DAYS 165 



it masses of heather, peat, and fencing 

 rails, and rolling the heavy blocks of 

 stone before it like autumn leaves blown 

 down a forest path. 



And "Old Peter" did bid a farewell 

 to the stream and the moors that he 

 loved. A few moments before he had 

 seen them in their most enchanting and 

 kindly aspects, and, with the warbling 

 of the sedge-bird still ringing implor- 

 ingly in his ears, he passed away upon 

 the smooth flood of that wide river 

 which flows everlastingly. And the 

 Great Secret was revealed. 



Very many years ago, when the world 

 was much younger, a boy and a girl 

 were walking in the summer meadows. 

 Neither of them spoke for a long while, 

 but they went on and on until their 

 shoes were yellow with the golden dust 

 of the buttercups. They watched the 



