Author: Title: The little gardener Place of Publication: Philadelphia Copyright Date: 1850 Master Negative Storage Number: MNS# PSt SNPaAg038.4 300 500 533 <271585>*OCLC*Form:mono2 Input.BLN Edit:FMD 008 ENT: 980109 TYP: s DT1: 1850 DT2: LAN: eng 035 (OCoLC)381 15371 037 PSt SNPaAg038.4 $bPreservation Office, The Pennsylvania State University, Pattee Library, University Parl<, PA 16802-1805 090 00 SB91.A2 $bL5836 1850 $cbj*1 2268627 090 20 IVIicrofilm D344 reel 38.4 $cmc+(service copy, print master, archival master) 245 04 The little gardener 260 Philadelphia $bHenry F. Anners $c1850. ii, [5]-175p., [1] leaf of plates $bill. $c15cm. "Preface to the American edition": p.[i]-ii Microfilm $bUniversity Park, Pa. : $cPennsylvania State University $d1997. $e1 microfilm reel ; 35 mm. $f(USAIN state and local literature preservation project. Pennsylvania) $f(Pennsylvania agricultural literature on microfilm). Archival master stored at National Agricultural Library, Beltsville, MD : print master stored at remote facility. This item is temporarily out of the library during the filming process. If you wish to be notified when it returns, please fill out a Personal Reserve slip. The slips are available in the Rare Books Room, in the Microforms Room, and at the Circulation desk. 650 0 Children's gardens. 650 0 Gardening. 830 0 USAIN state and local literature preservation project. $pPennsylvania 830 0 Pennsylvania agricultural literature on microfilm. 590 590 THE ^ (D h:: LITTLE GiVrvDENER " IIow various his employments whom the VVorlrf Calls idle ; and who justly, in return, Esteems that busy World an idUr too ! Friends, hooks, a' Q-arden, and perhaps his pen, Dplighiftil industry enjoyed at home, And nature in her cultivated trim Dressed to his taste, inviting him abroad — Can he want occupation who has these ? " — Coitper nilLADELPIIIA: HENRY F. ANNERS. 1850. THE i^ Q^ 4) J. LITTLE GAKDEJJEK. '* IIow various his employinents whom the VVorlJ Calls idle ; and who justly, in nHurn, Esteems that busy World an idUr too I Friends, hooks, ti nM«, a gate or opening, because it is the gate or opening of the year. You remember, I dare say, that on this day it is usual to make presents to our friends, called newyearh gifts. The Romans did the same thing at the same time of the year ; and it is a very pleasant and innocent custom. Accordingly, Mr. Bourne, a kind-hearted writer, says, ' If I send a new- year's gift to my friend, it shall be a token of my friendship ; if to my benefactor, a token of my grati- tude ; if lo the poor, which at this time must never be forgotten, it shall be to make their hearts sing for joy, and give praise and adoration to the giver of all GOOD GIFTS.' " Now you may go and cut some of the evergreens for mamma to dress the rooms, in honor of new- year's day :— those which were put up on Christmas day have faded. Get some holly, and laurustinus, and evergreen oak, which, you know, is also called the ilex ; some of the arbutus or strawberry-tree ;* and * Very few of the trees, shrubs, anU flowers, mentioned in this and in Bubsequent chapters, arc natives of this country. Many of them, howe- ver, arc found in all our irardens, while other and rarer ones are cultivated \n botanical gardens, and in other public and private collections. Most of them may be purchased of the nurseryman, or at the seed-stores, in our larger cities ; but in general the directions given for cultivating them In England will be inapplicable to the climate of this country. Our youthful cultivators will therefore find it necessary to get directions from American works on gardening, before they venture upon the culti- vation of the more tender exotics.— Eds. 8 A WALK AT NEW-YEAR S. whatever else you think will look beautifully. But be sure to cut the branches from those parts of the trees which will not be seen from the parlor window ; and beg mamma not to forget to put her artificial flowers among them, in the vases, as she did on Christmas day. We may as well take a walk before dinner, and gather some more of that common broom which is now in flower. Its blossoms are very lovely, looking at a distance like drops of shining gold upon green velvet. Before we go, ask your sister Bella, or Mary, if the poultry have been fed this morning. I shall be very much displeased if they are ever forgot- ten ; because I love to see every thing happy ; and to animals, eating is perhaps the greatest enjoyment they have. Then desire Ward to give the cow some water ; and get your hat, and let us go. Perhaps Arthur and Tom would like to walk with you— it is very dirty, but never mind! gardeners and countrymen must not care for dirt." Away they all went; and the boys brought home such a quantity of broom, and holly, periwinkle, and ivy, with its beautiful grave-looking berries, that they were like little Jacks in the green at May-tide. So the parlor was dressed up, till it seemed as if you were going into an arbor. The fire burned brightly, and shone upon the green leaves. In the evening the whole family amused themselves with playing at blindman's-buft' and forfeits; they had snap-dragon and wassail, roasted apples and chesnuts ; and all went shouting to bed.* • With the other new-year's amusements and entertainments here mentioned, our youthful readers on this side of the Atlantic are well acquainted ; but some of them will perhaps be glad to see Dr. Johnson's account o( snap-dragcn and wassail. "Sjiapdragon" is " a kind of play in which brandy is set on fira, and raisins thrown into it, which those who are unused to the sport ara ADAM COMMENCES WORK. ^ On the following morning, while they were at break- fast, the servant man, Ward, brought into the parlor a spade, a rake, and a hoe ; Adam stared at them, and his countenance beamed with delight. They were not foolish little baby toys ; but excellent strong tools, fit for such a gardener as Adam was to become. ^' Now," said his father, " you are set up, and if you have finished your breakfast we will go into the garden. " The first thing we will do shall be to dig up this bed under the south wall, to sow in it our first peas, beans, radishes, onions, and mustard and cress. bo Adam for a feiv minutes watched attentively his la- ther's manner of turning the earth over, and levelling it with the spade. Then he tried to dig up one row, and with the help of his father afterwards contrived to keep the bed tolerably even. This was a work of some time, for it was a large bed ; then his father, with his hoe, showed him how to make the small trench for sowing the peas, and what distance he was to keep them apart. When they had finished as many of these trenches as Mr. Stock thought sufficient, he showed Adam how thick it was proper to sow the seed; which he managed very carefully and well. They did the same with the beans ; and afterwards raked the earth over them, first scattering some soot in the trenches, to prevent the slugs and mice from de- stroying the seed. After this they sowed some onions, radishes, and mustard and cress ; which was done by scattering the seeds thinly upon the surface of the ground, and afterwards raking them in. " Now, Adam," afi-aid to take out; but which may be safely snatched by a quick mo- tion, and put blazing into the mouth, which being closed, the fire Is at once extinguished." "Wassail, a liquor made of apples, 8ugar, and ale.''— Eds. 10 EARLY SOWING. PLANTING BULBOUS ROOTS. 11 said his father, " go and fetch some armfuls of tliat straw and pea-hauhn out of the wood-house : we will lay it upon the beds of onions, and radishes, and mus- tard and cress, to keep the birds from picking up the seeds, and to shelter them from the cold winds which we may soon expect to have. We may as well sow that bed near the bullis-tree with carrots ; which is to be done in the same way as we did with the onions ; and we Avill put some straw round the glasses of young cauliflower plants, and upon the endive, in case a frost should come on suddenly, for that would kill them." The next thing they did was to prepare another bed by digging it up and raking it ; upon which they sowed turnips. " We need not care if these should come up too thickly," said his father, "because we can thin them afterwards, and give them to the cow and the rabbits." All this is very soon told, but it occupied them seve- ral days. Adam was allowed to get all the vegetables which were wanted for dinner. His mother told him how many she would require, and of what sort ; and his father taught him how to select those fit for eating. Every day he used to dig up a few heads of celery, some endive, and some savoys ; the potatoes, beet-root, carrots, and parsnips, were in the cellar. They were dug up in the latter part of the autumn, because the wet and frosty weather would render them unfit for eating if they were to remain in the earth. Therefore when they are grown to their full size, it is proper to dig them up and put them where neither water nor frost can come to them. Their next task was to turn up the remainder of the earth that had not been digged since the autumnal crops were gathered from it : but i they first covered it all over with manure, which they wheeled from the heap in the yard. "Now, Adam," said his father, "I believe we have done nearly all that is required of us for the kitchen garden ; we will go and see what Jlowers want our attention. You know which are the anemone plants . fetch some pea-straw from the wood-house, and cover them up in the same way you did the endive ; then come to me, and I will show you how to mat and earth up the auriculas; we must preserve them against heavy rains and frost. We may as well also put mat- ting round those beautiful carnations, which, you know, were so much admired last summer. You would 1)€ sorry to have them die, I think. When this is done, as the weather is still mild, we will plant what arc called bulbous roots ; such as crocuses, jonquils, nar- cissuses, snoAV-drops, and tulips. You will observe how deep I set them in the ground — about the depth of your hand. By the time we have finished all this work it will be nearly dusk, when we will go in doors, and you shall do some sums in arithmetic ; and if you are diligent and attentive, I dare say your mamma Aviil reward you by continuing her story of the Traveller, and sftow you the places on the map which he visited. Do you not feel a great deal more happy now you know that you have been industrious and useful, than when you used to crawl about and endeavor to escape doing any thing?" *' Yes, papa," said Adam, " and I like, to talk to you now, because you look more kind than you did." " To be sure," said his father, " be- cause I love you better." On the following morning the nursery-man sent in a number of trees that Mr. Stock had ordered, and Adam was shown where they were to be planted, and 12 PLANTING TREES. — A SNOW. IN-DOOR WORK.— A WALB.. 13 ' t li desired to dig the holes for receiving them. This was a favorite job, for he liked digging better than any thing. There were some almond, and double-blossomed cherry- trees, and some mezereons;* all of which help to make the pleasant spring-time beautiful. There were lilacs and moss-roses, together with some apple and pear trees. *'I think, Adam," said his father, "we shall soon have a change of weather, for the air has become much colder. We must get all these trees into the ground to day, and I think it as much as we shall be able to do, for there are a great many of them." And it was well they did so ; for all night the snow came softly down, making no noise like the pattering of rain ; and in tlie morning Adam beheld, to his asto- nishment, that all his little flowers were covered, and the trees looked as if one part of their branches had been painted white, and the fir trees as if little white cushions had been laid upon them. Adam was rather impatient when he found that his work in the garden was at an end. "I cannot think," said he, " what is tlie use of snow : it is very pretty, to be sure, but I do not think it is of any use." "Of what use was it, Adam," said his father, " for us to matt up the flowers, and to put pea-haulm round the cauliflower glasses ?" " Oh ! that was to keep them warm;*-' said Adam, " and the frost from them." " Well," said his father, " the snow will answer the same purpose. I do not say that the snow will make them warm. It is rather foolish of people to say that the snow warms any thing : • " Mezereon," a beautiful species of flowering shrub, the cneorum tricoccum of botanists.— Eoa. t " To mat," i. e. to cover with male.— Eds. but it shields them from those dreadful, sharp, wither- ing winds, and black frosts ; and that is all the use that the straw and matting could be of. The winds may now blow as fiercely as they please, our flowers and tender plants are doubly sheltered. However, do not fear that you will have nothing to do. I will find you plenty of employment, and if the afternoon be fin«, we will take a walk." They went into the wood house, and Mr. Stock allowed Adam to chop some small wood for the fires ; but he showed him first he .v to hold the sticks, and cautioned him to be very careful in striking with the bill. His fatlier sawed some logs, and Adam piled them up. They then went to the store room, and looked over the fruit, taking out such as had become decayed ; and to prevent the frosty wind from penetrating the room, they stopped up the cracks of the window, and nailed a carpet before it. After dinner, according to his promise, Mr. Stock took Adam, with two of his broth 3rs, a walk into the fields in his neighborhood. Th** air was very calm, and the sky was beautifully clear, with only a few small clouds here and there. As they were passing a thatched cottage, Adam observed a little bird under the thatch, which seemed very busy, and as if it were en- deavoring to make a hole in it. He asked his father what it was doing, and what was its name. " It is called the tit-mouse," said he, "or tom-tit; and it is hunting for the insects which have taken shelter from the weather in the straw. And those birds you see there to the left, are called field-fares and red-wings. The severe winter in the north countries has driven them to take shelter with us. Many flocks come from Norway. You remember where Norway is. Mamma told you, the other evening, you know, about a dread- 2 ^4 THE KING-DOVE. — THE ROBIN. ful whirlpool, called the Maalstroom, near the coast of it and showed you the place upon the map. Those p^or little birds live upon the berries of the hawthorn, and whatever other fruit of that sort they can find. You will therefore be pleased in future, when you see the hedges very full of blossoms, and afterwards of berries." ^' Oh! papa," said little Tom " there was a large and beautiful bird came out of that tree ! That said his father, ''is a wood-pigeon; it is called the rin-dove ; it came to that tree to eat the berries on he^'ivy which grows up it. It also 1-es upon the fruit of the beech tree, called beech-mast. Almost all the beautiful pigeons you see in the farm yards have come originally from those wild ones that live m the ^' The sun was now nearly set, and the clouds all . about were tinged with a beautiful rose color. It went down behind the hills, which looked dark from the bright and burning gold that was behind tliem ; and thev soon saw nothing but the broad bars of light which shot from it up into the clouds. As they re- turned home, the children stopped to listen to a robin red-breast that was singing on a medlar tree* before a cottage door. They admired it very much. Yes said the father, " the robin is the most welcome of all the ''^^.