EUCALYPTUS TREES. 119 



It was in the forests where the poetic mind of Schil- 

 ler, during his early boyhood,* first of all awoke to 

 its deep love for nature ; where his strong sense for 

 noble rectitude was formed ; where he framed his 

 ideals of all that is elevated and great. This influ- 

 ence of nature we see reflected in other lofty minds ; 

 it leads true genius on its luminous path. Contrast 

 the magniflcence of a dense forest, before the de- 

 structive hand of man defaced it, with the cheerless 

 aspect of wide landscapes devoid of wooded scenery — 

 only open plains or treeless ridges bounding the hori- 

 zon. The sUent grandeur and solitude of a virgin 

 forest inspires us almost with awe — much more so 

 than even the broad expanse of the ocean. It con- 

 veys, also, involuntarily to our mind a feeling as if 

 we were brought more closely before the Divine Pow- 

 er by whom the worlds without end were created, 

 and before whom the proudest human work must 

 sink into utter insignificance. No settlement, how- 

 ever princely — no city, however great its splendor, 

 brilliant its arts, or enchanting its pleasures — can 

 arouse those sentiments of veneration which, among 

 all the grand works of nature, an undisturbed noble 

 forest-region is most apt to call forth. I never saw 

 truly happier homes of unmingled contentedness than 

 in the seclusion of the woods. It is as if the bracing 

 pureness of the air, the remoteness from the outer 

 world, the unrestricted freedom from formal restraint, 

 give to forest-life a charm for which in vain we will 

 ever seek elsewhere. The forest inhabitant, as a rule, 

 sees his life prolonged ; an air of peace on all sides sur- 

 rounds him ; even with less prosperity, he is glad to 



♦ Sleetcli of the Life of Schiller, ty Sii Edward Bulwer Lyttop, p. 2, 



