We are too scared to come out of the closet and admit it, in this tree-lined, tree-mad, Arboretum-adoring city, but some of us think Canberra has far too many trees. For relief from this oppressive leafiness we take our holidays in refreshingly treeless places, like Iceland, Arctic Norway and the Orkney Islands.
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Arborophobes like us had a kindred spirit in the Orkney woman interviewed in a piece the Queanbeyan Leader ran 100 years ago this week.
"THE QUAINT ORKNEYS"
"Miss Elinor Root who has been visiting the Orkney Islands, tells us that the natives are very proud of their Norse origin, indignantly repudiating the idea that their forbears were Scottish.
"She writes that: 'My hostess stiffened visibly when I said she was Scottish. She insisted: 'We're not Scottish. We did not come from Scotland. Have ye never heard of the Norsemen from beyond the seas? We are the descendants of them'."
Miss Root apologised and to change the subject began to talk about "afforestation" only to realise that this was an unfortunate choice "as trees refuse to grow in the islands".
" 'Trees spoil the scenery,' declared my hostess. 'We would not have them if we could. If ye go to the southland, ye cannot see anything of the scenery for the trees. We prefer to see scenery'."
