216 STRA Y FEA THERS FROM MANY BIRDS. 



beauties of the snow. Verily Nature is a mighty 

 decorator ; every nook and cranny, every twig and 

 branch, has been adorned and beautified. The hedge- 

 rows are banked up high on the weather side with 

 snow ; here and there a tall weed or grass stem towers 

 high above the drift, and the brambles and briars are 

 indicated by festoons and masses of white. Here and 

 there snow wreaths have been formed, and in the open 

 and exposed parts of the higher ground there are spaces 

 where the snow lies very thinly, and the herbage under- 

 neath is visible. The broad massive tree trunks stand out 

 gray and grim against the white background, and little 

 bits of snow have lodged in the crevices of the bark on 

 the windward side of the stems. Every gate-post and 

 stake is crowned with snow, the deep ruts in the lane 

 and the unfinished furrows are all smooth and level. 

 The scene inside the shrubbery is even more beautiful 

 still. The evergreens are almost buried in snow, in 

 many places the over-laden branches having broken 

 under its weight. Here and there tufts of fern peep 

 through the drift, and the heaps of dead leaves are 

 partly visible. The dark green hollies and yews and 

 laurels form a rich contrast with the almost universal 

 whiteness, and the dark brown patches of ground under 

 the shrubs, strewn with yew leaves and fir needles, lend 

 a pleasant sense of relief. The crunching of our foot- 

 steps disturbs many birds from their warm roosting- 