^>' I CHAPTER II. FEBRUARY. " Muttering, the winds at eve, with blunted point, Blow hollow blustering from the south. Subdued, The frost resolves into a trickling thaw. Spotted tho mountains shine ; loose sleet descends, And floods the country round." — Thompson, The month of February had now set in ; and the frost appeared to be quite gone, although there were patches of snow still remaining, under those hedges which sheltered it from llie noonday sun : the roads were deep in mud, and the garden ground was soft; the wind was blustering, and the weather altogether very unpleasant ; for the rain which came from time to time was cold, and now and then, being mingled with small snow, rendered it extremely disagreeable To be out : but when there was any work to be per- formed, Mr. Stock would not allow the weather to prevent him ; and he brought up Adam to care for it as Jttle as he did himself. If he was wet in his feet, or in any part of his dress, when he had finished his work, he never failed to change it; and Adam did so too, who thought it was being like a man to keep at his work when it rained, and not to be sent in doors ; so at first he Cancied thai he liked rainy weather better than 22 KAIN. — DllOUGHT. SOWING BLl:,lb AND lAivSNIPs. 23 when it was line ; but he soon changed his opinion after he had been a few times wet through. At last he became a little peevish, and said "he hated ram." "Ay ! ay !" said his father, "but you do not hate fruit and flowers, and good eating of all sorts. Now, if there were to be no rain at all, you would be starved to death. The earth would become a barren waste ; the cattle would die for want of food; and you, also, would perish from the same cause. In those hot countries which your mamma has described to you, and Avhere they scarcely ever have any rain, the trees, plants, and grass are every night refreshed by plentiful dews; so plentiful, that you would be astonished if you could see the quantity that falls in one night. If it were not for this moisture, all the vegetation would in a few days be as completely burnt as if you were to put a plant into our oven. It is a much more dreadful thing to have too little, than too much rain. In the Bible you will meet with several descriptions of the eifects of drought; and they are very terrible. If you could once know what it is to be in severe want of rain, you would ever afterwards consider it a great blessing, and not be out of humor because it wet you. Come, let us set about our work." So they digged up a bed, and prepared it for some of their spring crops ; and the following day being fine, they sowed a fresh crop of beans in it. While they were employed, Adara asked why this month was called February. His father told him it was so called in honor of the goddess Juno^ one of whose names was Pebrua, given to her because she was said to preside over purification,* a • Fehrua si^'nifies expiatory sacrifices, and February was so called because in thai month, which was anciently the last of the year, expia- tory sacrificed were oflered for the sina of the whole year. — Eus. custom which prevailed among the Romans during this month, and lasted lor twelve days. They then prepared a bed for beet-roots, parsnips, and carrots, by digging it over again, and very deep ; then, with a dibble, Mr. Stock made holes, at least a foot deep, and three inches wide at the top, at regular distances, nine inches apart, which holes he filled with light rich earth, and in each he placed two seeds, about an inch from the top. Adam inquired why his father made these beds so differently from turnip, radish, or cabbage beds ; and why he put two seeds to each hole ? His father told him, that a friend of his, who was very particular in his garden, always sowed his beets, pars- nips, and carrots, in this way; "And he advised me to try it : cannot you guess why ? " Adam thought for a minute as he leaned on his spade, and looked at the newly-made bed, and then cried out — " Oh yes I to be sure I can I — the holes are filled with light earth straight down, that the roots may find their way easily, and so grow that way instead of going out on each side like two legs. Oh ! what funny dumpty carrots I have seen ! Oh ! and you put two seeds in case one should fail." "Right," said his father, "and if both should come up, the bed will be more easily thinned than if they Avere to be sown ^hroad-cast^^ as we sow radish." These were for the general crop ; those sown in the last month were for an early one, and for a delicacy. They then sowed some cabbages, and afterwards planV ed out some which had been sown in the last autumn. Adam was allowed to do this after being shoAvn the distance he was to keep between them, and how to manage the line. This job pleased him. They alsp sowed some lettuce seed, and fresh mustard and cress. The cauliflower plants, too, which were under the 24 WALK TO nAWTIIQRNDELl. ii| glasses, Adam put out in the same manner as he diQ the cabbages ; leaving only two or three under each glass, that they might ripen as early as possible. Als^) celery, leeks, parsley, and onions ; and peas for a se- cond crop. Towards the end of the month, as those which had been sown for the first crop had come tor- ward, Mr. Stock showed Adam how to earth them up w^ith his hoe; desiring him at the same time to be very careful not to draw the mould too high up the plants. They then sticked them ; Mr. Stock looking at each row as Adam finished it, to make such altera- tions as were necessary ; for it is not to be supposed that he did every thing in the best possible manner at a first trial : however, he was a good boy, and ma- naged very well, because he tried to do as well as he could w^hatever he attempted. One day, after they had finished iheir dinner, Mr. Stock observed, that as it was fine overhead, and tliere had been a brisk drying Avind for two or three days, they might all safely take a w^alk. So they went to a very pretty little dell, which was sheltered with beautiful trees, and almost covered with flowering shrubs and underwood. This was a favorite place with them. Whatever flowers they wanted, they knew that they should be plentifully supplied with, if they went to nawth'jrndell. However, at this time they were disappointed at not finding any other than dai- sies, which Mr. Stock told Adam the old -svriters used to call " day's-eyes." The children were not satisfied with only one sort of flower ; they wanted their old favorites, the primroses and violets, coAvslips and but- tercups: their father, however, told them that they had not yet begun to lift up their little heads after the winter weather. *' If you look about carefully," said BUDS. n he, *' I dare say you will find all the plants you were speaking of, preparing to come into flower. And that is a pleasant sight. Then is it not delightful to see the trees all around us putting forth their tender buds, all preparing to come out into fresh green leaves as soon as the days shall become a little longer ? Is it not pleasant, also, to consider the wonderfully curiov i manner in which those large leaves, that we are daily in the habit of looking on in summer, are folded up in that small bud? The bud in itself is a beautiful natu- ral production ; its shape is very elegant. The color is generally delicate — a light brown, tipped at the end with a soft green. And the bud of the horse-chestnut is richly colored ; at the same time it is protected from the rain and damp, by being covered over w^ith n natu- ral varnish, something like turpentine, which no wet can penetrate. Have you not found that the buds of the chestnut, sycamore, and of some few other trees, stick »to your fingers when you have touched them ? " Adam answered that he had ; " But," said he, " papa, if that turpentiny stuff is of use to the chestnut buds, why have not all trees their buds covered, too ? " " If it had beea necessary for them to have been so supplied," said his father, " they would certainly have been protected in like manner. I should suppose that the leaves of other trees are less tender than those of the chestnut and sycamore, and perhaps w^ould not suffer so much from wet. But you may depend upon it that a wise reason is to be given for the very smallest act of the Creator, even for the different covering of the buds of trees." After they had collected a variety of branches to take to their mamma, as they knew she would admire .hem, they returned home. In their way, they heard the pleasant song of the wood-lark ; and amongst a ii \ 1 III 26 WATER-WAGTAIL. — CHAFFINCH. flock of sheep they observed that pretty lively little bird, the water-wagtail, running about in the most busy manner imaginable. The children wanted to know what he was doing. " He is catching the small insects or gnats," said their father, "which throng where sheep are closely assembled. The water-wag- tail is one of those birds which leave our country during the winter, for a warmer climate ; this is called micrrating. This one has returned to us very early. As'they approached the sheep more closely, they had an opportunity of beholding the bird's skill in catching its prey. When they had proceeded a little larther, they heard the loud and rich song of a throstle, or thrush, which was in a hazel-tree in flower, at the back of a little mud cottage. The children wondered whether it was happy because 1t was singing. I dare say it is," said their father. " Some people, how- ever, do not believe that birds are more joyful when they are singing, than when they are silent. But, as we cannot be sure of this, the best way is to believe that which is most pleasant ; and I am sure it is plea- sant to fancy that a bird, when singing, is happy. Bella Avanted to know what beautiful little bird it was she saw flying out of the hedge. "There it is now, papa, in that tree. Oh ! what a pretty red breast it has, and white and green wings ! " " That is a chaf- finch," said her father. "It has a merry little note, foretelling the approach of summer ; and which is diflerent from its song at this time of the year. It is a curious circumstance, that the hen chaffinch should migrate, and that the male bird should remain here : but'' so it IS. At the close of the year the female has been traced through Holland into Italy. Do you know, Adam, where Italy and Holland are?" "0 MIGRATION. — ROOKERY. 27 yes ! papa," said he, " mamma showed them to me on the map, when she told me about the men skating to market with their baskets on their heads : and about Romulus and Remus, who built the city of Rome, being suckled by a wolf." " Well," said his father, " all that way those poor little birds go, and come back again to us early in the spring. About this time of the year you will hear the wood-owl begin his hooting ; and geese begin to lay eggs, and partridges to pair for the same purpose ; and as we pass the end of the lane, by the rookery, I make no doubt we shall observe that the rooks are beginning to be busy. It will be very enter- taining to watch them as the summer approaches, for they are almost the only birds that may be observed in the act of making their nests. In that beautiful book which you are now reading — the 'Evenings at Home,' you will meet with a very pleasant account of a rookery, and the birds' manner of building." They now had arrived at home, and after tea went to their evening amusements, till bed time. On the following morning, Adam and his father began to at- tend to the flower-garden. As the weather was still mild and open, they sowed sweet-peas, lupines, can- dy-tuft, lark-spurs, Virginia stock, mignonette, major convolvulus, minor convolvulus, and other annuals. They generally sowed them in rings, about the size of a small plate, and but just below the surface of the ground. Adam managed tolerably well; but his flithergave him the quantity of seed necessary for each little spot, for fear he should waste it; and as he co- vered it with the earth, he stuck in the place a small stick, to show that seed was there. While they were about this job, Adam asked his father what he meant when he called those flowers annuals, "All the flow- 1 "V \ 'I 28 ANNUALS AND PERENNIALS. ers," said his father, "which are obliged to be sown every year, and which produce seed in the autumn, and then die, are railed annuals. The Latin word annus, you know, moans a year; and they are only yearly plants. Those which endure many years, such as pinks, carnations, wall-llowers, and others,- are called perennials, from the Latin perenms, which means con- tinual, or unceasing. The sweet pea is an annual ; the everlasting pea is a perennial. I will now go and prune the shrubbery ; in the mean time you may plant out those young pinks and wall-flowers, which should have been done last autumn. I will maVa marks in the beds where you are to transplant thern ; and if by the time you have finished, I shall also have done pruning the shrubbery, we will collect the cuttings for the wood-house, and then dig it all over together." This was a noble task, and occupied them some days. While they were digging over the bed, they took the suckers from those shrubs which they wished to mul- tiply, and planted them about a foot asunder, in a va- cant spot of the garden. When this was finished, Mr. Stock told Adam to pull off the dead leaves, and to earth up afresh the auriculas, which they had matted *be last month; and to cover them again carefully, for fear of the severe winds and rain which they must ex- ^ pect at this time of the year. He showed him how to 3arth the plants, bidding him take pains in doing it. His father at the same time finished pruning the apple and pear trees ; he pl^inted out cuttings of gooseberries and currants, for successors to the old worn-out plants; finished pruning the vines ; and when he had also finished pruning the peach, nectarine, and apricot trees, Adam helped him to nai' matting upon hurdles, which, being placed against t' » wall in a sloping direction, MR. WILDMAN'S BEES. 29 and fastened to it, formed a defence for the young and tender blossoms of those delicious fruits, against the bleak and raging winds of early March. The next thing attended to, was dressing the straw- berry bed. This Adam could not yet pretend to ; he therefore stood by, and watched his father while at work, at the same time asking him sensible and useful questions. While they were conversing, he ob- served a bee bustling about in the cup of a crocus ; and after watching its manner of collecting its little golden store, he told his father he wished he would keep bees. " I think I should do so, Adam," said his father, " if I knew how to manage them. They are the most won- derful and the most entertaining little creatures that I know of." "Will you tell me about them?" said Adam. "I will tell you all I know respecting them," said his fiither; " but if you wish to become a manager of bees, when you are two or three years older, I will purchase you