76 
RURAL HOURS. 
expression, the most noble design. Not a page did they leave 
imadorned, not a letter where each was fonned by the hand, but 
shoM'ed the touch of a master ; — not a blank leaf nor a margin, 
but bore some dehcate traces of pious labors. And thus, to-daj', 
when the precious Book of Life has been withdrawn from the 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 skies above, we send them abroad over the earth, ahke 
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 moiddering away, for it was decayed throughout 
and fallen asunder in many places so as to follow the cur\'ing sur- 
face of the ground, but the whole fine was entire, and measuring 
it with a parasol, we made its height to be more than a hundred 
feet, although something was wanting at the summit. Its diam- 
eter, without the bark, Avas less than two feet. 
Wednesday, — Pleasant Aveather. In our early walk, be- 
fore breakfast, Ave found many of the bob’links playing over the 
meadows, singing as they flcAv, their hquid, gurgling medley fall- 
ing on the ear, now here, now there. These bhds 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 Avholly meadoAv-birds, rarely coming into the aII- 
lage. Saw siunmer yelloAv-birds also, moi'e wholly golden, and 
of a deeper color than the goldfinch, but not so prettily formed. 
Many yoimg leaA^es are dotting the trees noAv, spray and fo- 
liage both showing. The woods are quite green ; the rapidity 
