220 
BIEDS IN A VILLAGE. 
burnt itself out, fall on death in this swift, easy 
manner — when we recall the fact that even in the 
life-history of men, such a thing is not unknown. 
Probably there is not one among my readers who 
will not be able to recall some such incident in his 
own circle — the case of some one who lived, perhaps, 
long past the term usually allotted to man, and who 
finally passed away without a struggle, without a 
pang, so that those who were with him found it 
hard to believe that the spirit had indeed gone. In 
such cases the subject has invariably been healthy, 
although it is hard to believe that, in the conditions 
we exist in, any man can have the perfect health 
that all wild creatures enjoy. 
When quoting Michelet's words some pages 
back, I remarked that his dream was a vain one. 
It could not be other than that, since he looked 
to see the change he wished for. " Tender alliance 
of souls ! " he cries, " why does it not everywhere 
exist, between us and our winged brothers, 
between man and the universal living nature ? " 
And this tender alliance and change he actually 
hoped to bring about by means of his book ! 
In another sense the dream was anything but 
vain; for such dreams and such aspirations are 
prophesies, which in the end bring about their 
own fulfilment. But many must first dream the 
