May-Day out of Town. 



" Now hark ! how blithe the throstle sings ! 



He, too, is no mean preacher ; 

 Come forth into the light of things, 

 Let Nature be your teacher." 



MAY-DAY! It is a sluggish heart that does 

 not give a livelier bound at the very mention of 

 the word. May-day ; and never a brighter and 

 breezier one than this of 1890. Even the caged 

 canary knew the time, and by dawn was offering 

 a ringing welcome to the advancing sun. I fan- 

 cied there was music even in the alien sparrow's 

 chirp ; but, without stopping to determine, hur- 

 ried along the almost silent streets, eager for the 

 fields, the woods, the meadow, and the misty 

 river-shore. Beyond the city's bounds the whole 

 world was at its best ; green grass, bright foliage, 

 8* 89 



