136 BOULDER REVERIES. 



be a man among men possessed of such a demon, 

 or to remain one of the common herd, content 

 with little ? 



XXXI. 



Sept. 4, '04- The pleasing temperature, the 

 charming calm of a September morn surround 

 me. The rainfalls of the past few weeks have 

 caused that dark, glossy green in leaf of shrub 

 and tree which indicates a surfeit of sap, a su- 

 perabundance of chlorophyll laden protoplasm. 

 The velvety stems of blue-grass the aftermath 

 which has sprung up since the drought was 

 broken also carpets the open spaces of the old 

 pasture with a green which is unbroken and 

 which charms and dazzles the eye with its 

 brightness. Only the boulders at my back, re- 

 tain the gray of the rock, the dark, blackish 

 green of the partly encompassing moss, in un- 

 changed hue. 



As I recline and muse with half -closed eyes, 

 my thoughts involuntarily revert to a secluded 

 valley of mid-autumn Indian summer vestured 

 where tall branching hickories have showered 

 down a plenteous supply of white nuts. I know 



