184 



NATURE FOR ITS OWN SAKE 



hind him, he will see his own shadow as well as 

 that of the tree cast upon the water, but he 

 will see no reflection. His friend, standing on 

 the opposite bank of the pool and looking tow- 

 ard him, will see no shadows, but in their place 

 the reflections of man and tree. A canal in 

 Amsterdam, with houses and trees on either 

 bank, will often mingle shadows and reflec- 

 tions, but to us it is merely a case of shadow on 

 one side and reflection on the opposite side. If 

 we stand in the centre of a bridge and look up 

 the canal, we shall see little of either houses or 

 trees in the water ; we shall see only the long 

 reflection of the sky. 



On the lake the strongest reflections are al- 

 ways to be found under some overhanging bank 

 or in the shadow of some thick-leaved tree ; and 

 the darkest reflections of all are seen at night 

 when the only illumination upon the water 

 comes from the sky and the stars. Very beau- 

 tiful are these night reflections seen from a 

 boat. Years ago, when the lakes and streams 

 of Minnesota were in their prime, and the great 

 elms arched the sloughs winding from lake to 

 lake, the canoe trail at night was picked out by 

 the small spots of sky showing on the water 

 like loopholes in the vast density of reflected 