a book, written by a man who was very clever in the management of them, and who, strange to tell, kept some, if not all of his stock, at his house in Holborn. You have been many times in Holborn, and know very well whereabouts it is. Would you believe that this man (whose name was Wildman) w^as able to discover that his bees found their way from his house in London, as far as Hampstead heath, and back again ? The way in which he proved it was as follows : as they were going through a hole cut for them in a pane of glass, he, with a small camel-hair pecil, (such a one as you paint your pictures with,) dipped in vermillion, touched the back of each bee in its passage out. After he had marked a great numbci in this manner, he walked to Hampstead, and on the neaili he observed these same bees among the wild 3* hf 30 QUEEN-BEES. BEES AT WORK. 31 I I h flowers. Upon his return home, and at the close of the day, he found bees with the same mark returnmg to the hive. Is it not wonderful that those small crea- tures should be able to know his house from the great number that they flew over ? But you will be more astonished when I tell you that bees have been known to fly a distance of thirty miles after wild thyme a flower they are particularly fond of. They are also capable of being tamed, and made familiar, to a sur- prising degree ; for this same Mr. Wildman was so well known to his little companions, and they were so attached to him, that when he called a hive of bees m a particular manner, you would, in a few mmutes, see him covered with them ; and upon a given signal they would return to their hive." " I have heard, papa ^^ said Adam, *' that the bees have a queen ; is it true ^ " There is one bee," said his fiither, " which is very difi'crent in its shape from all the rest, and larger in size and which is called the queen ; but there would be r^ore propriety in calling it the mother ; for it lays all the eggs that produce the bees. They are so fond of her, that if you were to kill her, the greater part, if not the whole of the swarm, would certainly die. At first you would see great confusion among them ; they would be running hither and thither about the hive, among the cells; this commotion would increase into a loud'' and angry hum; they would hover round the hive in a manner very different from that when they are working. After some hours, this loud hum would be changed^to a painful melancholy note, which no one could m'istake for that of deep distress ; and by the time the sun had set, you would see many on the ground near the hive, dying and dead : and on the fol- lowing morning, if you were to lift up the hive, yon might see the dead lying in heaps ; with, perhaps, here and there a straggler, whose complaining would be dwindled to a weak moan. I once saw a hive of bees that had lost their queen, and I assure you the sight was very distressing; there was scarcely a window in the house that had not several bees in it, making a shrill and angry hum ; and they were so enraged at the loss they had experienced, that it was dangerous to be near them. On the following morning, the ground about the hive was covered with dead and dying bees; and on the succeeding day, not one of the whole swarm was living; but on the floor of the hive were more than two handfuls of the dead." *' I should like to see bees at work," said Adam ; " I have read in some book, that people have glass hives." *' Yes," said his father, " I have seen them working, and it is a very curious sight to observe how regularly all perform the different tasks allotted to them. When they begin to work, they divide into four companies ; one of which roves the fields in search of materials from the summer flowers. The honey they store in a little bag in their stomachs ; and the wax they load on their thighs. The second company is employed at home in laying out the bottoms and partitions of the cells ; the third is busied in making the inside smooth, and free from corners ; and the fourth company bring food for the rest, or relieve those who return with their burthens. They often change their appointed tasks: those that have been at work in the hive, going abroad ; and those that have been already in the fields, taking their places. There is no doubt that they have signs bv which they understand each other ; for when one of the laborers in the hive wants to be supplied by one ttat has been abroad, it bends down its trunk to the 32 PLOUGHING AND SOWING. bee from which it is expected ; and this, opening its honey-bag, lets some drops fall into the other's mouth. How they prepare the honey for the cells, has not been discovered. You have seen a piece of honey-cOmb : well, in one daij, these industrious and wonderful little creatures are able to build cells for three thousand young bees. But then you should be told, that there are in a full hive thirty thousand bees. Now, Adam, I think we will leave off work for to-day." So they put away their tools, and went in-doors. In the even- ing, after Adam had finished two or three sums in arithmetic, and had read one of Miss Edgeworth's beautiful little stories, he went happily to bed. The following day was employed in sowing more flower seeds ; such as lavatera, Venus' looking-glass, Venus' navel-wort, &c. ; and for early blowing, mig- nonette in pots, and ten-week stocks, both under a hand glass. They also stirred up the earth around the bulbous roots, and watered those in pots. After dinner, his father told him he intended going to the mill, to order some barley meal, and that he might go with him if he wished. In their way, they observed men ploughing, sowing, and harrowing. Adam wanted to know what they were sowing now. His father said it was either beans, peas, rye, or spring wheat, which they also call lent corn, from its being sown about that time of the year. Every thing was silent around them; the preparing for the seed, and the putting it into the ground, all seemed as quiet as when it was growing. They heard nothing but the soft shrill hum of a swarm of gnats above their heads, and the song of the poor plough- boy, as he waded by the side of the team. " IIow dif- ferent is this scene, Adam," said his Tather, "from PLOUGHMAN AND SO; ^lER. what is called ' the seat of war ;' which means the particular country w^here a war is carried on. How much more delightful is the sight of this quiet labor, and these green fields, than it would be for us to wit- ness thousands of horse and foot soldiers treading down and destroying the fruit of the husbandman's industry : to hear the noise of the trumpets, the roar- ing of the guns, the * thunder of the captains, and the shouting.' How much more pleasant is it to hear that simple plough-boy singing because he is happy and contented, than it would be to hear him raving and trying to cut down a fellow-creature with a sword, to stab him through the bowels with a bayonet, or to shoot him through the heart with a bullet. And how much more honorable is his present occupation, that of preparing food for his fellow-creatures, than is the life of a soldier ! both are paid for what they do ; the ae for useful labor, the other to kill his own brother, if he be ordered to do so. The soldier, it is true, is dressed in finer clothes, and is altogether a smarter per- son than the ploughman ; but then the clothes which the ploughman has on are his own^ and purchased with his own money : the fine red or blue dresses in which the soldier is adorned are given to him to wear as long as he is a soldier, and if he is not very careful of them, he is severely punished." Adam said he should like to have such fine dresses as the soldier, an-d be able to buy them like the ploughman. " Well," said his fa- ther, " it is very natural that you, who are but a little lx)y, should like those fine gay clothes, for the soldiers themselves like them very much. You have only to be diligent and honest, and you will be able to pur- chase for yourself much handsomer clothes than a sol- dier's ; and you will be a great deal more respected ind beloved by good men. 34 FLOWERS OF FEBRUARY. *' We are now come to the end of the month, and if you look round our garden, you will find many cheer- ful and lovely flowers in blossom. There is the aco- nite, the Alpine alysson, the beautiful anemone, the crocus, and the snow-drop still ; the primrose too, the richly-colored wall-flower, which was known to the Komans, and bore the same name ; the polyanthus, with its various bright colors; the periwinkle, with its delicate heavenly blue; the perennial adonis; the graceful Persian iris ; hepatica; hellebore; the heart s ease, as beautiful in its name as it is in its velvet bios- som of gold and royal blue ; the cheerful and long- lasting daisy; the daffodil, that seems to laugh at the cold and dance with every wind that blows ; and cy- clamen, I believe, the last. Then among the shrubs, we have that elegant tree, the almond, which was a favorite of one of the sweetest poets that ever lived— Spenser. Our cheerful and steady friend, the laurus- tinus that begins to flower when the gay colors of summer leave us, and never ceases till they return to us again ; the Glastonbury thorn, about whose blowing the artful and deceiving monks of old time told a fool- ish story of its having formerly been the walking-stick of a disciple of Jesus Christ; who planting it in the earth near the abbey of Glastonbury, it flowered at Christmas, in honor of his master Jesus, who was born at that time. Then follow the cornelian cherry and cnerry plum, together with the mezereon, wbich is a beautiful little plant ; and the phillyrea, spurge laurel, and pyracantha, with its clusters of bright red berries. Here is a famous catalogue of beauties for this season of the year ! Who would think there was such a va- riety, when but a few weeks since the snow covered the ground, and the tender shoots of the flowers were FLOWERS OF FEBRUARY. 35 30und in by the frost ? When we get home, you may, if you wish, gather a few of all, and take them to mamma, to adorn the parlor. If this month has been very stormy and wet, remember Avhat I told you about rain. The inconveniences we meet in life are not to be compared with the delights ; and when we think of the great good that rainy days will hereafter bring us, we must not be discontented with the month of Fe- bruary." They now arrived at home, and Adam went immediately to gatno»* the flowers for his mamma. .^^\•p;fV^ :|li »!! iiiii si!'; CHAPTER III. MARCH. " Ag yet the trembling year is unconfinn'd, And winter oft at eve resumes the breeze, Chills the pale morn, and bids his driving sleets Deform the day, delighfless. • • • < • • • 'At length, array'd In all the colors of the flushing year. By nature's swift and secret- working hand, The garden glows." The last two or three days of February, and the first week of the present month, March, were so stormy, and attended with such floods of rain, that Mr. Stock found it was of very little use attempting to do any thing in the garden ; he therefore told Adam, that as the weather was so unfavorable, he should take advan- tage of it, and get on as fast as he could with his arith- metic and geography ; " for," said he, " you know how often I have told you that the real meaning o{ indepen* cknce is, our being able to do every thing for ourselves. Now, you are aware, that no man could be able to pre- pare and make every thing he wanted. A North Ame- rican Indian, or any other wild man, would, because his wants are fewer than ours ; every thing he requires, he can make. His mat for a bed ; his bow and arrows, and fishing lines and nets, to procure him food ; and he can build himself a hut. But we are brought up TRUE INDEPENDENCE. 37 in a difTerent manner from these people, and our habits of life compel us to stand in need of many things that an Indian never thought of. Therefore an Indian is more independent than we are. But, if we choose, we may be very independent, too ; and the way is, by get- ting all the useful knowledge we can ; by being diligent in our business, and contented with what we gain. Now, Adam, you will never be an independent man if you know no more of arithmetic than you do at pre- sent; because you will not be able to calculate the value of the things which you wish to sell, but must have a person to do this for you ; and then you will be dependent indeed. You cannot think of this too often, that if you wish not to be in the power of any man living, (for that is being independent,) you must ac- quire all the knowledge possible ; be honest, and be contented." This dreary week having passed, and Adam, to say the truth, tired of the confinement, the weather cleared, and a brisk wind sprung up, which, after a few hours, dried the surface of the ground so that they could go to work. Mr. Stock told Adam that this Avould be a very busy month for them. " In the first place," said he, " we must weed the beds which we sowed the last two months. The onions, the parsnips, the carrots, the lettuces, and, indeed, all the beds. And if we per- severe now, while the weeds are young, we shall keep tlie garden clear, and benefit the plants. But you must be very careful, and distinguish the weeds." This was a tedious task, and Adam began to be wea- ried ; but as his f:ithcr helped him, and kept steadily at it, he did not complain. When they had finished, his father showed him how to dress the artichokes, and take ofl' the suckers for fresh plants. Afterwards he 3S MARCH MANY WEATHERS. saw him fork up and rake up tlie asparagus, and sow the seeds for fresh beds. When this was done, they sowed some more beet-root, beans, and broccoli, for the first crop; carrots, parsnips, and onions, for the principal crop, and for the Vv^inter. His fother sliowed him, too, how to prick out the celery, and plant it ; and then they transplanted the young cauliflower plants which had been all the winter under glasses : they also sowed radishes and mustard and cress, covering up the beds from the cold winds. "Now, Adam," said his father, " you may take the barrow, and wheel in some manure from the yard, and we will make a cu- cumber bed. When we have finished this, we will plant out our potatoes; and I will show you how to cut them into quarters, so as to leave in each partition what is called an eye ; for where there is an eye, there will be a shoot, and a fresh plant. And when this is done we will sow two or three more rows of our favor- ite peas ; and we Avill have one or more beds of tur- nips." All this, I should suppose, occupied them nearly a fortnight. During the time they w^ere at work, the season was very various. It might truly be called "March many weathers;" for in the course of one day they had wind, and sunshine, snow, rain, and fierce storms of hail. "It is well, Adam," said Mr. Stock, " that we covered up our tender flowers, and screened the fruit-trees ; or the opening blossoms would have suffered bitterly from * the slanting bullets of the storm.' But we must not complain ; for all this violent weather had better come now than later in the year, when our blossoms would be more opened. And indeed it is pleasant to have the gleams of sunshine after the dark storms, and to see the great clouds moving before the wind like mountains of snow, and MARCH DERIVED FROM