54 THE HUMAN SIDE OF TREES 



on the strong, underlying elements of structure and 

 line, with a resulting charm of a purer and higher 

 kind. Of course, the evergreens such as the cedar, 

 fir, and pine and a few trees which decorate them- 

 selves with mistletoe are charming exceptions. 



This is not a mere matter of artistic insight. Any 

 one can see the beauty if he but take the trouble 

 to look. There is a wonderful richness of tone in 

 the browns and greys which make up the masses 

 of the distant woods, and here and there a birch 

 gleams white, or the evergreens add marvellous 

 touches of green which are more beautiful than 

 anything spring can offer. Faint mists of colour 

 in combinations of violet, rose and soft grey hover 

 over the thickets. A thousand branches lift a deli- 

 cate tracery against a neutral sky. When the snow 

 covers the hills and valleys with a carpet of chaste 

 white, nature has made her supreme effort to por- 

 tray the ideally beautiful. 



You cannot get to know the individual trees 

 aright until you study them in winter. The bare 

 limbs bring out all their traits and foibles. The es- 

 sential details of shape and framework are dis- 

 played without reserve. The oak shows boughs of 

 sturdy strength. The elm runs up into half-arches 

 of tapering filaments. The beech has a smooth, 

 clean-springing bole of vast proportions and what 



