The tree of deepest root is found Least willing still to quit the ground; Twas therefore said, by ancient sages, That love of life increased with years, So much, that in our later stages, When pains grow sharp, and sickness rages, The greatest love of life appears. Mrs. Thrale (afterwards Mrs. Piozzi).See Boswells Johnson, 1766. From a poem entitled The Three Warnings.
Shall weshall aged men, like aged trees, Strike deeper their vile root, and closer cling, Still more enamourd of their wretched soil? Dr. Young.Night IV. Line 111.
[That is meant as to the general state of the tree, not what is the effect of a sudden blast. The expression refers to condition, and not to position. Boswells Johnson, 1782.]