144 NOTES AND SUGGESTIONS 



taken that thought as most people think of it (see Burroughs's essay, 

 "A Life of Fear" in "Riverby ") and in the light of typical exam- 

 ples tried to show that wild life is not fear, but peace and joy. The 

 kernel of the chapter is found in the words: "The level of wild 

 life, the soul of all nature, is a great serenity." Let the pupils watch 

 and report instances of fear (easy to see) and in the same animals 

 instances of peace and joy. 



FOR THE PUPIL 

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gray harrier : so named because of his habit of flying low and 

 " harrying," that is, hunting, catching small prey on or near the 

 ground. " Harry " comes from the Anglo-Saxon word for army, 



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" He looketk as it were a grym leoun : from Chaucer's description 

 of the Cock in the story of the Cock and the Fox. 



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terrible pike: closely related to the pickerel. 



kingfisher: builds in holes in sand-banks near water. Its peculiar 



rattle sounds like the small boys' "clapper." 



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" The present only toucheth thee!" Burns's poem "To a Mouse." 



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" The fair music that all creatures made" : from Milton's poem "To 

 a Solemn Music," " solemn " meaning " orchestral " music. 



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then doubling once more: This is all figurative language. I am 

 thinking of myself as the fox. The dogs have run themselves to 

 death on my trail, and I am turning back, "doubling," to have a 

 look at them and to rejoice over their defeat. 



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pine marten . The marten is so rare in this neighborhood that I 

 am inclined to think the creature was the large weasel. 



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the heavy bar across their foreheads : a very unusual way of yoking 

 oxen in the United States. The only team I ever saw here so yoked, 



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San Francisco: alluding to the earthquake and fire which nearly 

 wiped out the city in 190G. 



