A Bouquet of Song Birds 



cent display of trees, showing to full advantage 

 in the thinly wooded swamp, along the wind- 

 ing roads; here and there, like Time's sleep- 

 less sentinel, a splendid oak, and many a noble 

 beech, not so assertive as the oak, but far more 

 persuasive. 



The dark oak-spirit is in the mood of 

 night, a companion for owls, and motionless 

 as passion's calm. It seems to be in a chronic 

 state of defiance that gives a challenge to the 

 elements ; so that, more than any other tree, 

 an aged oak is its own living monument. It is 

 an interesting fact — and not a poet's fancy-^ 

 recently established by governmental investi- 

 gation, that the oak is, of all species, the one 

 most frequently struck by lightning ; while the 

 beech, for some reason, has the least attraction 

 for that fluid. This less aggressive species 

 bears a mildly massive look upon its whitened 

 bark that blends very companionably with the 

 delicate verdure of its spring foliage. 



Such a gracious and yet vigorous growth, 

 impressed with an almost human nobility, in- 

 spires a restful, tranquil mood beyond all else 

 in Nature, if one yields his mind to its per- 

 suasive mastery. And doubtless there is much 

 more refreshment and uplift in choosing some 



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