The Chorus of the Forest 



inherited from days when most of the lieasts and 

 many of the birds were hirger and of greater 

 strength than man, so that existence was a daily 

 battle. Then the forest is ever receding. As we 

 approacli, it retreats, nntil of late years it has l)e- 

 come diificult to find, and soon it is threatened 

 with extinction. As yet, it is somewhere, but pa- 

 tience and tra\'el are required to reach it. I found 

 the forest here pictured after a journey by rail, 

 Avater, and a long road so narrow that it seemed 

 as if every one traveling it Avent in the morning 

 and returned at night, but none ever passed on 

 the Avay. 



Such a narroAv little road, and so sandy that 

 it appeared like a Avhite ribbon stretched up gen- 

 tle hill and down Aalley! On each side I saAv evi- The 

 dence that lateh^ it had been forest itself; else the °^. 



to the 



Avay Avould not have been so A'ery narroAv. the sides Forest 

 impassable, and bordered Avith trees so mighty and 

 closely set as to dwarf it to the vanishing point 

 long Avithin the range of vision. The very floAvers 

 Avere unusual, the faint musky perfume creeping 

 out to us, a touch of the forest greeting our ap- 

 proach. The road ran long and straight, and 

 where it ended the Avork of man ceased and the 

 work of nature began. 



The forest Avas surrounded by a garden, AA'here 

 sunliglit and Avarmth encouraged a growth not to 

 be found inside. Here in early spring daintiest 



27 



