182 FARMERS' INSTITUTES. 



ground, while the upper ones, in diminished length, resting upon these, 

 form a cone of purest snow. A white mantle envelops all. At times a 

 change occurs in the temperature, the wind blows with great velocity, the 

 air is filled with swirling masses of driven snow ; the tops of the great trees 

 sway and bend before the blast, their branches are often hurled to the 

 ground; the forest creaks and groans with the tempest; the storm at length 

 ceases, the snow/ cones have disappeared, the white mantle of the tree tops 

 has vanished ; the tall colonades of trees stand out from the border of the 

 openings, or on the hills, leafless against the leaden sky, while the deep 

 green foliage of the pine, hemlock and fir form to the scenery a background 

 of great beauty. Such in winter, the wilderness becomes impressive in its 

 solitude and loneliness. 



A gradual change occurs: the snow and ice disappear in the openings, it 

 lingers longer in the shade as if loth to leave, vegetation is bursting into 

 life, the starry petals of the trailing arbutus look out from its snowy cover- 

 ing, with the first dawning of spring, nestled among the pine-covered hills 

 or along the sunny slopes of the sandy ridges; this first and loveliest of all 

 the early flowers disappears as the leaves expand, giving place to a great 

 variety of flowering plants, which carjDet the earth in early summer; they 

 are found in profusion on the warmer soils of the hardwood lands; their 

 presence is a source of pleasure and a striking feature of the wilderness; 

 they linger until late in the fall and disappear with the early frosts. As 

 the summer develops the forest becomes a mass of living green, it is no 

 longer silent, myriads of insect life fill the air with their constant hum ; 

 night settles down on the wilderness; the long howl of the wolf is often 

 heard, echoed by the mournful notes of the loon, calling to his mate, from 

 the distant lake. The owl from his lofty perch, joins the general chorus, 

 and disturbs the solitude of night, while the evening and morning is vocal 

 with the melody of feathered songsters. The moon, half hidden by the 

 foliage of immense trees, casts uncertain shadows in the openings. Such, in^ 

 summer, the wilderness becomes impressive in its diversity and grandeur. 



DIVERSITIES IN NATURE. 



BY ROBERT URE. 

 [Farmers' Institute at East Saginaw, February 12, 1886.] 



The individuality of every animal, of every plant, of every seed, of every- 

 leaf, is as distinct and separate as are the individualities of the human 

 family, each having the general characteristics of its kind, and the distinctive 

 peculiarities of itself. 



It has been found that every wheat plant has one superior head, and every 

 head one superior kernel, and by continuous persistence in planting these 

 superior selections and in careful cultivation the standard can be maintained 

 for a length of time, how long I cannot say, for many of us know of a wheat 

 that once had hardly an equal for its liberal yield and excellent quality, 

 which after a time became so demoralized that it disappeared, notwithstand- 



