264 THE PRIMEVAL FOREST. 



clasped has become cold, many a voice I loved 

 to listen to is hushed for ever, but the forest, the 

 home we rangers all loved so well, is still un- 

 changed, and my heart yearns to return to those 

 well-remembered scenes which I shall now attempt 

 to portray. 



Those who have never explored a 

 The Primeval 



Forest. primeval forest can have but a very 

 faint conception of the mysterious effect that 

 absence of light and intense depth of gloom 

 have upon the human mind. The unbroken 

 silence and utter stillness that everywhere per- 

 vades its leafy arches, creates a strang* feeling of 

 awe and loneliness that depresses the spirits and 

 appals the heart of those who are unaccustomed 

 to wander in its solitudes ; and even the stoutest 



, heart feels overpowered with a strange sensation 

 he can neither account for nor explain the first 



* time he enters, for the voice of the man resounds 

 with a strange and startling echo, and even the 

 very hound whines with fear, and couches close 

 to his master's side, afraid of being left alone. 



