334 VOICES FllOM THE WOODLANDS. 



to reverberate the heat in a manner similar to the hair 

 of animals. They also afford wholesome nourishment to 

 sheep and cattle, which is all-important in mountainous 

 countries where snow often lies deep upon the ground for 

 months together. 



Thus wonderfully constructed for the sternest growing- 

 places, we abound towards the frozen north, extending with 

 our brethren in congregated myriads from Breslau in 

 Silesia to the shores of the Arctic Ocean, and from Norway 

 to Kamtschatka, covering also great part of Finland, Ingria, 

 and Esthonia, with an immense sweep of country between 

 Petersburg and Moscow. And thus we stand, with power 

 to repel the cold, and strength to bear up an enormous 

 weight of snow ; protecting, cherishing, and blessing every 

 living creature, whether gentle or rapacious, whether the 

 savage inhabitant of our native regions, clothed in thick fur 

 and growling defiance as he passes, or whether the timid 

 and light-hearted squirrel: all dwell in peace together, 

 unconscious sleepers, slumbering in hollow trees or caverns, 



