Urbana union. [volume] (Urbana, Ohio) 1862-1872, 1871-07-12

Q
Having been fully acquitted by two
tribunals of the law, make this final
appeal to my feIIowmen throughout the
State, and ask them confidently not to
reverse the Judgement already pro-
nOunced. Union.
"
OhiOeIISiS. l..g .
On the 18th Of December, 1888, the
forty-fifth anniversary of the settle
ment of Cincinnati was celebrated by
natives of Ohio by what was called a
Buckeye dinner. On that occasion the
late Daniel Drake, OF Cincinnati, gave a
most humorous and ingenious descrip-
ton of the buckeye tree. We extract
from his explanation as follows: 4.
''The tree which you have toasted,
Mr.. President, has the distinction Of be-
ing one of a family of plants, but few
species of which exist on earth. They
constitute the genus 1Esculus of the bO-
tanist, which belong to the class Hep
tGHdria. Now the latter, a Greek
phrase, signifies SeUen men; and there
happens to be exactly seven species of
the genus--thus they constitute the sew
ell wise men of the woods, in proof of
which may say that there is not an
other family Of plants on the whole
earth that possess these talismanic at
tributes of wisdom. But this is not all.
OF the seven species, our emblem-tree
was discovered LdSt-it is the youngest
of the family-the seventh sOn-and
who does not know the manifold virtues
of a seventh son!
Neither Europe nor Africa has a sin
gle natiUe species Of 1ESculus,, and Asia
but one. This is the 1Fscol,ts Hippocos-
tGnatD1, or horse-chestnut. Nearly three
hundred years since a minister from
one of the courts of Western Europe to
that of Russia found that tree growing
in Moscow, whittier it had been brought
from Siberia. He was struck with its
beauty, and naturalized il in his own
country. 1t spread with astonishing
rapidity over that part of The continent,
and crossing the channel, became one
of the favOrite shade trees of our Eng
lish ancestors. i
Every native in the valley of the
Ohio land the MiamD should feel proud
of the appelIation, which, from the in.
fancy of our settlements, has been con-
ferred upon him, for the buckeye has
many qualities which may be regarded
as typical of a noble character. -.
1T is not merely native of the West,
but peculiar to it, has received from the
bOtanist the specific name of OhiOepsis, |
and is the only tree of Our whole forest
that does not grow elsewhere. What
other tree could be so fit an emblem of
our native population?
TN all our woods there is no tree. as
hard to kill as the buckeye. The deep
est girding will not deaden it, aud even
after it is cut down and worked up into
the side of a cabin it will send out
young Misunderstanding to all the
world that Buckeyes are not easily con-
quered, and could with difficulty be de-
stroyed
THE buckeye has generally been con-
iemned as unfit for fuel, but its very
ncombustibiIity has been found an ad-
vantage; for no tree of the forest is
equally valuable for 'back-logs,' which
are the sine qua non of every good cabin
ire Thus treated, it may be finally,
though slowly burned; when another of
is virtues appears, as no other tree of
,ur woods affords so great Il quantity of
llkali. Thus there is piquancy in its
very ashes.
THE bark of our emblem-plant has
ome striking properties. Under prop
# method of preparation and use, it is
aid to be efflcacious in the cure Of ague
md fever; but unskillfully employed,
proves a violent emetic-which indi-
ates that he who tampers with a buck
ye will not do it with impunity.
who has not looked with admiration q
III the fine foliage of the buckeye in
arly spring, while the more sluggish !
enants of the forest remain torpid in
heir winter quarters; and what tree in
II our wild woods bears a flower which
an be compared with that of our favor
-e? We may fearlessly challenge for
the closest comparison. It's early
utting forth, and the beauty of its a
caves and blossoms, are appropriate
ypes of our native population, whose p
lpid and beautiful development will
OF be denied by those whom 1 now ad- n
ress, nor disproyed by reference to II
leir character. ......
FINALLY, the buckeye derivesits name -
ON the resemblance of its nut to. the -,
ye of a buck, the finest organ of our
Oblest wild animal; while the name u,
self is composed of Welsh and Sax u
II word, belonging, therefore, to the
Idest portion of our vernacular tongue,
nd connecting us with the primitive Il
.Ocks, of which our fathers were but el
lions planted in the New WOrldp t...
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