VIII. THE NOVEMBER SEED-CROP 



" 'Tis all a myth that Autumn grieves 

 For, list the wind among the sheaves; 

 Far sweeter than the breath of May." 



Samuel M. Peck (Autumn's Mirth). 



November, in our latitude, is nature's season of plenty. 

 Her work of crop-production is done. Living is easy for all 

 her creatures. The improvident may have their choice of 

 fruits, or may eat only of the seeds that are best liked and 

 easiest gathered. The frugal and foresighted may gather 

 winter stores. It was no mere arbitrary impulse of our Puri- 

 tan pioneers that settled upon November as the season of 

 , special Thanksgiving. 



Nature's prodigality of seed production is for the benefit of 

 her animal population. She gives them the excess. They in 

 their turn are very wasteful in their handling of the seed. 

 They never eat all that they gather but scatter and lose some 

 of it in places favorable for growth next season. Thus, they, 

 in their turn, assist by aiding in distributing the seed. The 

 sleek and surfeited meadow mice, scatter grains along their 

 nmways and never find them again, and these lost seeds are 

 favorably situated for growth at the proper season. It is 

 only a remnant of them that will escape the more careful 

 search of the beasts when the hunger of the lean season is on, 

 but so great is the excess of production, that remant is, in the 

 nice balance of nature, sufficient to keep the species going. 



It is a long, lean season that follows on November in our 

 latitude, and the seed-crop though abundant, is not sufficient 

 to feed all the wild animal population. So nature takes 

 various measures to eke it out. She puts to sleep in hiberna- 

 tion the great majority of animals. These include nearly all 



