, and
innumerabe small ones.
The above is correct narration of facts
Readers may make their own comments.
A CrrrzEN