MARS. 39 . to watch the shadows of them passing over the ploughed lands ; and when they are far off, to see the showers descend in long streaks. Sec, now, how beautiful those pigeons look, hurrying home after their meal, with the black cloud behind them !' Then we have the lively song of the chalTinch between the showers. It is of the greatest service to the rising ve- getation to have these changes of rain, wind, and sun- shine ; because the moisture is allowed to sink to the roots of the plants, and the warmth of the sun brings them and the seeds forward. You forgot to ask me why this month March was so named, and I forgot to tell you. Romulus, who, you know, was the first king of Pvome, divided the year into months ; and as he appointed this to be the first month, he named it after the god Mars, who, he pretended, was his father. After the killing of Julius Csesar, this was accounted by the Romans an unlucky month. If you have for- gotten the account of that great man's death, you shall read it again in your Roman History. You will there see, that he was advised by one who knew of the plot that was formed against his life, to beware of the Ides of March ; he neglected the warning, however, and was murdered." Adam asked the meaning of the word Ides. His father told him that the Romans called the 15th day of March, May, July, and October, and the 13th day of the other months, the Ides. The word comes from the Latin, iJuare, which means to divide^ because those days formed the halves of the months. " Come, you shall help me plant out these few sweet herbs, which I sowed last year ; and here we will have a row of parsley ; then if the weather be likely to hold up for the remainder of the day, we will dine early, and take a long walk." They did so, and 40 HAEITS OF EATS. away they all went. By the side of a farm-yard, on a dead branch, at the top of an elm tree, they heard a thrush making the homestead ring with his fine note Their father told them that, if they were now near some wood of beech trees, they would hear the ring- dove cooing, and perhaps the crowing of pheasants, the most beautiful birds in our country. *' The rooks also are now in a great bustle," said he, "building their nests; and as the spring is fully set in, and the air mild, I make no doubt we shall see the bat fluttering like a butterfly around the farm-yards in search of gnats and other insects, its food. I told you, if you recollect, that the bat is one of the animals that re- main torpid all the winter ; that is, that it sleeps through the whole of that season. It is generally to be found in the roofs of thatched cottages, and in small holes in the walls of old out-houses, hanging by the hind legs, and covered over with its wings. If you had found one during the severe weather of January, and had kept it in your hand for some time, or placed it near the fire, it would have awakened and begun to fly about. But it Avould be a cruel thing to do §/3, for as there is no food for it at that time of the year, the little creature would certainly die." Adam said it could go to sleep again. "Yes," said his father, "so it could ; and sometimes, when we have two or three -Nvarm days during the winter season, they will awake and come from their hiding-places; but then the same w^armth brings forth the insects which are their food and ^vhen the frosty v/ind returns, they do go to sleep again, well fed. But if you Avere to rouse one by brinsrinsr him to the fire, he would wake almost starved from his long fasting, and would flutter about in fe*^arch of food. If he did rot soon .leet with some, VARIETIES OF BEES. 41 being so weak with hunger, he would very shortly die. " In this month, the beautiful little fish called the smelt, or sparling, comes up the rivers from the sea, to lay its spawn in the \varm shallow places. It is so tender, that if it meet with any snow or ice in the ri- ver, it hurries back again to the sea. When caught, it has a delicate scent, as of cucumber sliced. It is from its singular smell that it derives its name, smelts As they were passing a field, they observed a man ploughing, and behind him a great number of rooks, picking up the worms and grubs of insects which the plough had turned over. Their father told them that these birds are very useful to the farmer, on account of the quantity of vermin they destroy ; and, therefore, that it is not wise to shoot them, for they are easily scared from the land when the seed is in the irround. Mr. Stock told Adam, if he took notice, he miglit observe diflferent sorts of bees out now; because the weather had become warmer, and that there were ^ many more flowers. "The one you saw," said he, " last month, in the crocus, was a very early visitor, for they seldom venture forth till the middle of this month. There are several species in this country, some of which are of a solitary nature, and bore for themselves a hole in banks of earth. These gather no honey. Others, like your friends, the hnmhlchecsy are gregarious ; which means, that they live in floeks ; from the Latin word ^^?tj?, o-rf^/.s, which, you ought to recollect, signifies a jlocli. These collect and lay up honey for the winter; and, lastly, those which we keep in hives, which partake of the same nature. About this time the diflerent sorts of snakes come forth from their haunts, where they have lain coiled 4* 42 REPTILES. — AN OWL. up (luring the frost. Do you know the meaning of coiled, Adam ? You should have asked, if you do not. It means rolled round and round, as you have seen the seamen serve their ropes. And they are called coils of rope. At the time these animals (the snakes) awake and come forth, the frogs and toads, their food, are pre- pared for them ; for they are ahroad too. The frogs and toads are also provided for ; the spring weather having brought out the worms and insects which they live on. Hoav wisely and completely every thing in nature is provided and arranged !" They arrived at home long after sunset, and saw an owl flying into a barn. Just as he passed them he hooted, and Bella mocked him, saying, it was just as if he was laughing. In the evening they read the beautiful story in the ♦'Evenings at Home," called "Eyes and no Eyes." The next day Mr. Stock told Adam that they must pay the necessary attention to their flower-garden; for that during this month all their annual flower- seeds should be sown. His father went round the beds, sticking into the earth little twigs to show Adam where he would have them sown. Each of these twigs they had prepared in the long evenings by slitting them at the top, and putting in a small piece of white paper. This simple arrangement showed conspicu- ously the places where seed was sown. They then proceeded, as I described last month, removing the earth in a circle about an inch deep ; and Adam came to his father for the quantity requisite for each spot ; Mr. Stock desiring him to be particular in scattering the seeds, so that they should not be close together. When they had finished, each took a small hoe, and weeded the flower beds ; afterwards raking them over LAMBS AT PLAY. 43 neatly. They then took some of the layers from their finest carnations, and put them into pots. One day Adam's mamma told him she wished some articles from a shop in the neighboring village, and gave him leave to go for them, telling him at the same lime, that if he would promise to be very steady and bring her an account of all he saw, he might take his sisters with him. Adam was as good as his word; and when he had returned and given his mother the ar- ticles for which she had sent him, he began telling her what they had seen. "And in one field, mamma," said he, " I do think there were a hundred little lambs. Some were very little indeed, and their legs were al- most as thick as the mothers'. I do not think them pretty when they are quite young. But there were some that were older, which got all together in one part of the field, and they were having such fun ! they looked as if they were running a race; and their tails flew about so I" His mother pointed to Bloomfield's Poems, and'desired him to reach them to her from the book-shelf. "Here, Adam," said she, "is what you have been telling me put into verse." The following simple and natural lines were then read by his mo- ther : — " Say, ye that know, ye who have felt and seen, Spring's morning smiles and soul enlivening green, Say, did you give the thrilling transport way ?" "I am sure," said she, "Adam, you cannot understand that line; but you will when you are a few years old- er." She then continued — " Did your eye brighten when young lambs at play Leap'd o'er your path with animated pride, Or gaz'd in merry clusters by your side ? • ••••• A few begin a short but vigorous race. r 44 EOOKS' NESTS Away they scour, impetuous, ardent, strong, The green turf trembling as they bound along; Adown the slope, then up the hillock climb, Where every molehill is a bed of thyme ; There panting stop ; yet scarcely can refrain ; A bird, a leaf, will set them otf again : Or, if a gale with strength unusual blow, Scatt'ring the wild-briar roses into snow, Their little limbs increasing efforts try, Like the lorn flower the fair assemblage fly." Farmer's Boy — Spring. ti Well, Adam," said his mother, " and what else did you notice?" *' Nothing more, I think," said he, "ex- cept that we stayed awhile to see the rooks huilding their nests. We wp'tched one pair, and you cannot think how often 'hey came to the nest with little branches in their beaks. I wonder the great winds do not blow their nests out of the trees, because they are all stuck on the top." " And yet," said his mother, *' I never saw a nest blo^vn down ; and I dare say no- thing but one of those storms which tear off' large arms of the trees would endanger ihem. The rooks are cle- ver builders ; they contrive to weave the branches of the trees with their nests so strongly, that you would find it difficult to pull one away without destroying it. Therefore it is that you see them rock backwards and forwards in very high winds, without there being a chance that they will fall. " When I said that ' you could not pull away a nest without destroying it,' I did not mean you to try. And, indeed, I should be sorry to see you take any bird's nest, because it is cruel to do so ; as cruel as it would be for a very strong man to turn us all out of doors and pull down our house. Now we have no more right to give pain unnecessarily to any creature, than the strong CRUELTY TO ANIMALS. 45 man would have a right to give us pain by driving us away from home. Some animals do us much mis- chief, and if they were not destroyed, our houses and gardens would be much injured : such as rats, mice, moles, weasels, sparrows, snails, slugs, and many other vermin. But then, if it could be so contrived, I would have them killed so quickly that they should not suffer for a moment. A boy or girl that could take delight in torturing a little bird, or any other weak creature, is no better than that cruel animal the cat, which will worry a poor mouse sometimes for half an hour before it kills and eats it. It used to be the custom on Shrove Tuesday — the day on which we eat pancakes, you know — for people to meet together and amuse themselves by throwing large sticks at cocks. The poor creatures were tied to a stake fixed in the ground, and the owners of them received a cer- tain sum of money from the wretches who were in- clined to throw at them. If the miserable bird received a blow on the head which stunned it, the barbarous master would put its head for a time into the ground in order to recover it, that it might be again in a slate to be tortured afresh, and that he might receive more money for the fresh throws. I believe that this cruel and wicked amusement is no longer practised in this country; but the equally barbarous custom of setting game-cocks to fight with sharp steel spurs tied to their heels is still common. At one of these meetings there are no fewer than thirty of these cocks killed, and all this for the gratification of people who call themselves gentlemen. I will tell you a story — a (rue one, about cock-fighting : One wicked monster, who lived at Tot- tenham, named Ardesoif, a man of large fortune, had t favorite game-cock that had gained several battles; 46 STORY OF ARDESOIF. at length, one day it was conquered, which so enraged him that he had the poor bird tied to a spit and roasted alive before a large fire ! The screams of the suffering animal were so affecting, that some gentlemen who were present attempted to interfere, which so enraged the wretch that he seized a poker, and with the most furious oaths declared he would kill the first man who should dare to rescue the bird. But, in the midst of his rage and cursing, he fell down dead on ths SPOT ! This dreadful event happened on the 4th of April, 1789. This man, no doubt, when he was a lit- tle boy, was fond of taking birds' nests, running pins through cock-chaffers, and tearing the legs and wings from flies ; for cruel men were generally, perhaps al- ways, cruel boys. On Shrove Tuesday it was also the custom, and I am sorry to say is now, in some parts of England, to worry a poor bull almost to death Avith dogs. They call it bull-baiting. The noble ani- mal is tied to a post fixed very strongly in the ground, then the dogs are set at him, who fly at his nose ; and, if they succeed in catching hold of it, such is their fierce and stubborn nature, that they will never quit the gripe till they are either worn out, or choked off by squeezing their throats. Sometimes the bull is torn and tormented to such a degree, that he becomes desperate and mad ; and, if he break loose, revenges himself upon his persecutors. Oh! I hope, my dear Adam, you will never be cruel or unkind to any thing. If you wish to be beloved, study to be kind-hearted." Adam said he hoped he should never be so wicked as those men. "Well, then," said his mother, "learn to love and be gentle to every creature, and you will have many happy hours when you thin^K of your conduct." the sallow and alder. I I 47 * ^^1 * Adam now showed his mother what flowers they had found, coming honie. " This branch," said she, "with its soft pretty tufts like velvet, is the sallow. Children call it palm and goslings ; and in some parts of the country the people will adorn the churches with it next Sunday, which will be Palm Sunday ; so called because on that day Jesus Christ rode into Jerusalem on an ass, when the people collected branches of palm and strewed the road before him. This, however, is not the same tree, but is only so called in this country. Here comes your father. I dare say, if you ask him, he will tell you to what use the sallow is turned." Mr. Stock then told him that the wood made good fuel ; also excellent charcoal for gunpowder and draw- mg-pencils. That the turners also use it for making trap and cricket bats, and other articles; and of the smaller boughs hurdles are made. And that some people make use of the bark in tanning. He likewise informed him, that, on account of its flowering so early, it formed a welcome store to the industrious bee. "And what else have you brought ?" said Mrs. Stock, Mary showed nearly a handful of violets and primroses. "We are now come to the