THE EPHEMERIDES 235 



" to sport in the beams of the morning sun." The eggs, 

 however, are in the water, and the race continues. 



Turning homewards, the birds now silent, we cannot 

 help thinking of other Ephemerides of patient larval 

 life, of metamorphosis, of shrouds angrily thrown aside 

 and wedding robes put on, of hunger that gives place to 

 love, of the sacrifice of maternity, of cradle and tomb 

 together. Yet we remember the promise of the future 

 beneath the surface of the unmoved river. The race con- 

 tinues. Under the horse-chestnut tree we tread upon the 

 petals which the wind has blown like white foam, but the 

 tree stands firm like that of Ygdrasil. 1 



1 In the above study, as also in those dealing with earthworms and 

 withering leaves, I have utilised some passages which I wrote and 

 published some years ago. I have to thank Mr. Murray for his kind 

 permission. The foundation of " The Ephemerides " will be found in my 

 Study of Animal Life, p. 106 (Murray: London, 1892). 



