198 THE BEAUTIES OF NATURE CHAP, 
near side. On arriving at the end of each 
furrow he turned them round, and as it was 
easier to pull than to push them, this gradu- 
ally gave the furrow a turn towards the left, 
thus. accounting for the slight curvature. 
Lastly, while the oxen rested on arriving at 
the end of the furrow, the ploughmen scraped 
off the earth which had accumulated on the 
coulter and ploughshare, and the accumulation 
of these scrapings gradually formed the balk. 
It is fascinating thus to trace indications 
of old customs and modes of life, but it would 
carry us away from the present subject. 
Even though the Swiss meadows may. offer 
a greater variety, our English fields are yet 
rich in flowers: yellow with Cowslips and 
Primroses, pink with Cuckoo flowers and 
purple with Orchis, while, however, unwel- 
come to the eye of the farmer, 
the rich Buttercup 
Its tiny polished urn holds up, 
Filled with ripe summer to the edge,} 
turning many a meadow into a veritable field 
of the cloth of gold, and there are few prettier 
1J. R. Lowell, 
