INTBOD UCTION 



oMy tkouglit fzoni the poct-natuzal- 

 lAt of balden. 



the singing of birds, the gayety of 

 butterflies and blossoms, the aroma 

 of the woods, and the plash and 

 sparkle of waters. 



Should these notes be continued 

 through a series of years, so that one 

 season may be compared with an- 

 other, their worth and interest will 

 accumulate in a compound ratio. 

 Said Thoreau : 



"A man must attend to Nature 

 closely for many years to know when, 

 as well as where, to look for his ob- 

 jects, since he must always anticipate 

 her a little. Young men have not 

 learned the phases of nature. They 

 do not know what constitutes a year, 

 or that one year is like another. I 

 would know when in a year to expect 

 certain thoughts and moods, as the 

 sportsman knows when to look for 

 plover." 



This is a glimpse of the higher, 

 poetic range of our subject — the 

 heaven which cometh h observation. 



It is in view of the fact I have dwelt 

 upon — namely, that observation and 

 record should go hand in hand, one 

 complementing the other, that the 



dated margins have been left in this £Dated maxginA for a diazy of y 

 book, running continuous with each out-doot life. 



