The morning call., 1890-05-26
FIGHTING A FOREST.
AlphOnse Daudet Tells a Fantas.
tic Story of America.
His Quaint Idea of a Mushroom Towns Rise
ard Fall-How the Forest Resisted
the Entertainments cf Man.
Written for THE MORNING CALL.

The site was superb for building a town.
They had only to clear the river bank by
telling part of the forest of the immense
virgin forest rooted there since the begin
ming of the world. Then, sheltered all
around by wooded hills, the town would
descend to the quays of magnificent har-
Dor established at the mouth of the Red
River, but four miles from the sea.
AS soon as the Government at Washing
ton had granted the privilege carpenters
and wood-choppers went to work. But you
never saw such a forest. CIinging to the
soil with all its vines, with all its roots,
when they feled it at one end it sprange up
again at the other, acquiring fresh youth
from its wounds; and each blow of the AK
brought out green buds The streets, the
town squares, barely marked out, were in
vaded by vegetation. The walls grew less
quickly than the trees, and, as soon as
raised, crumbled beneath the upheaYal of
the still living roots.
To overcome this resistance that dulled
the blades of the hatchets and axes tney
were obliged TO have recourse to fire. Day
and night suffocating smoke filled the dense
thicketS, while the tall trees above famed
like wax candles. The forest strove to con-
tlnue the struggle, Tetarding the conh lgra-
tlon with floods of sap and the arless cool
came on. The snow fell like a second
death upon the broad lands full Of black
ened trunks and charred roots. Now they
could build.
soMBER AND NiENACING MASS.
Soon an enormous town, all in wood
ike Chicago, stretched along the bank OF
the Red River, with its broad, straight
streets, numbered and glttering about its
squares, its Merchants Exchange, its mar
kets, Its churches, its schoOl-houses ana the
whole maritime train Of sheds, Custom
house stations, docks, depots ana ship
yards. The town of wood (Woodstown, as
they called ~, was speedily peOpled by the
plaSter-dryers of new places. A feyerish
activity was displayed in every quarter, but
upon the surrounding hills commanding the
crowded thoroughfares and the harbor
packed with vessels somber and men
acing mass extended in II semi-circle, Ii
was the forest looking on.
1t was gazing at the insolent town that
had taken from it its place on tie river
bank and 1900 gigantic trees. All Woods
town was made OF its life. The towering
maSts that sWayed down in the harbuT,
those lnnumera0le roofs, inclined one to-
ward the other, even to the last hut Of the
most distant suburb, it had furnished eY-
erythlng-eVen the instruments of toll. even
the furniture, limiting its service only by
the length Of It's branches. Hence what
terrible hatred 1t cherished against that
town OF thieves.
While winter lasted they perceived
nothing. The people of WOodstown heard
occasionally hollow cracking in their
roofs, IN their furniture. From time to
tune wall was cleft asunder, Il store
counter nOisily burst in twain. But new
wood Is subject to such accidents, and no
one attached any Importance to them
However, at the commencement of spring
sudden, fierce spring. SO rich in sap that
they heard 1t beneath the ground like the
DabbllDg OF brooks-the soil began to be
agitated, upheaVed by Invisible forces. In
each house the furniture, the partition
walls, swelled, and they saw upon the floors
long bulges such as mark the passage of a
mole in the fields. Neither doors nor win
dows-nothing, in fact, worked any longer.
II Is the dampneSs," said the inhabitants.
When warm weather comes that will be
over"
AN APPALLING MIRACLE.
Suddenly, on the morrow of great storm
come from the sea, which brought summer
amid its scOrching lightning and lukewarm
rain, the town, when it awoke. uttered a
cry Of stupor. The red roofs of the public
buildings, the belfries OF the churches. the
floors of tine houses and even the wood of
the bedsteads were spripkled with a green
tint, thin as mould, tilmy as lace. Closely
examined, 1t was quantity of microscopic
buds, IN which the rolls of leaves could al
ready be distinguished. This freak of the
rain amused without causing alarm. but
before evening bouquets of verdure were
blooming eryWhere-upon the furniture
upon the walls. The branches grew as
they looked at them. Lightly grasped by
the hand, one felt them grow and struggle
like huttering wings.
The following day all the apartments had
the appearance of greenhouses. Vines
ciambered up the rails of the stairwavs. In
the narrow streets the branches Joined one
ROOT to another, casting over the noisy town
the gloom OF the avenues of the forest
Matters were becoming alarming, While
the assembled scientists were celebrating
over this case OF extraordinary vegetation
the crowd fastened out-of-dOOrS to sea the
different aspects OF the miracle. The excla-
nations OF surprise, the astonished noise of
all these idle people gave solemnty to tins
strange event. Suddenly some one cried
out: Look at the forestp And it was
observed with terror that in the last two
days the verdant semi-circle had approached
very much nearer. The forest had the air
of descending toward the town. a whole
advance guard of briers and vines had
stretched out as far as the first houses of
the suburbs.
A STRANGE INVASION.
Then Woodstown commenced to under
stand and be afraid. Evidently the forest
was coming to reconquer its place on the
river bank. and its felled, dispersed and
transformed trees were liberating them
selves to 60 and meet it. How was the in
vasi0n to be resisted? With fire they would
run the risk of burning the whole town,
and what could the axes do against that
constantly appearing sap, those monstrous
roots attacking the soil from below, those
thousands of flying seeds that spruuted as
they burst and caused tree to spring up
wherever they fell?
Nevertheless, everybody fell brayely to
work with scythes, harrows and axes, and
they made an Immense abattis of bOughS.
But in vain. From hour to hour the con-
fusion of virgin forests, amid which the
twining of vines joins gigantic saplings to-
gether invaded the streets of Woodstown.
Already the insects and reptiles were pour
ing In. There were nests in all the corners,
great tiutter of wings and multitudes OF
chatterlng little beakS. In a single night
the granaries of the town were cmptied by
tile newly Matched broodS. Then, like
touch of irony IN the midst of this dis
aster, butterflies of all sizes, of all colOrS,
sailed above the clusters OF blossoms, and
the pr0vident bees that seek sure shelters
installed their honeycombs in the hollows
of the so swiftly grown trees as a proof of
their intention to remain.
Vaguely, amid the noisy swell of the
foliage, the hollow strokes OF the axes aud
matches were heard, but on the fourth day
all work was admitted to be impossible.
The grass grew too high, too thick. Climb
ing vines hooked themselves to the arms of
the wood,ehoppers. prevented their move
ments. Besides, the houses had become
uninhabitable; the pieces of furniture,
loaded with leaves, had lost their shape.
The ceilings broke open. pierced by the
lance of the yuccaS, the long spear Of the
thorn trees, and in the place Of the roofs
spread out the Immense dome of the catal-
pas. All was over. Only flight remained.
A DIFFICULT EXODUS.
Across the network of plants and
branches, that was tightening more and
more, the terrified people OF Woodstown
rushed toward the river. bearing with them
as much as they could of their wealth. OF
precious objects. But how difficult it was
TO reach the waters edgei The quays no
longer existed; nothing was to be seen of
them but gigantic reeds. The ship-yards,
in which vessels had been in process Of con-
struction, bad given place to forests of
pines, and in the harbor, all in bloom, the
new ships looked like little islands of YER
dure. Happily some protected frigates
thnr. L. 4 L.