2i8 THE TREE BOOK 



In the Northern woods there is a species of 

 mistletoe found clinging to the twigs of the 

 spruce. It has all the appearances of a thor- 

 ough-going parasite, for its leaves are nothing 

 but tiny brownish-green scales. Often the 

 whole plant is no larger than a single spruce 

 needle. 



The mistletoe has been handed down in legend 

 as a symbol of good luck and blessing. Balder, 

 the Norse god of sunshine, loved it and claimed 

 it for his own. The pagans claimed that it was 

 thrown from the upper world, and the finder of 

 the mistletoe was supposed to be greatly in 

 favor with the gods. The old Druids worked all 

 manner of pleasing charms with the mistletoe. 



