Robin Hood's Barn 



little venial errings, but of some grave cardinal 

 sin that weighed upon his soul. And having eased 

 himself through stern reproof and penance, he 

 went forth upon his way forgetful, leaving his 

 confessor brooding over the secret he had told. 

 For all that my father would draw near the pine 

 tree and listen to the little grieving sigh that 

 went running through its boughs. 



But from the great elm that stood sohtary in 

 the open pasture, he preferred to keep apart. At 

 a distance he could best realize the beauty of its 

 holiness, see its vmhiu'ried dignity of growth, and 

 feel the import of the faith that drew it upward 

 in a single prayer. 



Strange that the path should slip so quickly 

 down — ^from this mood of exaltation to a tangle 

 where aU was tussle, a midsummer passion, and 

 hot lust. Here was flamboyancy to brightness, 

 and a heavy sensuality to fragrance that was 

 different from the wholesome smell of earth. 

 Freebooting vines reached out, rapacious, and 

 strangled with a leap, a clutch. And in the mad 

 jostle and abandon that took place among them, 

 the purple aster lost its comeliness, the joepye- 

 [140] 



