" Survivor sole, and hardly such, of all 

 That once lived here, thy brethren : 

 A shatter'd veteran, hollow trunk'd, 

 And with excoriate forks deformed 

 Relic of ages." 



SUCH is the Oak of Chertsey, that celebrated tree, over 

 which the storms of many centuries have passed. The 

 sunny bank on which it grows is covered with primroses 

 and cowslips, and among them the little pimpernel and 

 violet lift up their modest heads. Tufts of eyebright, 

 with cuckoo-flowers and sweet woodroof, grow also, beside 

 the hollies and stunted hawthorns, which are seen upon 

 the common ; their fragrant flowers and green leaves pre- 

 sent a striking contrast to the time-worn tree ; the one 

 tells of other days, of ages that have passed since its stately 

 stem arose in all the grandeur of sylvan majesty; the 

 other, in their freshness and their loveliness, breathe only 

 of youth and beauty. 



The view is somewhat confined, but the eye that likes 

 rest on a quiet home-scene finds much in it to admire. 



