76 
RURAL HOURS. 
expression, the most noble design. Not a page did they leave 
unadorned, not a letter where each was formed by the hand, but 
showed the touch of a master; — not a blank leaf nor a margin, 
but bore some dehcate traces of pious labors. And thus, to-day, 
when the precious Book of Life has been withdrawn from the 
cloisters and given to us all, as we bear its sacred pages about in 
our hands, as we carry its holy words in our hearts, we raise our 
eyes to the sides above, we send them abroad over the earth, alike 
full of the glory of Almighty Majesty, — great and worthy illumi- 
nations of the written Word of God. 
Coming home through the fields, we found an old pine stretch- 
ed its entire length on the grass ; it must have lain there for 
years, slowly mouldering away, for it was decayed throughout 
and fallen asunder in many places so as to follow the cm'ving siu^- 
face of the ground, but the whole line was entire, and measuring 
it with a parasol, we made its height to be more than a himdred 
feet, although something was wanting at the summit. Its diam- 
eter, without tlie bark, was less than two feet. 
Wednesday/, 17th. — Pleasant weather. In om^ early walk, be- 
fore breakfast, we found many of the bob 'links playing over the 
meadows, singing as they flew, their liquid, gurgling medley fall- 
ing on the ear, now here, now there. These birds build on the 
ground among the grass or grain, but often perch on the trees. 
They are one of the few birds about us who sing on the wing, 
and are almost wholly meadow-birds, rarely coming into the vil- 
lage. Saw summer yellow-birds also, more wholly golden, and 
of a deeper color than the goldfinch, but not so prettily formed. 
M«my young leaves are dottmg the trees now, spray and fo- 
liage both showing. The woods are quite green ; the rapidity 
