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Show SEK1 BEGUN FOR 'LOST' TREE First Found in Georgia, 1 'Franklinia' Is Just About Extinct WASHINGTON. Nov. ) ..A "lost" tre- is to be the objective of the latest scientific expedition to be organized in this country, it Is the "Prankllnla," a native specimen, now practically extinct, and named for Benjamin Franklin. This tree first was discovered in 1 T o .". In the Altamaha river valley, near Fort Harrington. Georgia, by John TSartram. who once was botanist botan-ist to the kmcr of England. He named it for his friend, the Philadelphia I printer. Vttm I..-.. .,(,, mIIJIIm f t ... 1. 1 I 4i'. iT.auin in, iimi.il KA5IBUI i UllO blossoms of the "Frankllnia" resemble-somewhat resemble-somewhat Oiose of the magnolia, although al-though the tree itself does net grow-so grow-so high, and the kaf is tliinm r and different shape. KEQ TOES ( H sOILu The Frankllnia requires an "acid" soil, a condition which horticulturists have not understood for very long, and nurserymen found it so difficult to grow that how there are only Six parks or gardens known to have specimens. speci-mens. Two of tho trees are In Chevy Chase, one In Georgetown and another in HyattsviHe, Md.. suburbs of Washington, Wash-ington, while, there Is another :n Falrmount park, Philadi Iphio, and en or more others may be in a private pri-vate nursery at Germantown. Pa. The tree immediately became popular pop-ular for garden and parking decoration') decora-tion') and those who gathered the seeds and seedlings for propagation, it Is believed, caused Its extermination In the Wild state. Certainly, agriculture department botanists deciar-. many successive searchers have sought In the Altamaha valley In vain fur tin-rare tin-rare tree, and even yet. optimistic botanists still hope to have the honor of finding one or more Isolated specimens speci-mens As none have been seen in this1 section, the only spot where the tree i was ever found, since 1700. the beOU- i tifju) species la held to be practically extinct It will be In a final endeavor to locate lo-cate wild specimens .that the National ' Lumber Manufacturers association Will send out the party. Tho valley i will be thoroughly combed for Several months In the hope that the dense swampy thlcklets of that region Still hide a few of tho trees. OFFIC1 I-s GIVE EXCUSE The interest taken by residents of Chevy Chose in the neglected specimens speci-mens led the association to the task-It task-It was said that the dense growth of bushes und trees around the two re maining r ranKitnin trees in the government gov-ernment parking, in which they were placed some years ago, wus .rapidlv sapplnp their feeble strength. The trees were "regretfully sentenced to death" by District of Columbia park officials who were unable, because of tho "budget alibi" excuse of federal governm.nt officials, to obtain mony for their succor. However, private life savers havo start, d to prune away the growth about the trees to admit more sunlight sun-light to them, and to cultivate and acidulate the soil about their roots to gle longer span of life to the remaining re-maining representatives of a rare native na-tive tree, namerj m honor of one of the country's greatest historical per-sonages. |