end of the month," said Mr. Stock, "and do but notice, Adam, how the flowers have increased upon us. There is the sallow, whose uses I have just described to you; then there is the Alder, which h now in blossom. This tree flourishes best in marshy situations. The branches are cut down to make poles, and the trunks are used for water-pipes, and for other purposes, in which the wood is to be kept constantly wet. It is also used in making shoe-heels and clogs. The fisher- men dye their nets brown with the bark ; and, if cop- peras be added to the dye, it becomes a black. ii ii'i. EM. 43 TKE TEW. "About this time, also, the Yew comes into blos- som. This tree is now seldom to be seen but in very old church-yards, and it always appears as if it had been planted when the church itself was built. Its color is very sad; and, perhaps, that is one reasen why it was usually chosen for that spot. I have heard that it was likewise planted there to furnish the inhabitants of the parish with its tough branches for their bows ; you have heard that it was the wood best fitted for that purpose, and I think are not likely to forget it, for you have more than once reminded some one o^ his promise to take you over to that famous tree in AVoodland's church-yard, and assist you in cut- ting a branch of it for your crossbow. A yew-hedge in a garden is almost as good a fence as a wall ; but it is seldom planted now, both because of the slowness of its growth, and because its leaves have been known to poison cows or horses that chanced to eat its clip- pings. Its wood is a fine red color, and richly veined ; therefore much valued by cabinet-makers for inlaying their furniture. It is also serviceable for axles and cogs of mill-wheels, for floodgates to fish-ponds, and other works where strength and durability are re- quired. " Well, then, there is the almond-tree ; the cornelian cherry ; the larch ; laurustinus ; laurel ; the Portugal, and spurge-laurel, also called the Daphne ; the manna- ash; mezcreon, a lovely shrub; peach, as lovely; Spanish traveller's joy, and sea buckthorn. Among flowers, we have a noble catalogue : hyacinths, with their elegantly curled blossoms and fragrant scent; wall-flowers, that will grow anywhere, and are al- ways grateful and cheering ; the violet, which should have some heavenly name given to it, because it is so FLOWERS OF MARCH. 49 exquisite, and yet makes so little show of its excel- lence. Then there is the hepatica, blue, red, and white; fritillary; dog's-tooth violet; great snow-drop; scarlet ranunculus ; daisy, * lovely on both sides ;' the delicate-scented ' pale primrose ;' brisk dafibdil ; cycla- men ; polyanthus, Aviih its wonderful and rich varieties of color; the stately crown-imperial; our old friend the crocus, still; pilewort; periwinkle; pansy; auri- cula, which looks like embroidered velvet; Persian iris ; alysson ; anemone ; and the graceful and richly- scented narcissus. So, you perceive, Adam, that ow- ing to the showers of rain, the sun, and the wind, you have reason to admire the rough, but healthy month of March." APRIL FOOL-DAT. 51 l\ fil' CHAPTER IV. APRIL. " Fled now the sullen murmurs of the nf rlh. The splendid raiment of the Spring peeps forth Her universal green, and the clear sky, Delight still more and more the gazing eye. Wide o'er the fields in rising moisture strong, Shoots up the simple flower, or creeps along The mellow'd soil." — BloomJitkV s Farmer^s Boy. " I SUPPOSE, Adam," said Mr. Stock, " as we have the month of April come to us, you will wish to know the meaning of its name. Like the names of all the other months, the word is Latin, Aprilis, and signifies that which opens, from apcrire, to open ; because in this month the earth begins to open her bosom, and give us the summer flowers and vegetables. This is generally a beautiful month, on account of the sweet variety in the weather ; the frequent soft rains, and the bright and warm shining of the sun. March and April might be called brother and sister, because they are very much alike. March is rude, rough, and boister- ous ; he seems to delight in high winds, dark clouds, and rain-storms: with beautiful gleams of sunshine between ; like the kind actions which some noisy and violent brothers delight to show, in the midst of their rudest and most tiresome behavior, to their sisters. April sports in lighter gales ; clouds of majestic and lovely forms; short and merry showers of rain ; Avith a warm sun, perhaps, shining all the time. March is full of variety, but he is almost always rough and vio- lent. April is not less various ; but, like a kind and gentle sister, whatever she does, it is done with a mer- ry, smiling, and pleasant face. I dare say you re- member that this is called * April fool-day,' Adam. Have you not often been made a fool of, at school, on the 1st of April ?" " Yes," said Adam; " and I once played a boy such a trick ! I told him he was to go and put on his best clothes, because his father and mo- • ther were coming to see him. It was not a story, you know, because I did not say when they were coming. But when he found out that it was the 1st of April, and that I had made a fool of him, he gave me such a thumping ! " Then he was a double fool,'^ said his father, "because that showed that he was very much disappointed and vexed : the way would have been for him to have taken no notice when he found out the trick ; then he would have spoiled your joke, and not been a fool." *' He was older and bigger than I," said Adam, " or else he should not have thumped me." " I dare say he was a great cowardly booby," said his fa- ther. " I am pleased to hear you talk so, Adam. Both now that you are a little boy, and when you come to , be a man, never yield to tyranny, if you can help it. At the same time, never tyrannize over others. Do not be the^rs^ to quarrel; and do not be the last to make it up. Yet I must add that you deserved your thumping, though the boy was a coward to beat you ; for you should have considered that ijou would not have liked to be told that your mamma and I had come to ^ ,i u CHILDREN IN MANUFACTORIES. see you, and then to find yourself deceived. Boys at school never think of or practise the simple rule of — * Do unto others as you would have others do unto you ;' and this is one reason why, when they become men, they feel so little scruple in cheating and over- reaching their fellow-men." This conversation took place in the garden, while they were planting out some balm, and mint, and sage. When they had finished, Adam was desired to weed the asparagus beds : *' for," said Mr. Stock, " we should never suffer weeds to spring higher than an inch, because the plants are much weakened by them." Adam did not much like weeding ; and sometimes he would complain that it made his back ache. But his father soon convinced him how much happier his lot was than if he had lieen brought up a stocking-weaver or cotton-spinner, when he would have been confined in a close room, breathing over and over again the breaths of a hundred other laborers, many of them un- healthy ; and that he would have been compelled to keep at this work for nearly sixteen hours out of the twenty-four. " You never worked for sixteen hours together, in your life, Adam," said Mr. Stock; "but there are thousands of poor little boys, younger than you, who do so every day. Think, then, how rejoiced one of those poor, pale, and sickly little creatures would be to come and take your place ! think how happy he would be to breathe the sweet air we are now breathing ; and to take the delightful walks we do so frequently. Whenever you feel discontented, and any thing crosses you, always think of that pretty little verse you used to repeat when you were much younger, and theuy I believe, did not know its meaning ; now you do : WEEDING. CATERPILLARS. 5} * Not more than others I deserve, Yet God has given me more ; For I have food, while others stixrva And beg from door to door.' " This rebuke made Adam look very serious ; but as he was a boy of a most generous disposition, he set to work with all his might, and pleased his father very much by the quickness with which he had finished weeding the "bed : who, for a reward, allowed him to sit up to supper and have poached eggs and salad, and a good draught of home-brewed bottled ale. On the following day they planted out in rows their first crop of broccoli ; and Mr. Stock sowed some for a second crop. Then Adam was shown how to tie up the leaves of the most forward early cabbages, in order to make them come into heart more quickly. After that they planted out the other cabbages from the seed- beds; such as the sugar-loaf cabbage ; the red cabbage for pickling; and the savoys. When this task was finished, Mr. Stock, smiling, said, "Come, Adam, I have more weeding for you." "Very well, papa," said he, "I don't mind it." So they both 'went to work at the bed of early carrots ; and Mr. Stock thin- ned the plants where too many had been sown to- gether. And those which he pulled up, Adam carried to the rabbits and pigs. He was then desired to tell his sisters, when they had finished their morning's work and lessons, to come into the garden and help^'to pick the caterpillars, and slugs, and snails, from the cabbages and apple-trees. In the course of an hour they had collected a waterhig-pot nearly half full. These they took into the poultry-yard, and they fur- nished a hearty meal to the ducks and chickens. They continued to do so every day for an hour or two and 5* . ' i*^ 54 CAULIFLOWERS. — EEA^'S. in the course of a few weeks their father pointed out to them the benefit they had rendered the garden, by desiring them to observe a neighbor's trees and plants, which were almost stripped bare by those destroying vermin, while their own looked beautifully fresh and clean. The next job for Adam and his father, was to plant out the cauliflowers from the seed-bed in rows, in the same manner as they did the cabbages. The very early ones, which had been planted under hand- glasses, they earthed up, and raised the glasses a little, to give them air. " They must not be raised too high," said Mr. Stock ; " for if we should have any frosty mornings, which it is very probable we shall have, they will either be killed or much checked." Then Adam was allowed to sow mustard and cress, and to dig up the old beds after he had cut a sufficient quan- tity for dinner. In the middle of the day, when the weather was mild, the cucumber-frames were opened to inure the plants to the air, and in case there should be too much heat from the manure. But they were carefully shut up again in the evenings. They next sowed some endive-seed, which makes such pleasant winter salad. Then Adam was desired to take the line and hoe, and make some small trenches for sow- ing kidney and scarlet beans. His father had before shown him how to use the line, and how far apart to make the trenches. With a little assistance he ma- naged very well : and when his father had sown one trench, he sowed another exactly like him. After this they weeded and thinned the onion-beds ; also the let- tuces ; and those which they pulled out they gave to the pigs and rabbits. They also tied up the most forward to make their hearts fuller and of more pleasant flavor. While Mr. Stock was sticking his early peas and THE CUCKOO. 55 A^dam was bringing the sticks to him, they heard the cuckoo for the first time. The well-known voice of the pleasant messenger, that comes to tell us he has brought with him the spring weather and the bright flowers, reminded Mr. Stock of the following beauti- ful verses of a little poem, which he repeated to Adam, and told him he should learn it : — " O, blithe new-comer ! I have heard, I hear thee, and rejoice : O, cuckoo ! shall I call thee bird. Or but a wandering voice. While I am lying on the graaa, Thy loud note smites my ear! From hill to hill it seems to pass, At once far off and near ! The same which in my schoolboy days I listea'd to; that cry Which made me look a thousand ways ; In bush, and tree, and sky. And I can listen to thee yet; Can lie upon the plain And listen, till I do beget That golden time again," — Wordsworth. Adam wanted to know the meanmg of the word ** hlithey His father told him it meant glad, joyful, brisk. He then said, he could understand the poem, and thought it very pretty, all except the last part ; and he did not know wlmt that meant. His father then told him that the poet intended to say, that he Could " lie and listen" to the happy bird till he fancied himself a thoughtless, careless, and merry schoolboy again. He calls that the ^''golden time*'' of life ; " and when you are a man, Adam," said Mr. Stock, " you will think so too. You will never know how truly happy you now are, till the sorrows, and troubles, and Un |r 56 MIGRATION OF BIRDS THE SWALLOWS AND SPARROWS 5« cares of life come upon you. I used to think, when I was a little boy, how happy I should be, if I were a man ; and now that I am a. man, I would give all thai I am worth to be a little boy again. I know you can- not believe what I tell you, but you will think dilTe- rently when you grow up. Now fetch your hat and let us take a walk : we have not been out this week. I have two or three places to call at in the village ; and when I shall have finished what I have to do there, we will go into the fields. Ask your mamma and sisters ii they will not go with us." In a few minutes the whole party were ready, and set out. On the road they observed, now and then, a solitary swallow dart- ing by them. Mr. Stock said, they were the first he had seen that year. Adam wished to know where they came from. " It is not clearly ascertained," said his father. '' However, they travel many hundred miles to visit us. It is supposed by some that they go to the continent of Africa ; because, in the autumn, large flocks have been seen flying over Gibraltar, and across the straits to that continent. During the long continuance of stormy winds which sometimes happen while they are migrating, the poor little things are so worn out with fatigue, that they have been known to settle upon the rigging of ships, and suffer themselves to be taken by the sailors with the hand.* They are pretty pleasant birds to think of; — always following the sunshine and fine weather. It is curious to notice them while they are building their nests, how very quick and skilful they are ; also to observe those sly rogues, the sparrows, watching them from the house- The migration of English birds, particularly of the awallow, is large- ly spokcu of til White's Histur}' of Selborne.