26 Lily-Ponds. 



flowering of the Rhodora till the Clethra and the honeysuckle bring up 

 the rear of the beautiful train of summer, proclaiming itself the chief 

 chorister of the grove ; while the fairest flowers, the clearest fountains, 

 birds that dwell in sacred retreats never profaned by the plough, trees that 

 for centuries have spread their harps to the tuneful gales, roses that have 

 annually offered the purest incense to the skies, ambrosial herbs that 

 deck the fields with their verdure, then perish, and offer their leaves as a 

 balm for the sick, — cup-bearers of incense to the dewy even and morn, — 

 all rise and bud and bloom, and scatter their fragrance, and weave an ar- 

 bor of brightness and beauty in a friendly ambuscade around the dwelling- 

 place of the water-lilies. 



The angler, if he be a naturalist or a man of sensitive mind, can deeply 

 feel the influence of all these objects. I can imagine the life of no man 

 more happy than of one, who, after passing the greater part of the day in 

 the occupation that affords him a livelihood, retires to these secluded 

 waters to pay his homage to Nature, to breathe the incense rising to heaven 

 wherever the flowers are bathed in dew, and to gaze upon the charming 

 array of beautiful things that sparkle at the footstool of her benevolent 

 altar. Bright gem of Paradise, translated from the skies like a star 

 of the firmament, and fixed under the brows of these wooded hills for 

 the baptism of the votaries of Nature into her sanctuary of delights ! 

 Above thy glassy wave the happy angler may watch the shifting forms of 

 the clouds as they pass languidly over its mirrored surface ; while zephyrs, 

 laden with the perfume of violets, hover about him, and fan him with their 

 balmy wings. Among these scenes, how beautiful are the shadows as 

 they sleep on the silvery pond ! and how musical the sounds that come up 

 mysteriously from the woods and dingles ! 



Our lily-ponds, for the most part, are surrounded by hills, that form a basin 

 for their waters, and become the principal source of their replenishment. 

 Every pond has an outlet, that commonly leads into a level field ; and it is 

 in the shallows near this point, and in the various inlets, not in the deep 

 waters, nor immediately under the steep banks, that the water-lilies con- 

 gregate, fixing their roots in the alluvium, and extending their long stems 

 upward to the length required for raising the bud to the surface. As soon 

 as it has gained this height, it is ready to become a flower. The flowers 



