358 



OCTOBER. 



And what author, ancient or modern, has not 

 expressed his sense of their beauty by employ- 

 ing them as figures of whatever is rich, nourish- 

 ing and pleasant ? In spring when they are in 

 the delicacy of their pride, in summer when 

 they are shadowy and aromatic, in the last 

 splendour of autumn, or when winter robs 

 them of their foliage, but brings to light what 

 summer has concealed, the under-work and 

 tracery of their branches; in each and all, are 

 trees and woods inspiring and delightful. 



It is in this month, however, that woods may 

 be pronounced most beautiful. Towards the 

 end of it, what is called the fading of the leaf, 

 but what might more fitly be termed the 

 kindling, or tinting of the leaf, presents a magni- 

 ficent spectacle. Every species of tree, so 

 beautifully varied in its general character, the 

 silver- stemmed and pensile-branched birch, the 

 tall smooth beech, the wide-spreading oak and 

 chesnut, each developes its own florid hue of 

 orange, red, brown, or yellow, which, mingling 

 with the green of unchanged trees, or the dark- 

 ness of the pine, presents a tout ensemble rich, 

 glowing and splendid. Yet, fine as are our 

 woods at this season, far are they exceeded by 



