Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1882-12-05

1nC NkOnSlSf Trees Oh CaI1fOEnias
g. F. Gordon Cumming, in the Gentlemans Magazine
AS regards the wonderful size of the seuuOia
that is a matter which does not at first fully
come to one. The fact is that all the trees are
80 large that one fails to realize the magnitude
Of the giants. All have increased in propor-
tiOn. 1t requires mental calculation to con-
vince ones self that the Transformation is some
thing quite out of the common It is onlv
when you come to walk in and out of the hol-
low trees and to circle round them and take a
constitutional by walking alongside of a fallen
giant. or perhaps OF it has done duty as
chimney before it came to grief by riding up
inside the hollow for a considerable distance.
that you begin to understand their size You
do so best when, standing on the ground beside
a PROSTATE tree lying buried in ditch of it's
own making. you look up at a red wall rising
perhaps Is or 20 feet above your head bullying
outward considerably and extending in
straight line for 800 feet along the ground, and
tell yourself that it is only a tree. The owners
of the beautiful grove near the hotel have
erected tall ladders to enable people to climb on
to some of these heights and walk along the
fallen trees as if on garden terraces. 1t sounds
cocknry, but 1T is decidedly pleasant to gain
view of the forest from an elevation of 80 feet,
and it Is not every one who can scale the red
rampant without the aid of the ladders If you
choose to Chamber along the upturned roots you
ground. This sounds high, but on furth-
or consideration you begin to marvel
how such extraordinarily small roots
can ever have formed fit pedestal for 80 pom
derous weight. They have literally no depth
and comparatively small spread so that
they have merely superficial hold on the earth's
surface. Yet this slight support has enabled
these huge bodies to resist the wild storms of
many centuries. All the big trees of the dis
trict are concentrated in two groves, namely.
the little forest gem of Calaveras, and q much
larger belt known as the South Park grove. on
the Stanisaus river. about six miles further.
within an area of so acres, over which space
altogether about 100 lie scattered singly or IN
groups. or these 20 attain circumference of
about 20 feet near the base and one which is
distinguished as the Father Of the Forest. Is
found to measure ITO feet round; it now lies
PROSTATE, and has apparently done so for many
century, for the well-nigh imperishable wood
Is in part decayed, and long use as a chimney
had burned out its inside and DESTROYED its sum
init ere it fell. The portion that still remains is
like long mountain, and two large archways
have been cut into the side of the said noun
tain in order that those whose taste lies in that
line may ride into the hollow trunk and come
out by the further opening It is estimated that
the tree, when perfect, must have been about
40 feet In height. OF the trees now standing.
four exceed 800 feet in height and one meas
ures 325. About twenty-five are said to exceed
$50 feet. One can, perhaps, better realize what
these sizes mean by finding the amount of
house room to be obtained within O followed
tree. Several, such as miners Camp" and
Pioneers Camp" have been used as tempo
sitting room; others are used for stabling
horses