— Eds. eaves, ready to rob them at the first opportunity. The wise and entertaining Mrs. Barbauld, in her de- lightful " Evenings at Home," tells of a spt^rrow who had watched a pair of martins building till the nest was finished, when he took possession of it, and the poor industrious little creatures could not drive him out, for he was too strong for them. Well, as he chose to stay in their nest, they determined that he sJiould do so. Therefore they went to work, and fetch- ^ ed clay, with which you know they build their nests, and blockaded him in ; so the unfortunate thief was terribly punished for his injustice. As they passed by a farm-yard, they saw some young geese and ducks just hatched, swimming about in the dirty horse-pond. At a distance they looked almost like bunches of yellow silk upon the water. The par- ty were amused with observing the quickness with which those young and tender little creatures hurried backwards and forwards amongst the green weed, w^hich covered the surface of the pond, catching the water-flies. Presently after they saw a little bird standing upon a gate-post, which was making a loud cry, as if it said— "wick — wick," many times; and very quickly. The children wished to know what bird it was. *' I believe," said the father, " it is called the Avryneck. That name was given to it because it is used to twist back its head, and turn up its tail over it. It is a pretty little bird when you come close to it ; the feathers are as if they were marked with a pencil. You would be very much astonished if you were to see a nest of the young ones : they would hiss at you as if they were so many snakes : and this custom that they have, when disturbed, has scared many a coward- ly boy, who would have taken them, had he thought 53 USES OF BIRCH. MOLE CRICKETS. 59 they had been only poor tender birds. This bird feeds upon ants and other insects, Avhich it catches by dart- ing out its tongue upon them, and they stick to it in the same way as a crumb of bread would to your's. At this time of the year you would hear the bittern, if you were near any large marsh. The noise it makes, which is very loud, is something like the roar- ing of a bull, but much shorter. It is called looming. You must read the account of the bittern in your na- tural history, when you get home. In the reign of that horrid monster king Henry the Eighth, it was es- teemed a great delicacy. I am told it tastes like hare." They were now passing a row of those beautiful trees — the birch, and all took notice how light they look- ed, and how pretty the trunks appeared among other trees. Mr. Stock told the children that the birch is a valuable tree in those tracts of soil which suit no oth- er : such as bogs and mosses. The marshy parts of forests, which will scarcely produce a blade of grass, are frequently covered with this description of tree. The wood is not of much value ; it was used for mak- ing arrows before firearms were invented, because of its lightness ; and on this account it is still employ- ed for scaffolding-poles. Birch-brooms, as they are called, are made of the twigs : so are the rods which are used at the great public schools. " You had no such unbecoming punishment at your school, Adam,'' said he ; " if there had been, I should not have sent you there. The bark of this tree is used in the northern countries for covering houses, and many other purpo- ses. It likewise makes good torches, because of the quantity of gum which it contains. The sap, too, of this tree makes a pleasant wine. People procure it by boring a hole into the middle of the trunk, in the early spring, when the sap begins to rise. Take no- tice, and you will find, that the ' leaves of the birch have a pleasant smell." On their way home, they observed that beautiful little bird, the redstart, darting from bough to bough, and the children remarked how quickly its tail trem- bled. They also heard a little jarring, or chirping noise in the grass near to their path, and upon inquiry were informed that it proceeded from that curious in- sect the mole-cricket ; which, from the noise it makes, is called in some parts of England the ** c/mrr-worm," and " eve'-cA?irr." " If you remind me, Adam," said Mr. Stock. " after supper, you shall read, in White's History of Selborne, an entertaining account of this and of the common cricket, which you may hear every warm evening in our kitchen. The mole-crick- et builds its nest just under the surface of the ground ; and as the cold weather comes on, it burrows deeper, to be out of the reach of the frost. Nothing can be more careful of its young than this little insect. The female places herself at the entrance of the nest, to guard her offspring from black beetles, which are their enemies ; and if one should enter, she catches it be- hind, and bites it asunder." The party next remarked, that a few fieldfares were still flying about ; and the father told them, that in the course of a week or ten days, they would leave our shores for those of Norway. As they were turning into their garden, they heard the sweet notes of two different birds, which they were informed were the whitethroat and blackcap. — " You must try and find me an account of the wbitethroat, Adam," said his fa- ther ; ** for I have never been able to meet with any yet." After eating a hearty supper of radishes and J: -I '1 60 ANNUALS AND PERENNIALS. bread and butter, with eggs, and some of tlie delight- ful home-brewed ale, the whole family were in bed by ten o'clock. The month was now nearly at its close ; and Adam and his father employed it in attending to the flower- garden. They hoed and raked the beds and the shrub- bery ; tied up the crocus leaves in a knot, instead of cutting them down to the ground, which injures the young roots. They thinned out the larkspurs that were sown in the early part of the last month, and re- planted those which they took up, in other beds. Mr. Stock then showed Adam how to make layers from the beautiful laurnstinus trees : by pegging into the earth those branches that are close to the ground, which in a few months will take root, and become fresh trees ; and in the autumn may be separated from the mother plant. They sowed a large quantity of the deliciously smelling mignonette in the warm borders near the parlor window, both for their OAvn delight, and for the benefit of their friends the bees. In dry weather they watered the beds of young plants that had been sown last month and the month before. This was done at this time of the year very early in the morning: in the hot weather of July and August it may be done at sunset. But, above all, they were careful to weed the beds where the young annu- als were coming up. Mr. Stock asked Adam the meaning of annual^ as it is used for plants ; because he wished to see if he remembered what he had for- merly told him : when he very readily answered — " Flowers that die every year, father : and perennials are those Avhich live many years." " Very well !" said his father ; " I see it is worth while to tell you any thing. I am pleased with you. Now let us reckoa" THE ELM AND ITS USES. 61 how many trees and flowers we have in bloom this month. In the gardens, we have the apricot, the peach, the cherry, the service-tree, the double-flower- ing cherry, pear, and peach trees, which are extremely beautiful ; the peach blossoms looking like the elegant little pompone rose. Then there is the scorpion-sen- na, lilac, privet, and laurustinus still ; the almond, ear- ly honey-suckle, the graceful bird-cherry, golden la- burnum ; which I think is also properly called gold- chain and golden rain ; hypericum, barberry, and bay- tree. These are our garden shrubs ; and in the fields, among the trees which flower at this time, you will find the elm ; which, in its shape, is one of the hand- somest of all our forest trees. In many of our coun- try villages, on the green, may be seen very fine and enormous old elms : also in front of little country ale- houses, with a seat round them. I like to see the poor healthy harvest-men, with their brown faces and red hairy chests, when their broiling work is done for the day, enjoying their ale under the great shade of one of these trees. The elm used to be employed by the ancients as a helper or prop to the grape-vine : they trained the plant up the tree : for it is not like many others, which kill whatever grows under them. The wood of the elm is very hard and tough, and extreme- ly useful for many purposes. On all occasions where it is to be kept constantly wet, it is of the greatest service : and as the trunk of the tree is generally very long and straight, it is used for water-pipes under ground, the keels of ships, and the planking of them which is below the surface of the water. It is like- wise used for axle-trees of carts, naves of wheels, (which, you know, is the round piece in the middle,) gate-posts, rails, ship-blocks, and a number of other things, which I do not remember. 62 USES OF THE ASH. FLOWERS OF APRIL. 63 If. ir «h I " Then there is the ash^ which has always been ac- counted so valuable, tliat on3 of our old poets says of It, ' the ash for nothing ?//.' It is likewise very lovely m its foliage^ (which means the leaves, you know,) particularly when it grows in shrubl)eries, or large clumps with other trees. It ought to be called the far?ner^s tree^ for it is made use of in almost all his utensils ; such as the ploughs, harrows, wagons, carts, and various other rustic tools. Therefore every farmer should plant ash trees on his grounds. The ancients used it, on account of its toughness, for handles to their spears ; it was therefore called the ' martial (or warlike) ash.' The spokes of wheels and handles of tools are made of it. Dairy utensils are made of ash. It makes good fuel ; for it will burn whether fresh or dry, and with very little smoke. Its ashes make good potash, which is very serviceable to soap and glass makers, bleachers, and dyers. The bark is used in tanning calf-skin ; and in dry seasons, when there is but little grass, the cattle very willingly eat its leaves. So, you find what a valuable tree the ash is. Then, let me see — there are the sycamore, the hornbeam, and the holly. I know of no others that flower yet. The sycamore is a soft and very white wood, and is therefore used by the turner in making bowls and trenchers, and other utensils. Because of its lightness, it is sometimes used for cart and plough timber. The hornbeam is as tough as the sycamore is soft. It is used for yokes, handles for tools, and cogs for mill-wheels; and is much valued by the tur- ner. The wood will burn like a candle ; for which purpose it was formerly used. The inner bark is much employed in the north of Europe for dyeing yellow. It is a quick-growing tree, and has a glossy greenness which is very pleasant to look upon. Last of all, the holly, when full grown to the height of about thirty feet, IS a very valuable tree. It is the whitest of all our hard woods, and therefore used for inlaying maho- gany and other furniture ; and sometimes it is stained black to imitate ebony. It is excellent for the uses of the turner, carver, and mill-wright, being extremely firm and durable; It is very beautiful to look at, with Its bright scarlet berries; and, if it did but grow' more quickly, would make the most valuable of all hedges. " Well, and now what garden flowers have we in bloom ? There is the tulip, with its gaudy colors. It is no favorite of mine, because it is all finery; and has none of the sweet smell which makes the more hum- ble flowers so lovely. When I think of a tulip I al- ways think of one of those foolish fops and silly flar- ing young ladies that we frequently meet in company. Ihey look very gay indeed ; but, begin to talk with them, and you will generally discover that they know but little more than how to dress themselves; they are almost always ignorant— no brains. They are the tulips in a party: very fine, but have no smell. And now, havmg dismissed the poor tulip, let us think of some more." Adam said, - There are some auri- culas out, and polyanthuses, and stocks." " Very well," said his father, "and what else are there?— think." Adam looked round, and added, that there were wall-flowers, daffodils, daisies, jonquils, and ra- nunculuses. " And columbines, anemones, crown-im- perials, and cyclamens," said his father; "there are also the dog's-tooth violet, gentianellas, hepaticas, and irises; the beautifully modest-looking lily of the val- ley; moth mullein; peonies; lychnis; pilewort; saxi- frage ; and the polyanthus-narcissus. There 's a hand- 64 WILD FLOWERS IN APRIL. M 4 Ni" some list ! Then, if you were to take the trouble to examine the hedges and meadows, you would find a wonderful variety. There is the dog's-mercury, wood- strawberry, ground-ivy, Avood-sorrel, marsh-marigold, spurge-laurel, called also tlie daphne, or wood-laurel ; the white-campion, buckbean, needle-furze, stickwort, crab-apple, broom, sun-spurge, white and red nettle, wild cicely, wild germander, cuckoo-pint, harebell — a pretty little flower; the sweet wood-crow-foot, bu- gle-flower, and the wild chervil. Many of these are not worth searching ; and I mention them only to show you what a variety the gardens and fields can now dis- play." This long conversation took place while the father was thinning the apricot trees, where the young fruit grew too thickly in clusters. Those which he took off were saved to make into tarts ; and they are very agreeable. Adam was employed in looking for cater- pillars among the apple trees, which are easily found at this time of the year, because they are folded up in their webs. After this, they planted out a fresh bed of that delicious strawberry, called the hautbois, (pro- nounced hoboy.) Mr. Stock showed Adam how to set them, and at a distance of nearly a foot and a half asunder. This, and two or three other little jobs ; such as attending to the young trees which had been en- grafted, plucking off such shoots as had grown under the grafts, and taking away the screens from those wall-trees where the bloom had gone ofl*, and the fruit was set; were the last that occupied them in the sprightly month of April. CHAPTER V MAY. " Now the bright morning star, day's harbinger, Comes dancing from the east, and leads with her The novvery Maij, who from her green lap throw* The yellow cowslip and the pale primroae. Hail, beauteous May, that dost inspire Mirth, and youth, and warm desire; Woods and groves are of thy dressing, Hill and dale doth boast thy blessing. Thus we salute thee with our early song, And welcome thee and wish thee long."— Milton. By four o'clock Mr. Stock had aroused all the sleep- ers in his house, singing to them in the words of the motto to this chapter, " Now the bright morning-star," &:c. "Up! up!" said he, "you slug-a-beds ! tlie lark is awake, and the bee is stirring; all but you are preparing to meet the rising sun. The flowers are getting ready to open their dewy buds, and the morn- ing air is blowing softly upon them. Here is May- day come in after the old fashion— cheerfully and bright : so we will keep it after the old fashion. Come ! up with you ! make haste; we shall not begin it pro- perly if we do not see the sun rise. Get up ! Adam, let me catch you in bed in five minutes time, and I will give you such a cold pig as shall make vou re- ft* ^ 05 MAY-MORNING. member May morning for some time to come." \Vlio could sleep after being called in tbis manner ? I know- but of one; but he bas reformed, and therefore shall be nameless.' In about a quarter of an hour, the whole family were dressed, and hatted, and bonneted, and had started off, " Brushing wll'a lilaly steps the dew away, To meet the sun upon the upland lawn." All noticed how very grave every thing appeared ; there was such a stillness, as it all the birds and beasts were wailing in fear, lest the sun should not rise again. Indeed, I have often thought that the first breaking of the dawn was very awful : the deep stillness — the so- lemn color— and the cautious unfolding of the light, is as if something very great and good was about to be done in heaven; and so there is; for we are to see the blessed sun. There is no solemnity like the first dawning of morn : — • • " That vast dumbness nature keeps Throughout her starry deeps, Most old, and mild, and awful, and unbroken, Which tells a tale of peace beyond whate'er was spoken." Leigh Hunt, When they arrived at the highest part of a rising ground behind their house, they looked over a tract of country, and the sea beyond it, and saw the great sun, slowly moving up, while all the clouds around were drawn up from it like long handfuls of wool, dyed rose color, and the edges of them dipped in gold ; the wide sea was gold, and all the sky was gold. "We cannot wonder," said Mr. Stock, " that some people should worship the sun as their God, when we behold what a grand object it is, in its rising, and when it is at the height of noon, and in its setting: when we also GARLANDS. 