FOEEST TREES AND FOREST SCENERY 



under the blows of the ax; a mere 

 trembling in the outermost twigs, and 

 then, hardly as if cut off from the 

 source of life, the tall, straight form 

 sinks slowly to the earth. 



Another common attribute of ever- 

 green forests is their characteristic 

 silence. Birds do not frequent them as 

 much as the leafy forests. In these 

 solitudes, far removed from village and 

 farm, there is often no sound but the 

 ring of the distant ax and the sough 

 of the wind. In winter, as we push 

 thi'ough the thickets of small spruces 

 or hemlocks, or stand for a while be- 

 neath lofty pines, while all around is 

 muffled in snow, the silence seems sanc- 

 tified and vaster than elsewhere. 



In addition to their grandeur and 

 sublimity, and their silence, they are dis- 

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