THE BULLFINCH. 161 



birds find blackberries and various seeds ; while in 

 winter the fruits of the hawthorn and dog-rose 

 furnish their chief food. 



In some parts of the country are happily still to 

 be found those delightful green lanes which were 

 formerly more numerous, branching off from the 

 high road for a mile or two, and leading only to 

 green fields. These are known as " occupation 

 roads," being for the most part used only by the 

 occupiers of the adjoining lands for the purpose of 

 carting hay and other produce, and driving sheep 

 and cattle to and from pasture. In these lanes 

 there is no regular roadway. The turf extends the 

 whole way between the hedges, and but for the 

 deep ruts made by the waggon-wheels, one might 

 almost regard them as long and very narrow fields. 

 It often happens that in such lanes as these the 

 hedges remain untrimmed for years, and grow to a 

 considerable height ; while in many places the lanes 

 are so narrow that the trees on either side meet 

 overhead. Nothing can be more beautiful than the 

 appearance which a lane like this presents in the 

 month of May. The hawthorn is then in full 

 bloom, and the hedges are thickly draped with its 



M 