67 onsider that there is not a single comfort we possess, Jbut we have it by means of the sun. If the sun were to rise no more, every thing in the world that grows and has life would die ; and we should die. There would be nothing in all the world but the ground ; for without the light and heat of the sun, every thing would rot and become dust. Therefore, we cannot wonder, I say, that some people think that the sun is their only God and preserver. But then," con- tinued the father, "I wonder they never thought that, since no one, and no thing that we know of, ever made itself, so the sun did not make itself; and that who- ever made the sun, He was God." They now continued their walk into some pretty, close, and winding lanes; and now and then passed some little cottages, the children of which were all up, and had been out Maying. Some were making their garlands, and some had finished them, hanging them across the lane before the door. Adam and his sisters said they should like to make a garland too. "Then pray do," said their father; "but I fear you will not find any white-thorn blown ; it is as yet only in the bud : you must be contented with what field- flowers you can pick up ; unless, indeed, you meet with some black-thorn ; which, you know, comes into bloom before the other, but it is not so pretty, for the leaves come after the blossoms have gone off." So they hunted about, and plucked all the little flowers they could find, and put them into their handkerchiefs, because the heat of their hands would have soon kill- ed them. While they were busy, little Tom was en- deavoring to get some primroses that were on the top of a high bank : finding them, however, rather out of llis reach, he asked Adam to pick them for him, who UNKINDNESS AND DISINGENUOUSNESS. refused ; telling him to try and get them for himself. The father heard this, and rebuked Adam very sharply for being a selfish and unkind boy; and desired him to gather them for his little brother directly ; which he did, though not very willingly. For some time after this, he seemed as if he had been thinking with him- self; at last he said, "I thought you told us, papa, that we were to try and do every thing we could for ourselves ; and that that was being independent,'' "Ay ! ay !" said his father, "but I did not tell you to be unkind and disobliging. You are to endeavor to do all you can for yourself, but at the same time to be al- ways ready to help every one that wants your assistance. If you were a man, and could swim very well, would you not try to save a fellow-creature, who could not swim, and was drowning? Would you tell him that he ought to help himself, or else he would not be ' inde- pendent V You would be a most wicked wretch if you were to do so : and yet that is being selfish : and if you become a selfish boy, you may depend upon it you will be a selfish man ; and- then you will be loved by no one but yourself. Besides, you did not refuse to help your little brother for the reason you have now given ; you thought of that since I rebuked you, and believed you would silence me by reminding me of a piece of good advice that I had formerly given you ; so that to the fault of selfishness and unkindness, you have added that of falsehood ;— more hateful than all. I am ashamed of you !" Adam looked very unhappy ; and walked behind without speaking a word. After some little time, Mr. Stock observed him creep to the side of his little brother Tom, and give him some floAvers out of his handkerchief; which pretty action so pleased liis father that he gave him his hand, and said he ORIGIN OF THE NAME MAY. 69 would think no more of what had passed. " I dare say," said he, " you do not know that this custom of ga- thering flowers on May-day, and making garlands, has been continued from the time of the ancient Romans, Avho performed sacrifices on this day to the mother of the god Mercury, Maia, in honor of w^hom the month was so named." After drinking some new milk at. a neighbor's farm-yard, they returned home to breakfast, which when they had finished, their mother told them to look for two or three hoops in the brew-house, and she would show them how to make their garlands. The little party, with their mother, set to work, and when their task was completed and hung up between the trees on the grass-plot in front of the house, Mrs. Stock told them they might go and ask some young friends to come and spend a merry day with them. So, a fiddler from the neighboring town was hired to come and play to the party, who danced upon the green under the garlands till dinner-time. In the afternoon they had a game at romps and blindman's-buff; and the day was pleasantly finished by the whole company, little and great, partaking of an enormous bowl of syllabub. On the following morning, Adam and his father went to work in the garden, and they continued their labor without interruption for several days. They first attended to the artichoke plants, because they knew that Mrs. Stock was very fond of them ; pulling off the young shoots in order to strengthen the main one, and bring the fruit to a good size. Afterwards they weeded the asparagus beds; two or three times in a week watering them with the draining from the dung- hill in the stable-yard. They thinned out the lettuces a second time, giving those pulled up to the pigs and 70 DRAG0N-FL1E3. rabbits ; weeded and boed tbe onion beds, also tbe carrots and parsnips; boed round tbe cabbages, and eartbed tbem up ; cut off tbe tops of tbe bean-plants wben tbey came into flower, in order to strengtben tbe bean itself, and to prevent tbe plant from running too much into stalk. Tbey sowed fresb kidney-beans for a late crop, and put sticks to those peas that required tbem. Mr. Stock was obliged to alter many of tbe sticks which Adam had put in, for, as he was but a young beginner, he did it rather awkwardly. Every morning, for half an hour after breakfast, tbe whole of the younger part of the family still continued to search for snails and caterpillars, which always proved a welcome meal to the ducks and chickens. They still continued to plant out cauliflowers and broccoli ; to hoe and thin tbe turnips : tbey also hoed the potato beds. While they were at work, Adam observed a large dragon-fly settle on the leaf of a cabbage,^ and, quickly popping his hat over, caught it. *' Oh," said he " I have caught such a dreadful large borse-sting- er! Five of them will kill a horse." "Bless me ^ said his father, "let us see this tremendous animal ;" when Adam with great caution and alarm lifted up bis hat ; thinking, no doubt, that if five would kill a horse, one would be the death of him ; and his father beheld that harmless and very beautiful insect, the dragon-fly. Adam had given it such a buffet that the poor little thing was quite disabled. Mr. Stock showed him how harmless it was, by laying it in the palm of his hand. To put it quickly out of misery, however, he killed, and then gave Adam tbe following account of it : " This is the largest of all tbe species of tbe dragon-fly that we have in this country, and is one of the most beautiful of the insect tribe. Only observe how hand- HABITS OF DRAGON-FLIES. 71 somely tbe body is mottled with green, and yellow, and black ; and what a lovely blue its large round eyes are: its wings, too, are like the finest gauze varnished. This fly will only destroy other insects, and it is a terrible enemy to them ; it flies so very swiftly, that nothing can easily escape it. I saw one once catch a large butterfly as it was flying, and then settle on a twig close by, to eat its prey at leisure. After biting off the wings, he devoured the whole body in about a minute. He may be called the Bengal tiger among insects, for he is as beautiful as that noble-looking animal, and as nimble and cruel. I wonder to see this fly in our premises, because it is seldom to be found anywhere but by tbe sides of ponds and rivers, where it lays its eggs, dropping them into the water. These are soon hatched, and become creatures of the caterpillar species. They remain in this state for two years, at the end of which time they climb up some water-plant, and sit for a while in the sunshine, when the creature changes to tbe fly in its present shape : small at first, however, but in the course of an hour it will become as large as this is. The dragon-fly de- lights in tbe warmest sunshine ; during cloudy wea- ther, it will bide under leaves and branches of trees as long as the gloom continues." "At this time, too," continued Mr. Stock, "you would be very much amused with the bustling labor of those hard-working little creatures, the horse-ants. In large groves or forests their nests may be found, generally at the foot of an old tree ; on account of its furnishing tbem so readily with the materials with which they build their habitation; such as the small particles of rotten wood, dried bits of twigs, and dead leaves. Their industry and strength are amazing; 72 HABITS OF ANTS. for the city which ihey form, and which fiom its large size is properly called an ant-hill, is as high in propor- lion to the bulk of the insect, as if the people oi a city were to build a house like a mountain three or four thousand feet high, divided into rooms; and then, only think of those poor little creatures carrying sticks, much larger and heavier than themselves, to the top of this mountain ; imagine to yourself a man dragging a tree thicker than his body and three times as long, up the top of such a hill as I have mentioned ; and you will then have some idea of the uncommon strength of those wonderful insects. A gentleman told me, that he was once watching some ants at la- bor ; and one, in particular, he observed toiling along with a large piece of twig Avhich was too heavy for hhn. At last he arrived at a little rising in the ground, and he could not drag it any farther. Two or three others, observing this, came directly and helped him up the hill, by pushing the stick at the other end ; and when they had got it upon level ground, they then left him to manage for himself. Well, the little crea- ture dragged away till he got his piece of tim])er (which was larger at one end than the other) fixed between two sticks, and he was stopped again. Would you believe it, that he should have the sense to go to ihe thick end of the stick, pull it back a little way, turn it up on a narrower side, and then run round again to the thin end, and pull it through ? Is not this wonderful ? What little boy, or even man, could have managed better ?— The ants are dreadfully violent and revengeful little animals, and will attack any thing that disturbs them. A large black beetle that is thirty times their size is sure to be killed, if he venture into their territory ; and in a very few minutes they will PRESERVATION OF BULBOUS ROOTS. 73 nave eaten out the whole of his inside. How long do you think it would be, Adam, before you could muster courage to attack an animal as large as the cow-house ? You find a common sized dog quite enough for your valor, I am sure. In the latter part of the summer, or in the beginning of autumn, I think, the male ants have wings. >> When this conversation was over, Mr. Stock told Adam to get the watering-pot, and water all the young cabbage-plants and broccoli, and other plants which they had lately set out in rows. *' You may give each a pint of water at least," said he, " for we have had very little rain lately, and I fear they will become wilted, and die." While Adam was about this job, his father was thinning the spots of annual flowers, and drawing the earth up to them, leaving at the same time a hollow in the centre, to hold the rain that might fall. Afterwards, he hoed and raked the shrubbery and flower-beds ; and finished by taking up the bulbous roots which had done blowing ; such as the early tu- lips, crocuses, aconites, anemones, irises, snow-drops, and several others. These he spread upon a board in the tool-house to dry, before he put them away in pa- per bags. When Adam had finished his watering, a job which he liked very much, his father desired him to get the sticks for propping up the flowers out of the tool-house, and to bring some of the old Russia mat- ting, and he would show him how to tie up the carna- tions, which were now beginning to shoot up into the long stalks for blowing. He also desired him to ob- serve his manner of stirring up the earth round their roots, and to do so too, carefully. When this task was done, he was desired to roll the grass and gravel walks for an hour or two. During this time, his father 7 74 GOOSEEERRY-FOOL. was sowing some flower seeds to blow late in the au- tumn ; such as mignonette, sweet-peas, pansies, dwarf-, stocks, alysson, yellow lupines, candy-tuft, cornbottles, lavateras, and larkspurs. The day being now nearly closed, Adam was desired to fetch his sisters and bro- thers, to help him gather gooseberries for their mam- na, to make them some gooseberry-fool for supper, iou may be sure how diligent they were, and how soon they had gathered three or four quarts of gooseberries, and cleared them from the tops and stalks. When they had finished their pleasant meal, and Adam had read to them Miss EdgewortK's story of " Lazy Law- rence," the whole family retired, and were in bed by ten o'clock. On the following morning they went to work again ; Mr. Stock attending to the apricot trees; thinning them a second time for tarts ; and taking away such shoots as had come in improper places; and doing the same by buds upon other trees. The nectarines and peaches he also thinned for the first time. When this was finished, he attended to the vines, pulling off the weak shoots, and nailing up the branches that needed it. In the mean time, Adam was watering the straw- berry beds, the plants of which were now coming into blossom. While they were employed, his father de- sired him to try and name how many trees and flowers had been, and were in bloom in that month. So, aftei a little thinking and looking about him, he numbered up the honey-suckle, the red-may, the jessamine, sy- ringa, lilac, double-blossom cherry, laburnum, and the guelder-rose. " Well, how many more ?" said his fa- ther; but he could think of no more than the sweet- briar. ** You forget the beautiful and charming-scented cose," added Mr. Stock. '* I thought the rose was such FOREST TREES. — THE OAK. 75 a favorite with you : but I do not wonder at your re- missness, for there is no one wlio does not sometimes forget for a moment those whom he loves the most. Then there is the kalmia, elder, barberry, and bay-tree, the dwarf-almond, and the azalea. Among the forest trees, you would find the oak, quicken, or mountain ash, Scotch fir, chestnut, maple, and lime. Also the quince and walnut, in the orchard. While you are going on with your w^ork, I dare say you will like to hear°what use people make of those trees I have men- tioned. To begin, then, with the king of the trees, the grand and noble oak. A large tree of this description is one of the handsomest sights that can be imagined : its vast arms ; its thick and rugged trunk ; its deep green leaves ; and its giant-like height, strike one with astonishment, and even with awe. The oak will live to a very great age, even some hundred years ; and at the last, when it has but few leaves, but one or two branches, and when its trunk is quite hollow, and crumbling away to dust, it still looks noble, and even beautiful. " The oak grows best in a rich strong soil, in whicli its roots will pierce to a vast depth; and it prefers a hilly to a boggy ground. When it grows in woods, the trunk will rise tall and straight ; but in pleasure- grounds, where it may be planted singly, it will fre- quently present a very curious appearance, having a short, crooked, and thick stem ; sometimes with enor- mous round lumps growing out of its sides. "Almost every portion of this noble tree is of use. The acorns, which are also called mast, are said to have been one of the earliest foods of mankind ; and in some warm countries are still used as such. With us they are valuable for feeding hogs ; and in various In lii 76 nSES OF THE OAK. II! parts of England, but more particularly m namp.b e in the New Forest, the people turn their hogs into he oak forests for several weeks while the acorns are f jN ino from the trees, and the animals return \iome really Z fat as pigs.' 