A Single Worm Killed the Tree
DURING the summer of 1853 I was staying at Sudbrook Park, near Richmond, in Surrey. One day while I was walking with some friends through the “wilderness,” Dr. Ellis drew our attention to a large sycamore tree, decayed to the core. “That fine tree,” said he, “was killed by a single worm.” In answer to our inquiries, we found that about two years previous the tree was as healthy as any in the park, when a wood-worm, about three inches long, was observed to be forcing its way under the bark of the trunk. It then caught the eye of a naturalist who was staying there, and he remarked, “Let that worm alone, and it will kill the tree.” This seemed very improbable, but it was agreed that the black-headed worm should not be disturbed. After a time it was discovered that the worm had tunneled its way a considerable distance under the bark. The next summer the leaves of the tree dropped off very early, and in the succeeding year it was a dead, rotten thing, and the hole made by the worm might be seen in the very heart of the once noble trunk. “Ah!” said one who was present, “let us learn a lesson from that single tree. How many who once promised fair for usefulness in the world and the church have been ruined by a single sin!”—Australasian Signs of the Times.