A winter's walk. 163 



other end contained an abundance. It was found, upon 

 excavation, that the roots of the sweeping ehns that lined 

 the street had penetrated at the joints and nearly filled the 

 pipe. The cement used to join the pipe had crumbled lit- 

 tle by little, during the years since it was laid, and at last 

 had given way before the vigorous impulse of the tree 

 roots. 



But the Coprinus first saw the light of da}' in a furnace- 

 cellar, where cold or water do not enter, and reared its head 

 at some distance from the stone wall. It brings to thought 

 the firm decree that no plant or animal may choose its 

 birthplace, and both may develop under queer environ- 

 ment . 



The mind naturally asks these questions: — "Why did 

 this plant bear fruit in an unaccustomed season ; was it 

 forced to maturity by the artificial warmth above, or retard- 

 ed some months by the tenacity of tar and gravel ? Who 

 can give an estimate of the lifting power of any growing 

 plant ? 



A Winter's Walk. 



BY WILLIAM H. HUSE. 



It was the last Saturday of January. Storm after storm 

 with few drifts had covered the ground nearly two feet 

 with a crust almost hard enough to hold a man about half 

 way down. I was after some twigs of white cedar {Cham- 

 oecyparis sphceroidea) that grew in a swamp a mile or 

 more from the road. This location is perhaps the most 

 northerly of any where this tree grows. A four-mile ride 

 brought me to the beginning of my walk. I had thought- 

 lessly started out without snowshoes, and the first few rods 

 climbing a hill with the snow up to my knees and the crust 

 making the traveling still more wearisome, were discour- 



