so 
the construction of their vessels. In reference to which 
Virgil says,— 
■< When hollow aiders first the waters trv’d." 
And again, — 
“ And down the Po the rapid alders glide." 
In the following passage, he considers it as an emblem 
of friendship: — 
“ Galius, my much belov'd! for whom I feci 
The flame of purest friendship rising still; 
So by a brook the verdant alders rise, 
"When fostering zephyrs fan the vernal skies. 
What additional zest does this play of fancy give to a 
country ramble ! There are some who value trees only 
for their timber or' their shade; there are others to 
whom they suggest a thousand varied images, — some 
pleasurable, some perhaps painful, but all interesting. 
They hear them, 
u As they bow their hoary heads, relate, 
In murmuring sounds, the dark decrees of fate; 
While visions, as poetic eyes avow, 
Cling to each leaf, and swarm on every bough.” 
