AMONG THE TREES. 



THE WILLOW. 



It was one of those warm, delightful 

 days, when Nature seemed to beckon 

 and to lure her lovers into field and 

 wood; to leave behind the city with its 

 noise and bustle, its din and strife, its 

 greed and gain and come out into God's 

 world; to listen to His little choristers, 

 to look up into the blue dome of His vast 

 cathedral frescoed with beautiful clouds, 

 and be refreshed and strengthened. 



Mabel could not longer resist the im- 

 pulse to toss aside her sewing, and yield- 

 ing, she took a broad-rimmed hat and 

 crossing the lawn followed a little by- 

 path toi the river, where she stepped into 

 a canoe and was soon afloat on. the broad 

 bosom of the stream. How pretty the 

 banks looked with their great masses of 

 foliage brightened by festoons of wild 

 cucumber vines ! She thoroughly en- 

 joyed the scene as she made her way 

 down stream, each bend in the river 

 opening out like a panorama before her 

 appreciative eyes as she drifted idly, or 

 glided swiftly, plying her paddle as deftly 

 and softly as any Indian maiden. Just 

 ahead, where a great mass of foliage 

 drooped over until it touched the water, 

 she noticed a small opening between the 

 branches. Curiosity prompted her to 

 steer her canoe into this opening, and an 

 exclamation of delight escaped her lips, 

 as she found herself in a perfect little 

 arbor where minnows darted hither and 

 thither in the shallow water. 



''What a perfect little arbor ! How 

 pretty those gray-green minnows look ! 

 What a soft mellow light there is in 

 here ; I think I'll make myself comforta- 

 ble and enjoy the novelty of this summer 

 house," thought Mabel, as she placed a 

 cushion under her head and looked 

 upward. A slight breeze was stirring; 

 just rippling the water and playing with 

 the wallow leaves, making a musical mur- 

 mur like the sweet warbling of some 

 feathered songster. 



"How would you like to have me talk 



to you?" ]\Iabel thought she heard the 

 Willow Tree say 



''Oh I would be delighted, especially 

 if you have any nice legends in connec- 

 tion with your family." 



"Legends ! To be sure we have ; have 

 you never heard of any dishes called the 

 'willow ware?' " 



"Oh, how silly of me !" said Mabel, as 

 she clapped her hands in delight. "I 

 remember well one of the greatest 

 charms about my grandmother's kitchen 

 was her set of beautiful blue and white 

 dishes of the willow pattern. How 

 pretty they looked in the early twilight 

 of those long, delightful winter evenings ! 

 Grandfather would fill the immense fire- 

 place with logs and the bright flames 

 would leap up and cast flickering lights 

 and shadows in the gathering darkness. 

 The great dresser stood opposite, and 

 through its glass doors, arranged in neat 

 rows — every plate and platter on its 

 edge — could be seen this wonderful set 

 of dishes given grandmother by her 

 mother on the day that she was married. 

 How often I have sat in the chimney 

 corner and watched the lights dance over 

 those dishes, as grandmother would tell 

 of their early home in that log house on 

 the edge of the woods, when grand- 

 father would fell trees all day and at 

 night they would watch the brush burn- 

 ing through the chinks between the logs. 

 But do tell me the legend. Willow Tree." 



"I suppose you have forgotten the pat-. 

 tern ! If you had one of those old plates 

 here you could understand it much bet- 

 ter." 



"Never mind; I have one at home 

 which dear old grandmother gave me as 

 a keepsake ; it stands on a little bracket 

 in my room. Tell me the legend, for I 

 have never heard it, and when I go home 

 I'll look at the plate and fix it more thor- 

 oughly in my mind." 



"The legend is a very romantic one. 

 Tradition has it that a wealthy mandarin 



