ii2 In Touch with Nature. 



forsaken about the one-time yard, but I noticed a 

 straggling yes, struggling rose-bush clung to a 

 corner, and a single half-opened bud showed tim- 

 idly above the tall grass. How like, I thought, 

 many a man who has lost heart, living hopelessly 

 among unsympathetic folks, a very prince in the 

 realm of beggardom. 



Turning a great iron key that threaded the 

 maze of a ponderous lock and drew back its bolt, 

 I entered this ancient dwelling, now deserted, but 

 straightway peopled with the spirits of that hardy 

 folk who knew the Indians as neighbors. The 

 cavernous fireplace, now cold and clammy, fit 

 home for salamanders that scuttled across the 

 hearth-stones, grew quickly bright with the flick- 

 ering flames that of old leapt from the back log. 

 The dim outline of a high-backed settle filled the 

 corner; the trusty rifle leaned against the wall. 

 From the crane swung the steaming kettle : there 

 lacked nothing of a happy old-time colonial 

 home. The wind that moaned through the huge 

 chimney and rattled the loose shingles of the roof 

 was not a sobering sound ; fancy freed it of all 

 melancholy. The wild tales of woodland adven- 



