XL. 



THE FLIGHT OF THE WOOD-NYMPHS. 



Ox the southern slope of a hill, nearly in the entrance 

 of a valley, stood a rustic cottage inhabited by a plain 

 industrious farmer and his family. The farm which 

 was connected with the cottage was a beautiful inter- 

 mixture of wood, tillage, and pasture ; and, imbosomed 

 in these natural groves, the glistening waters of a mini- 

 ature lake gave animation to the landscape, and became 

 a scene of rustic sport for many a youthful angler. In 

 front of the cottage was an irregular grassy slope, ex- 

 tending down to the road side, and wholly uninclosed. 

 Through this natural lawn a narrow footpath, leading 

 obliquely from the street to the door step, had been worn 

 by the feet of passengers ; tufts of wild shrubbery grew 

 here and there about the rocks that projected from the 

 surface of the soil, and the sweet fern diffused its odors 

 within a rood of the cottage windows. In the evening, 

 a small herd of cows might be seen quietly ruminating 

 under a rugged old' oak, that stood about thirty paces 

 from the house. 



In the month of May this place was a favorite resort 

 for all the children of the village, on account of the 



