256 UPLAND AND MEADOW. 



joy them at their very best ; and when, after a tiresome 

 tramp over a dusty field, one comes upon such juicy 

 growths, his surprise and delight will render his palate 

 uncritical, and ready to say of such fruit, "delicious." 

 For me, it was far preferable to the mussy slices, gritty 

 with sandy sugar and slippery with cream, that are of- 

 fered on many tables and accounted a luxury of the 

 season. They may be a luxury, but not so spirit-reviv- 

 ing and restorative generally as the unlooked-for fruit 

 that overhangs the path of the weary rambler as he 

 nears his home. 



Every peach that I may pluck in the future will re- 

 call the peaches of to-day. Wild peaches, wild plums, 

 wild grapes, eaten in the woods, or along the shady 

 banks of Poaetquissings, trifling experiences of wild life 

 though they may be, still make, for me, the artificial life 

 of to-day stale, flat, and unprofitable indeed. 



September 24. — How very common is dreaming and 

 somnambulism among animals, and particularly among 

 birds ! One might imagine that such restless birds as 

 wrens would be most disposed thereto, but my observa- 

 tions have not verified this natural supposition. Cat- 

 birds are not only great dreamers, but often execute 

 somnambulistic dances on a tight twig. Were it not 

 for the great difficulty of watching birds during the 

 night, I believe many curious circumstances might be 

 recorded, some of which would prove valuable to stu- 

 dents of animal psychology. Thus, besides the instance 

 of the catbird, wood pee-wees will sometimes sally out 

 into comparative darkness, and snap their beaks at im- 



