GETTING READY FOR WINTER 



THERE are two periods in the rounding 

 of the year, in temperate zones, that are dis- 

 tinctively periods of preparation. One of 

 them comes in the early spring, and may be 

 called the period of preparation for fecund- 

 ity, or reproduction. The other comes in 

 the late fall, and is the period of preparation 

 for struggle with environment. This an- 

 nual struggle is a serious and strenuous 

 necessity, and nature approaches it with 

 evident reluctance and soberness of spirit 

 and demeanor. There is something more 

 than pure imagination or reflected human 

 sentiment in the impression we get, in the 

 late fall, of nature's all-enveloping sadness. 

 Bryant only put into enduring words the 

 actual mood of the outdoor world in No- 

 vember, when he sang, 



"The melancholy days are come, the saddest of 

 the year." 



Nature confronts her long, hard struggle 

 180 



