SOME LABRADOR RIVERS 
the water on account of the thick fringe of 
alders, so we scaled again the bank, and found 
a warm sunny spot just below the edge, where, 
sheltered from the chilly wind which blew 
across the tundra, we could feast our eyes on 
the river to our heart’s content. Close at our 
feet the snowbank still held many trees and 
bushes in its fetters. They were still leafless, 
while those below were clothed in the green 
of early summer. A larch near at hand, bent 
and twisted by the weight of many winters, 
had just emerged black and bare from the 
winter’s blanket, yet it already showed on its 
topmost branches a promise of faint green buds. 
In the narrow valley below another larch hid 
its black branches under a green veil, and re- 
joiced in its strength. Near the snow drift 
the ground was naked, or brown and sere, 
while a few feet away it was clothed in the 
delicate green of young grasses and tender 
herbs. The bank above my head was blossom- 
ing with the white flowers of the cassandra, 
while the purple buds of the andromeda and 
the pale yellows once of the Labrador tea 
were just ready to open. In all three of these 
the leaves were fully out, for they are ever- 
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