The list of names and the locality of their use indicate fairly well the geographical range of balsam fir. Its northern limit forms a line across eastern Canada from Labrador to Hudson bay. From Hudson bay its northern boundary trends northwestward and reaches the vicinity of Great Bear lake. In the United States it grows westward to Minnesota and southward to Pennsylvania. It is cut for lumber in eleven states. In a range so large and including situations so various, it is natural that the tree should vary greatly in size. In the Lake States the common height is fifty or sixty feet, and the diameter is twelve or fifteen inches. Young balsam firs grow vigorously when the ground is suitable and their tops receive sufficient light. In lumbered regions in the Lake States, this fir gets a foothold in the shade of a dense growth of paper birch and other quickly-growing species; and in a few years the pointed, intensely green spires of the balsams may be seen piercing the canopy of other young tree tops, and shooting above into the light. This is accomplished after a struggle of some years in the shade; but the firs ultimately win their way upward, and in a few years they shade to death most of their broadleaf associates. If they are in competition with northern white cedar or tamarack, they are not always successful in winning first place. The leaves of balsam fir are from one-half to one and one-fourth inches long. They are green and lustrous above and silver white below, the whiteness due to stomata on their undersides. On young twigs the leaves bristle out on all sides and are very numerous and crowded together, but on older branches the leaves are more scattered, due to the dropping of some of them. It is their habit to adhere to the stems about eight years. The leaves of balsam fir possess a pleasing and characteristic odor which is turned to account in a practical way. The small needles are stripped from the branches in large quantities, cleaned, dried, and are used for stuffing sofa pillows, cushions, and other kinds of upholstery. The odor persists a long time. Much of the collecting of the needles is done in summer as a pastime by summer campers in the northern woods. The needles are sufficiently tough to stand much wear in pillows, and they are still odorous when long use has ground them to powder.