at Bethel in midwinter is full of interest and
pleasure and seldom attended by any hardship really
worth mentioning. Although the thermometer frequently
registers ten or fifteen and occasionally twenty-five or even
thirty degrees below zero (Fahrenheit) the air so so pure
and dry and so wholly free from chill that it
does not often seem cold, at least when the
sun is shining brightly and there is little or no wind.
In January and February there are many brilliantly
clear and comparatively calm days when, with
the temperature not much if at all above zero,
one may ramble in perfect comfort through the woods
and fields wearing no overcoat and perhaps no gloves
although the ears must be kept covered else they
will freeze quickly. The more perfect days of the
"weather breeder" type are frequently followed by