MOORLAND IDYLLS. 



know well that where a house is built there 

 will be eaves to nest under, and people 

 will inhabit it, who throw about meat and 

 fruit, which attract the flies ; and flies are 

 the natural diet of house-martins. The 

 sparrows came next ; but the thrushes 

 loitered longer. And the manner of their 

 coming was after this fashion 



The powers that be had decided on a 

 tennis-lawn. Previously nothing but heather 

 and gorse spread over the hill-top ; that is 

 the native vegetation of this light sand- 

 stone upland. But in order to have tennis 

 you must needs have a sward ; so, much 

 against the grain, we grubbed up wild 

 heath enough to make a court, and sowed 

 it for a tennis-lawn. Grass cannot grow, 

 however, on such poor light soil as suits 

 heather best, so we imported a few cart- 

 loads of mould and manure from a farm 

 in the valley. With the mould came 

 worms, who, finding a fair field, began to 

 be fruitful and multiply and replenish the 

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