ODOR OP THE BUTTERNUT. 79 



oaks and hickories, the light brown wood being 

 soft in texture, light in weight, coarse-grained 

 and therefore easily decayed. When split it 

 gives off a delightful odor, similar to but less 

 penetrating than that exhaled in autumn by the 

 clammy outer surface of the oblong nut. The 

 kernel when dried is sweeter and more pleasant 

 than that of the black walnut. The nuts which 

 fall to the ground and are covered with dead 

 leaves in autumn are often edible in spring and 

 then possess a quaint rich tang which tickles the 

 palate of the roving naturalist as well as that of 

 many a rodent which feeds upon them. 



Fuzzy gnats dance in rhythmic mazes before 

 my eyes, while their cousin, a slender, reddish- 

 gray mosquito, probes my flesh. I do not feel 

 him until his body is red and gorged with my 

 blood. After swatting him the itch begins. 

 Niches they fill in the great scheme of nature. 

 Organs they have for performing all the duties 

 of life. Those duties but few to eat, grow and 

 reproduce their kind. Lowly creatures we call 

 them, yet "lowly" only because we esteem our- 

 selves "high." 



I lay me back and doze; forget for a little 

 time nature and all her forms. Body and soul 

 awhile do seemingly part. For the time being 

 there is no 7, yet the great world moves on 

 without a bobble. 



