60 OCCASIONAL PAPERS. 



objectively array themselves before him, his delight 

 is tempered with sober thoughts of the great change 

 which is one day to be wrought in himself. In Summer 

 he beholds the triumphant reign of ah 1 living things, 

 and in Winter generally thought to be dull and 

 cheerless in the country, he knows where to find 

 the squirrel and the dormouse snugly domiciled ; 

 he can find you the chrysalis of many a moth and 

 butterfly marvellously entombed in the earth, or 

 slung in a hammock ; he can show you luxuriant 

 beds of mosses those children of the winter that 

 flourish when all around is asleep. And even if 

 he could not shoiv you aU this, think what 

 marvellous stores of information he has laid up, 

 that shall afford him food for thought when he is 

 lonely, or from which he ean draw fairy lore to 

 while away the winter evening ; what tales he can 

 tell you of the wonderful things he saw in the 

 summer how he found the boat of eggs floating 

 about in the pond, so curiously and perfectly formed 

 by the gnat, that it could not be upset a veritable 

 life-boat ; again, how he drew from the water a 

 thing monstrously strange, armed with jaws that 

 could unfold themselves upon its prey while yet afar 

 off, how with unrelenting stedfastness it destroyed 

 and devoured the other inhabitants, and after a few 

 months of such enjoyment it climbed up a tall reed, 

 and splitting itself down the back, took unto itself 

 wings and flew off to continue its carnage among the 

 inhabitants of air. Or our naturalist may give you 

 more pleasing accounts of the nests of the wren and 

 titmouse, the beautiful spotted eggs of the thrush, 

 find the pearly eggs of the azure halcyon how ono 



