Onteora Notes 81 
sighing in the rain, whispering in the breeze, 
and singing in the wind; until he accustoms 
himself to look through their dim aisles and 
out of their oriel windows. A strong and 
gentle race, they live and have their being in a 
world of their own. In the silent watches of 
the night I hear faint music in the tree tops— 
maples softly singing among themselves. It 
is a pleasant thing thus to commune with 
these rooted primeval men in their sane and 
musical life—a society which commends itself 
for many reasons to poets and such as have 
an inner life, encouraging, not interrupting 
their cherished thoughts. 
So also is the wood-life congenial to certain 
birds and flowers and these show the impress 
of solitude and an exclusiveness which would 
be as uncongenial to other types of birds and 
flowers as to wholly gregarious people. Cer- 
tainly it was no more chance the thrush family 
came to the woods than certain other folk 
drawn by subtle affinity and fine sympathies. 
These cloistered shades are as uncongenial 
to rollicking birds as to rollicking people. 
Neither do weeds and the sturdier aggressive 
plants take to the woods, but to the fields and 
roadsides. In the twilight grow the most 
delicate and exquisite flowers always. 
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