The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1898-05-26
NATURES COMPASS SIGNS.
How 1t Is That the Woodman Is Able to
Always Tell Directions

Always Tell Directions.
The many different methods to
determine the cardinal points while
ON the mountains, in both heavy
timber and small bush, or upon he
featureless expanse of great marsh
are exceedingly numerous and reli-
able enough for all practical pur-
poses during an everyday life in the
bush unless very long journey is
to be made, which would require q
number of days and would make it.
necessary to hold on very fine
point while making So long dis
lance.
We viii first take notes on the
coniferous trees-pines, frs, spruce,
cedars, hemlocks, etc. The bark of
these is always lighter in color,
harder and drier on the south side
of the tree, while it is in color much
darker, is also damper and often
covered with mold and moss on the
north side. The gum that oozes out
from the wounds, knotholes, etc., is
usually hard and often of beautiful
amber color on the south side, while
on the northern side it remains
sticky longer and gets covered with
insects and dirt, seldom drying out
to more than dirty gray in color.
In large trees that have rough
bark, especially during the fall and
winter months, the nests and webs
of insects, spiders, etc., will always
be found in the crevices on the south
side. A preponderance of the large
branches will also be found on the
warmest or southern side of the
trees. Also, the needles of all the
above mentioned trees are shorter,
drier and of a yellowish green on
the southern side, while they will
be found longer, more slender and
pliable, damper to the touch and
darker green in color on the north
side. The cedars and hemlocks, as
if trying to Guido the others, al
ways bend their slender tops of new
growth toward southern sky.
The hard wood trees are equally
communicative and have all the
characteristics, as far as regards
their trunks, as theconiferous trees
except the absence of gums, but
this is more than made up by the
fungous growth of mold and MOSES
that is very noticeable on the north
side of these trees.
The edges of rocks, which may be
part of stupendous mountains or
merely occasional cropping out here
and there in the woods, or perhaps
! some great bowlder alone by itself,
a silent witness of the glacial pc
Rod, all alike testify to the effect of
| light and shade. The sunny side
will usually be bare, or at most
boast of thin growth of harsh, dry
kinds of MOSES that will only grow
when having the light, while the
northern side will be found damp
and moldy and often covered with a
luxuriant growth of soft, damp
moses that love the shade, while
every crevice will bear aloft beauti-
full and gracefully waving ferns.
The forest floor on the sunny side
of hills, ridges, clumps of trees,
bushes, big rocks, ETC., is more noisy
under the football than on the
northern side of such places, where
the dead leaves and litter are soft
and damp, holding more moisture
than in places exposed to the light
of the sun.
In an open country nearly void of
timber clumps of small bushes dur
ing summer will furnish all the con-
ditions found to exist among the
leaves of the trees, being equally
sensitive to light and shade as are
the monarchs of the woods. The
landscape, green with moving
grasses and beautiful to the eye,
which feasts on the countless nun.
bers of wild flowers, representing
every form and hue known in the
tlowery kingdom, also furnishes
reliable guide for locating the cardi-
nal points, as most wild flowers, es-
pecially the long stemmed varieties,
hide their faces from the north and,
like the sunfiower, turn toward
southern sky.-Forest and Stream.
Young Head Old Sh0nlders