52 LITERARY PILGRIMAGES 



A Maryland yellow-throat whose nest stands 

 empty in the grass on the borders of this little, 

 lance-serried marsh fluttered and chirped and 

 clung among these rushes and from the top of a 

 near-by bayberry shrub a song sparrow trilled a 

 note or two, despite the fact that it is moulting 

 time and few birds have the heart to sing in dis- 

 habille. Nightfall brought no sound of frog 

 voices from this little marsh, yet I cannot fancy it 

 in spring without a hyla or two to pipe flute notes 

 from its margin. Near this I found the one 

 ophidian of the island, a beautiful, slender, grace- 

 ful green snake, little more than a foot long. This 

 lovely little creature feeds on crickets and insect 

 larvae and is the very gentlest snake that ever 

 crawled. Jarred by my footfall in the grass he 

 glided away among the tangle, trusting to his 

 coloration, which is a perfect grass green, to hide 

 him, which it soon did. If Appledore must have 

 its serpent no sweeter-natured nor lovelier vari- 

 ety could be found. If modern Eves sit upon the 

 rocks of moonlight nights and listen to this one's 

 promptings one can scarcely blame them. 

 Under the eaves and under the verandas of the 



