THE BEECH WOODS 



loaded with tufts of fleecy white- 

 ness, and all the interlacing branches 

 appeared like one vast fairyland, whose 

 enchanting aisles beckoned at every 

 turn. In all the surrounding landscape 

 there appeared no blemish, no unseemly 

 bit to mar the spotless beauty of it. 

 All undergrowth of roots and brush, 

 each tiny tussock and mossy hollow 

 was smoothed and levelled, making an 

 undulating plain of marvellous white. 



Winter had come, but all the wild 

 folk of the Beech Woods were prepared. 

 The raccoon had gone to his hollow in 

 the old elm by the creek and Avould 

 sleep away the long winter days in 

 peace and comfort, for his fine coat was 

 thick and warm and he was round with 

 fat. The squirrels had laid up an 

 abundance of nuts from the chestnut, 

 hickory and beech trees and were com- 

 fortably sheltered in their homes in the 

 trees. They would venture out at times 

 on various quests and perhaps keep an 

 eye on their hidden stores of food, but 

 they would remain curled up with 

 their bushy tails wrapped around them 

 through the stormy days. The chip- 

 86 



