FROST AND SNOW 293 



Snow, one may say, never does harm. It is the kindliest 

 and softest of all the frost visitations, though its thawing is 

 the most unpleasant of all weather incidents. The big 

 flakes come down like winnowed plumes or butterflies falling 

 from the tree-tops. Each flake is made of crystals identical 

 in form, so perfect is the process ; and when the storm is 

 over the matrix is broken ; and when next snow falls another 

 pattern, each crystal again identical with its neighbours, is 

 sent. Every accompaniment of snow is beautiful. A sunset 

 before snow takes on a smoky orange tint, which or so it 

 seems to some is among the very surest aids to prophecy. 

 It finds no place in the weather report or even in less official 

 prognostics ; but the colour is unmistakable ; distinct from 

 other sunset shades and always a herald of snow. The blue- 

 green light on evening snow, the spiral grooves planed out by 

 the wind, the layers of storied white on the pines, each and 

 every snow picture is irresistible. No wonder the makers of 

 Christmas cards cannot resist the temptation to persuade us 

 that England too is a Lady of the Snows. 



East and west England, which differ not less than north 

 and south, each receive a quantum of snow ; but they are 

 sharply contrasted in their experience of frost. The frost 

 area of England is the fen country. It is a rarity if the 

 Cambridgeshire fenman does not put on his skates and take 

 a day along the dykes and meres. The flat and fertile land 

 is singularly cloudless, and lies open to the east wind. 

 What more is wanted to encourage frost. The meres are 

 shallow waters, and the dykes are unsheltered by trees, 

 except perhaps that here and there you may find a tree stand- 

 ing on aerial roots from which the drained land has fallen. A 

 few days of even moderate frost create a network of real 

 highways, by which you may skate if you will many scores 

 of miles. You may, for example it was the last long skate 



