[Illustration: MALE CATKIN OF THE OAK.]

[Illustration: THE OAK]

"The white oak is the handsomest species, and takes its name from the
very light color of the bark on the trunk, by which it is easily known.
The leaves are long in proportion to the width and deeply divided into
lobes, of which there are three or four on each side. There is a great
variety in the shape of oak-leaves, those of our white oak being long
and slender, while the red oak has very broad ones, and the foliage of
the scarlet oak is almost skeleton-like. The chestnut oak has leaves
almost exactly like those of the chestnut. The acorns of the different
varieties, too, differ in size and shape.

[Illustration: WHITE-OAK LEAF.]

"There is so much to be said of the oak," continued Miss Harson, "it is
such an ancient and venerable tree and has so many stories attached to
it, that it is not easy to begin an account of it. The blossoms,
perhaps, will be the best starting-point: and I should like to have you
examine this branch and tell me if you see any difference in the
blossoms."

"They are nearly all alike," said Malcolm, "but here at the ends of the
twigs are one or two that look like buds."'

"That is just what I wanted you to notice," replied his governess, "for
the flowers are of two kinds, one bearing the stamens, and the other the
pistils. The flowers that bear the stamens grow on loose scaly catkins,
as you may see in this branch. Those with the pistils are also in