2 34 Summer Studies of Birds and Books chap. 



downwards just like a living creature's fell ; and I 

 believe it has been this, more than anything else 

 about him, which has always made me think of 

 Bindon as a huge reposing animal. This grass has 

 one quality which is most delightful to those who 

 have learnt to know Bindon well. It is at all times 

 so thirsty that it absorbs moisture with most aston- 

 ishing rapidity ; on the southern and more sunny 

 side the rain or sea-mist is at once drawn into the 

 chalky soil, but on the northern, where the grass is 

 thicker and longer, if you probe with your fingers 

 you may feel a touch of dampness in a mossy under- 

 growth. But there is no need to be alarmed at this ; 

 the hide protects you from it like a waterproof, and 

 you may cast yourself down on it half an hour after 

 a shower, if the sun be shining, without a thought of 

 rheumatism. 



On Bindon's narrow spine, — and it is another 

 peculiarity of his, which I have not mentioned, that 

 he narrows towards his highest point, till the ridge 

 itself is not more than a dozen paces across, — on 

 this narrow spine of his, and on many a level spot 

 elsewhere, there grows a short and velvety turf, as 

 deliciously elastic to the tread as the air that breathes 

 over it is exhilarating to the mind. Touch it 

 with a stick, and it will in some places give gently 

 to the pressure; and if you cut out a bit with a 

 penknife, you find a depth of an inch or more of a 



