40 FOREST LIFE IN At!AUIK. 



stoma witli tlicir lipjlit oaiiojiy of sunlit Icavo.s, through 

 the l)rojiks in wliich tl»e l)hio Hky ahowH <piite durk an a 

 Inickf^round, the iunumorable lifjfhts falhn*^ on tlic li;j;ht 

 gvcvn unch'rj^rowth of plants and Hlirub.s beneath, and the 

 general al>sence of appreciable; lines of shadow eveiy- 

 whcre, stamp these hard-wood hills with an almost fairy- 

 land appearance. 



\\ If at all n((ar the borders of civilisation, wc soon strike 



i/|! a "hauling road," leading fnmi such localities into the 



I'! settlements — a track broad enough for a sled and pair of 



jil' oxen to pass ovc^r when the farmer comes in winter to 



! ' transport his firewood over the snow. And a goodly 



'I stock indcitd he rcipiires to battle with the cold of a 



North American winter in the backwoods; logs, such as 



l''< it would take two men to lift, of birch, beech or maple, 



j' are piled on his ample hearth ; the abundance of fuel 



I and the readiness with which he can bring it from the 



I neijilibourino; bush, is one of his greatest blessings. He 



1 '. deserves a few comforts, for perhaps his lifetime, and that 



j. [ of his father, has been spent in redeeming the few acres 



ji; round the dwelling from the fangs of gigantic stumps 



■ : and boulders of rock. A patch of potatoes, an acre or 



I ' so of buckwheat, and another of oats, and a few rough- 



looking cattle, are his sources of wealth, or perhaps a 



rough saw mill, constructed far up in the forest brook, 



and the whirr of whose circular saw disturbs only the 



wild animals of the surrounding woods. 



How vividly is recalled to my memory the delight 

 experienced on many occasions by our tired, belated 

 party, returning from a hunting camp through unknown 

 woods, on finding one of these logging roads, anticipating 

 |i in advance the kindly welcome of the invariably hospit- 



