82 THE FRIENDSHIP OF NATURE 



ing breast, his heart-beats keeping the 

 rhythm, until the meaning of the river 

 is blended in his song. Ben half 

 wades, half swims in the water; Colin 

 renews his youth at the fresh draught 

 he laps, while down the river races to 

 the willows : — 



" Sing willow, willow, willow." 



Is there any other tree that sings the 

 river's measure so truly? The name 

 itself is music, and its pendulous 

 branches sweep an accompaniment to 

 the melody of the water. 



All through the afternoon we follow 

 the river bank; the stream divides, 

 and branching, trails its beauty through 

 an open field, but the deeper channel 

 still keeps to the woods and meets the 

 straggler in the mill-pond. The pond's 

 edge is thickly hedged and the bushes 

 are tied together by wiry dodder; the 



