that was why the wood was left untouched , even in the coldest of winters when there was nothing left to burn to keep warm , and why the fruit from the trees was not eaten even in the longest of droughts when the ribs showed on the cows , and why the depth of the wood was unknown , when the whole of the rest of the land had been traveled and cleared and mapped , its cities meticulously planned , its villages judiciously spaced , its crops thoughtfully chosen .