DECEMBER 



AH O R R I D and fearful aspect, clad in Irish - 

 Rags, or course Freez girt unto him, upon his 

 Head three or four Night- Caps, and over them a 

 Turkish Turbant; his Nose red, his Mouth and Beard 

 clog'd with Isicles, at his back a bundle of Holly, Ivy 

 or Misletoe, holding in fur'd Mittens the Sign of 

 Capricornus. 



BIRDS AND THE MAN 



THE hurdler complains that hard frost makes his hazel- 

 rods brittle, so that they snap and spoil his 

 The output twelve hurdles a day at his best. 



Hurdler It is always fascinating to watch his skill in 

 splitting the rods and his deftness in their 

 weaving. Boys will not now submit to the tedious 

 training the old hurdler underwent in learning how to 

 cut rods and strip them of knots. The honesty of his 

 work is transparent, though only experts and time 

 and use discover where one hurdler excels another. 

 In spite of inevitable rheumatism, a man may enjoy 

 this clean, honest life spent in the quiet woods. The 

 161 M 



