Acer
a genus of arborescent or shrubby plants, order acerinex, many of which are extremely valuable for the sake either of their timber, or of their ornamental appearance. The acer rubrum, or red maple, is a tree 50 feet in height, very common in low woods throughout the Atlantic States. The wood, particularly that of the variety called curled maple, is much used in cabinet work. The acer saccharinum, or sugar tree, is a tree 70 feet in height, 3 feet in diameter, found throughout the United States, and constituting the greater part of some of the forests of New England. The wood is hard and has a satin luster, but it is readily attacked by insects, and is not of much value, except when its grain is accidentally waved, and then it is in request for the cabinet-makers. The saccharine matter contained in its ascending sap, obtained by tapping the trunk in the spring, is perhaps the most delicious of all sweets; an ordinary tree yields from 5 to 10 pounds in a season. ready