Workers in Woodcraft. 279 



To watch these men at their lonely employ- 

 ment in the woods is well worth a visit. They 

 and their work are alike interesting, and the 

 woods which provide their employment are 

 fascinating at all seasons. A nearer acquaintance 

 with the workers will reveal the fact that they 

 know the " herbs and simples of the woods," 

 and also much of the contents of an old " herbal " 

 lying in the hut. In the virtues of plants they 

 have great belief, and can tell of interesting 

 traits in the life-history of wild flowers. We 

 believe, too, that they exercise "free right and 

 warren" of the woods where they reside, and 

 of this no one seems to care to deprive them. 

 They are pleasant, primitive fellows wonder- 

 fully intelligent as to out-door questions, and 

 command the respect of every one with whom 

 they come in contact. We might have said that 

 their necessary victuals are supplied periodically 

 from the outside world, but in domestic matters 

 they do all things for themselves. 



in. 



THE FORESTER. 



Walking in the woods, we met the old man 

 standing over the prostrate form of a fallen 

 monster that had been uprooted by the wind. 

 He was about to lop off the branches, and was 

 trimming the bole with an axe. The tree had 



