23 JANUARY 1948, Page 17

Eccentric Centres

In cutting up a fallen elm, I fmd that the growth on the south-east side was twice or even three times as wide as on the north-west, so that the centre of the annual rings was close to the north-west edge, and there was no white wood thereabouts. Would expert foresters, I wonder, expect this? Even the less expert can infer the aspect from the bark of a tree.