232 ANGLING. 



of a neighboring tree, the little "bird that is busy weaving- 

 stems, at no great distance, into the fork of a hazel-bush, 

 and the sober cattle that have waded up to their knees 

 into the shallow water, are all observed and studied with 

 delight. 



But the amusement of angling is not associated with 

 sedentary observations alone ; it is also connected with 

 many interesting excursions in quest of more lucky fish- 

 ing-ground. How often has it led us into delightful 

 explorations of the woody boundaries of ponds, carrying 

 us into seemingly impenetrable thickets, and causing the 

 sudden discovery of some beautiful or curious plant, hith- 

 erto unknown to us, or introduced us to some new and 

 rare species of bird or quadruped. It was on one of these 

 rambles, by its musical and melancholy cooings, that I 

 first discovered the wicker-nest of the turtledove, with 

 its solitary egg, in the branches of a slender white-pine. 

 On one of these occasions, also, I encountered for the first 

 time the drooping fragrant flower of the Linnaea borealis, 

 that exquisite production of northern climes, which is 

 aptly named for the great Swedish botanist. 



But the exercise alone, with the continual excitement 

 of the curiosity, is sufficient to give interest to these ex- 

 cursions. Now we are led into green wood-paths, through 

 fragrant bushes, some laden with flowers and others with 

 fruit ; now half bewildered by their intricacies, and then 

 suddenly stumbling into a romantic view of the water and 

 the surrounding scenery. Soon we pass into a deep dell, 

 forming the bed of a stream, which has given rise to a 

 multitude of rare and curious plants, and rouse the varie- 

 gated summer duck from a solitary pool, embosomed in 

 the thicket ; finally, having arrived at an open pasture, a 

 flock of sheep, startled at our approach, scamper off with 

 resounding feet to a distant elevation. Then do we think 

 with peculiar delight upon the pleasures of rural life, 



