838 UPLAND AND MEADOW. 



Let the above stand as a proof of the absurdity of 

 hasty conclusions! Here is another barrel of cider on 

 the south side of the house — the other lies in the shaded 

 north side — and it is alive with bees, wasps, and indefinite 

 diptera of no names. This cider is no sweeter than the 

 other, but it is in a position twenty degrees warmer. 

 It is a good rule, in making any investigations as to the 

 prevalence or absence of anijual life, or in judging of 

 the effects of weather, to have a barrel of cider on each 

 side of the house, and only draw conclusions after all 

 have been examined. 



It needed but a short walk, to-day, after the snn was 

 well up, to see that frost stupefies but does not kill, ex- 

 cept some of the tenderest insects. Miles Overfield re- 

 marked, a few days ago, that wasps would not sting after 

 the third frost. Will they not? Could my thumb tes- 

 tify, it would have some interesting remarks to make 

 upon this point. Whether it is stinging or not, the ef- 

 fect is the same, and the thumb needs as much of a poul- 

 tice. A good rule is to flatten a wasp before you pick 

 it up — a better one is to let the creature severely alone. 



As I passed through a gory thicket of half-crushed 

 poke-weeds I was startled by a large bird flying almost 

 into my face. It seemed to be an albino robin, as it 

 flew; but a better view enabled me to identify it. It 

 was a shrike. There was nothing offensive in its gen- 

 eral appearance, but the flock of thistle-finches near by 

 evidently thought otherwise, for they scattered in hot 

 baste as it approached. Shrikes are yearly becoming 

 more common, and it is to be hoped that they will wnx 



