January — Wintry splendor. 35 



admiring the courage of the little shepherdess whose 

 flock had been thus suddenly invaded. She was very 

 much irritated at the impudence of the wolf, but not 

 alarmed by his ferocity ; and she threw her wooden shoe 

 after him as an expression of most earnest though in- 

 efficacious hostility, uttering at the same time sentiments 

 of her own in patois of extraordinary volubility, which 

 were certainly not benedictions. The girl's father told 

 me afterwards that on one occasion she had actually 

 beaten a wolf till he retreated, and there are so many 

 anecdotes of a similar character that I infer a certain 

 human influence over these animals, which as they are 

 of canine race may have something of canine deference 

 for humanity. 



The wild boar has one indisputable advantage over 

 the wolf — he is eatable. There is always wild boar in 

 some form or other during the winter months in the lar- 

 der at the Val Ste. Veronique. It was a fancy of mine 

 that our guns ought to supply a great part of our food, 

 and they did so during what remained of the season. 



The month of January opened splendidly, with sun- 

 shine in the gray and gold of the forest. I think that 

 the sadness so often attributed to winter scenery is due 

 much more to the prevalence of cloud and fog, and to 

 the chilly, uncomfortable temperature, than to the state 

 of vegetation. The color of winter scenery is not with- 

 out elements of variety and even brilliance. The leaves 

 of the preceding year are important, both for the rich- 

 ness of the tints they give, and, when seen close at hand, 

 for the fixed beauty of their forms. A leaf that has 



