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derness the first year of possession. There is a 

 rocky promontory near the ravine, crowned by a great 

 hemlock, secreted by wild grapevines and wild roses, 

 and dotted over by hundreds of cedars; this do- 

 main we selected to be our " forbidden land." We 

 were placed on our honor not to put foot on it for 

 a year, and I assure you its mysteries grew ever 

 greater until I came to believe it to be the strong- 

 hold of trolls and other magical creatures. When 

 the year passed, the habit of not intruding had 

 grown upon us to such a degree we no longer cared 

 to trespass but preferred to leave its secrets to the 

 trolls, rabbits and birds. 



We can well afford to spare this bit of nature for 

 the imagination to dwell on unsated by exploration, 

 for there are many other equally wild portions of 

 the garden in which we may feel as unfettered as 

 Pan himself. There is the birchwood tangle where 

 we never work disturbingly with garden tool, but only 

 go to sit quietly on the ground in the shadows, to 

 attend the song services of our birds. 



We guard as heirlooms the precious bits of wild 

 beauty which were our legacy from nature. 



Every ramble in the neighboring woods adds more 

 treasures to our horde. By always carrying a trowel 

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