JANUARY. 



perceive its longer daily abode with us ; yet, 

 in the words of the common adage, 



As the day lengthens, 

 The cold strengthens. 



This is the month of abundant snows and all 

 the intensity of frost. Yet winter, even in its 

 severest forms, brings so many scenes and cir- 

 cumstances with it to interest the heart of the 

 lover of Nature and of his fellow-creatures, 

 that it never ceases to be a subject of delight- 

 ful observation; and monotonous as it is fre- 

 quently called, the very variety of the weather 

 itself presents an almost endless source of 

 novelty and beauty. There is first what is 

 called 



A GREAT STORM. Frost, keen, biting frost, 

 is in the ground ; and in the air, a bitter, 

 scythe-edged, perforating wind from the north ; 

 or what is worse, the north-east, sweeps the 

 descending snow along, whirling it from the 

 open fields, and driving it against whatever 

 opposes its course. People who are obliged to 

 be passing to and fro muffle up their faces, 

 and bow their heads to the blast. There is no 

 loitering, no street-gossiping, no stopping to 

 make recognition of each other; they shuffle 



