Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume VIII.djvu/837

 Ien. His possessions had meanwhile been >ry considerably reduced by disbursements made in the king's service, for which he had received no recompense ; and he retired to his estates, discontented and smarting under many injuries real or fancied, but still loyal to the crown and indisposed to accept the doctrine of resistance already broached by the prince of Orange. He refused at first to take the new test oath exacted by Margaret; but after the retirement of the prince to Germany he made her an offer of his services, and agreed to take the oath. This new proof of loyalty was of no avail with Philip, who had long decided upon the death of Horn; and upon the arrival of Alva in Brussels, both Egmont and Horn were enticed to that city and there arrested, Sept. 9, 1567, on a charge of treason and other high offences. (See EGMONT.) His wife and moth- er made ceaseless efforts to obtain for him a fair trial, and, as in Egmont's case, appeals for royal clemency in his behalf were made to Philip by potentates in all parts of Europe. He was executed after Egmont, and met his fate with composure, although, when his sen- tence was first made known to him, he protest- ed against its injustice, exclaiming that it was a poor requital for 28 years of faithful services. HORNBEAM. I. The common name of a genus of trees (carpinus) having wood of a horny texture, and the general appearance of the beech, the leaves resembling those of the beech or birch. The hornbeams are included with the oaks in the order cupulifera. In the United States the genus is represented by C. Americana, (Mx.), the American hornbeam, a small tree from 10 to 20 ft. high, growing along streams. Its leaves are ovate-oblong, doubly serrate, nearly smooth ; the barren flowers are borne in catkins on the sides of the branches, and appear before the leaves ex- pand ; the fertile flowers come out of the same bud with the leaves. The mature cat- kins consists of a series of unequally three- lobed bracts, each subtending -a small ovate, several-nerved nut. The American hornbeam, where it has had ample space in which to grow, is a low tree with a broad, round, crowded, leafy head, the lower branches bend- ing nearly to the ground on every side. It is readily distinguished from other trees by its ridged trunk, which is clothed with smooth bark of a slaty or bluish color, on which account it is often called, especially in western localities, the blue beech ; the ridges, which run down from the under sides of the branches, are often so strong as to give the trunk the appearance of a fluted column. It is thus a tree of some claim to beauty, and it forms an interesting object in the forest, especially in autumn, at which season there are few trees which present a greater variety of brilliant tints. Easily cul- tivated, it is worthy of regard in arboriculture. The close-grained, white wood is used for le- vers, beetles, and other purposes where great strength is required, and is frequently called HORNBEAM 819 ironwood. Its geographical range is from Canada to the gulf of Mexico. The common hornbeam of Europe ( C. betulus, Linn.) is a small rigid tree, which under favorable circumstances will reach to the height of 60 or 70 ft. ; but it is very seldom allowed to become a timber tree; as it grows freely after being cut down, European Hornbeam (Carpinus betulus). it is generally grown in copses to furnish small wood; this was formerly used as a hedge plant and in forming bosquets. The tree seems to have been well known to the ancients, and was called by the Greeks tryia or yoke tree from the use made of its wood. The oriental horn- beam ( G. orientalis, Lamarck) is only a dwarf Hop Hornbeam (Ostrya Virginica). tree or shrub, rising to the height of 12 ft., and found wild in Asia Minor and the Levant. J leaves are much smaller, and the branches grow closer together, than those of the English hornbeam. There are a few other little knowr and unimportant species. II. Hop Hornbeam,