'squirrels, and some other little am mals, lay up acorns for their winter «>eal«: ^ ~ branch of oak with a few acorns on n ^"^^f^'^Z green, and their cups showmg the ^^autifu carved work upon them in perfection, is one of the most elegant ornaments to a white vase on a chimney- -to Diece. - You know that they use the bark of the oak m tanning leather. The small twigs, and even the leaves are use^d for the same purpose. The whole is ground down to a powder before it is put mto the water at- lerwards they fill the different pits m the yard with t and, as you have seen, lay the hides m to soak ; which remain for some months before they are fit for drying and for use as leather. What are called galls are something which grows on the leaves ^Y means of an insect ; and are useful for dyeing a deep ^ack, and for making ink. Oak saw-dust is used for ^ymg drab colored cloths, and fustians, such as our J^f ^^f ^"^ trousers are. The timber of this tree is most valuable in ship-building; and in house-buildmg i is used for the door and window frames. In old family mansions you may see that the floors and staircases are all Jnadeof oak; indeed, scarcely any other wood was employed upon those occasions. /U the franiejork of mills and steam-engines is made of oak. The bo- dies of carts and wagons; also gates, posts, and lad- ders. Country people have bedsteads, chests of draw- ers, and tables, made of oak. The poet Bloomfield wrote some excellent verses on his old oak table. MOUNTAIN ASH AND FIR. < / Coopers employ this wood in making their largest vessels, and for well-buckets and water-pails. " The MOUNTAIN ASH is, as you know, a very beauti- ful tree, not only in its foliage, but in its blossoming, and its bright scarlet berries. This tree will thrive in any good soil, but it likes best a hilly situation. The wood is very tough, and was formerly reckoned next to the yew for making bows. Now the wheelwright and tool-maker use it. The berries are sometimes added to malt in brewing : and when dry and pow- dered, make wholesome bread. The thrushes are so fond of them, that in the hard winters they are scarcely to be driven away from the trees. " The Scotch fir does not grow in Scotland alone. In Norway, Sweden, and Russia, it reaches an enor- mous size, covering, in large and dark woods, the highest hills, almost out of the reach of man. The poorest sandy soil suits it best. Its wood we call deal, and it is used, as you must know, for many purposes ; as the floors of our rooms, the beams and rafters of the houses, masts of ships, and many others, that I do not immediately recollect. I dare say you have seen the gum on the outside of the bark of the tree : well, that is turpentine ; and when the oil of turpentine is taken from it by distilling, the remainder is what we call rosin. Tar is also turpentine, forced from the tree by means of fire; and this, when boiled, becomes pitch. So, you see how useful the fir-tree is. In Sweden and Norway, when there is a scarcity of provision, the poor people grind the inner bark of the fir, and mix it with their rye bread. The wind passing through a grove of firs, is exactly like the great roar of the sea at a distance. " The chestnut is a very beautiful tree, and wili 7* 78 MAPLE AND LINDEN. live to as jrreat an age as the oak. One tree in parti- cular that I have heard of, can be proved to have stood in the year 1150 ; that is, nearly seven hundred years a^o- and it was then considered an old tree. The chestnut thrives best in a rich soil. It is used for the same purposes that oak is ; but it is not so valuab e, because it is apt to split to pieces in working it. The HORSE-CHESTNUT is as haudsome to look at as a fine nosegay, but its wood is not of much use. "The MAPLE is much used by the turners; and among the Romans it was greatly prized in making cups ; and on account of the beautiful variety of its knots, they used it for their tables. Some musical instruments are made of maple. It is not a favorite tree with me : I mean, I do not think it handsome, except in the autumn, when it makes amends for its want of beauty during the summer, by putting forth such clumps of golden beauty, as (among greener and lighter foliage) give to a woodland scene a rich, and even a gorgeous effect.* " The LIME, or linden, is a very lovely object ; and in a rich soil, and if it be not cut or disfigured in any way, it will become a magnificent tree. It is one of the first to welcome the coming of spring, and its bios- soras, as you know, have a most fragrant scent, and are the delight of the bees. It is very pleasant tc stand under a fine lime-tree, to have the sweet sm of its flowers, and to hear the murmur of those Indus trious, and, no doubt, very happy little creatures. The wood of the lime is soft, and is used by the leather- cutters to cut leather upon, because it does not blunt . The sugar-maple is a general favorite in this country, not less for the heauty of its foliage and the elegance of \\b form, than for the dell- Cioui swMtneas of \U sap, from which Hie finest sugar is made.— Eds. THE WALNUT. 79 the edge of their tools. Carvers also use it for the fine ornaments in churches and old halls, in palaces, and such places. The wood makes good charcoal for drawing-pencils . " The WALNUT I am sure you know pretty well ; I need not tell you what sort of a tree it is, nor what fruit it bears ; but I dare say you are ignorant of what the wood is used for. If you ever thought of it, I make no doubt you supposed it was of no farther use than to bear nuts for you to eat. However, the cabinet-makers and gun-makers would tell you a different tale. Bed- steads, chairs, tables, bureaus, wainscots, and the stocks of muskets, are frequently made of walnut. Near the root, the wood is beautifully veined, and is employed in inlaying, and other ornamental cabinet works. By pressing the nut in a mill, a quantity of oil may be drawn from it, which is used by painters and varnishers ; and in some countries also for food, instead of butter. You know what an excellent pickle the young walnuts make ; and what a ' pretty pickle* the gathering and shelling of them make of your hands. Those curious people that you were formerly so dreadfully alarmed at— the Gipseys— are said to stain their skins with the juice of walnut ; but I do not believe so, for they are foreigners, and their com- plexions are dark by nature. Some people put the husks and leaves of walnuts into water to soak, and pour the liquor upon their gravel-walks to kill the earth-worms and grubs. "Well, Adam," said his father, ** if you are tired of my talking, tell me so, and I will leave off." " Oh no !" said he, "I like you to talk to me; but I like best to hear about birds and beasts." " I do not won- der at that," said his father ; " all yDung people are 80 FLOWERS OF MAY. fond of natural history. If you continue to be a dill- gent and good boy, I will make you a present of a large natural history. However, as I should like you to observe and remember what trees and flowers bloom in the different months, let us now try and make out together the list of them. We have gone through the trees and shrubs ; now, you begin with the flowers : and let me see how many you can re- member ; for I wish to know what notice you take of these things." Adam said that there were peonies, and sweet-peas, and narcissuses, and poppies, and stocks, and tulips, and pinks, and Canterbury bells, and ranunculuses, and anemones, and hyacinths : then he stopped. "Well," said his father, "you have not got a quarter through the list yet, I think ; try again." Adam added, that there were jonquils, and columbines, and bachelors' buttons ; and then he could go on no farther. "That is pretty well, however," said Mr. Stock ; " now let me try what I can add to your list. Only think of your forgetting the charming and elegant lily! * The lovely lady lily looking gently down.' • Story of Rimini. "Then there is the delicate candy-tuft; the solemn and well-named monkshood; curious catchfly; ele- gantly-colored American cowslip; feverfew; foxglove; polyanthus-narcissus; gentianella; honesty; saxifrage; *iris of all hues;' scabious, with its fine scent; the modest-looking lily of the valley ; scarlet lychnis ; So- lomon's seal; London pride, and spiderwort. In the fields you would find the crosswort ; water-violet; lamb's lettuce ; hound's-tongue ; cowslips, which make nice puddings and pleasant wine ; the great wild vale- rian ; yellow lattle ; tormentil ; white saxifrage; ram- EYE-BRIGHT. 81 sons; white nettle; wood-ruff; celandine; small wild bugloss; crowfoot; the children's old friend, the bur- nished buttercup; milk-wort; crane's-bill; hedge-mus- tard; black-bryony ; moneywort; wild tansy; hen- bane; white-campion; clover; wild chervil; brook- lime ; cuckoo-flower, and spurrey. There is a list for you ! I do not say that all these are worth the trouble of looking for and gathering ; some are ordinary, and would very readily escape your notice ; but, agam, others are exceedingly pretty and delicate, particularly the lovely little blue veronica, or speedwell, with its pretty flowers growing by tivos ; like kind and gentle eyes, watching our steps and welcoming us abroad. That is, you know, your mother's favorite wild flower; and here comes Bella out of the lane, with her hands full of them." " Look, papa and Adam ! what bunches of mamma's eye-bright I have found for her ! Good bye ; I must run in with them, for they droop so soon after they are gathered. Poor little things ! they look as if they were all tired and going to sleep." And away she ran. "I do not wonder," said Mr. Stock, *' at your mother's admiration of that beautiful weed, or at her calling it ' cyc^bright; for it looks much more like bright eyes than any thing else : the real eye-bright is, as you know, a very little, pale, lilac-colored, insig- nificant-looking weed, and takes its name from an old and foolish supposition that it was useful for weak eyes. So, that what with our show in the gardens, in the fieWs, and in the woods, this lovely month may well be called ' the flowery May.' " EARLY RISING. 83 ' I CHAPTER VI. JUNE. •* Now come the rosy Juwe and blue -eyed hours, With song of birds and stir of leaves and wings, And run of rills and bubble of bright springs, And hourly burst of pretty buds to flowers ; With buzz of happy bees in violet-bowers, And gushing lay of the loud lark who sings High in the silent sky, and sleeks his wings In frequent sheddings of the flying showers ; With plunge of struggling sheep in plashy floods, And timid bleat of shorn and shivering lamb, Answered in far-off faintness by its dam ; And cuckoo's call from green depths of all woods ; And hum of many sounds, making one voice That sweetens the smooth air with a melodious noise." " Lyric Leaves," by Cornelius Webbe. Adam and his father were at their work very eany every morning : they generally began to rise with the sun; and they could do so with pleasure to them- selves, because they went to rest early, and eat but light suppers; therefore they were always in good health and excellent spirits. I know of nothing which will make a person more light-spirited than early ris-^ inir. I think it would make even an ill-natured one pleasant and good humored ; whereas, I am sure I have seen some people of excellent tempers very peevish and cross, from a habit they have acquired of lying late in bed. Early rising clears the understand- mg and improves the memory. I have known some boys at school, whose memories were by no means good, able to r'^peat thirty or forty Latin lines after a very few times reading over. But then it was early in the morning, and they used to read them two or three times the last thing at night before going to sleep. The same boys could not have learned the same number of lines after breaJcfast in as short a time. This shows that the first hours in the morning are the time for study. Almost all the greatest men that ever lived were early risers ! and if they had not been so they would not have been such eminent characters. I do not say that early rising will make a stupid man become a great genius, though it will improve him ; but I know that lying late in bed will make a great genius become almost a stupid man." So Adam and his father were neither of them stupid, and they were very early risers.* Adam was desired to ijive the cucumbers a little wa- ter, and during the day to tilt up the frames that they might have fresh air. His father desired him, how- ever, not to forget on any account to close them again in the evening, for fear the coldness of the nights should check them. Adam likewise assisted in preparing and digging the trenches for transplanting the young celery plants. His father marked out the ground for him, and told him to observe his mode of digging, and mak- ing the trench look. neatly. Then stretching the line from one end to the other, exactly in the centre, they both planted out "the young plants a few inches apart, • Tliis appeal in favor of early rising deserves the most serious con- sideration of all, but particularly of the young. If they wish for health, respectability, and happiness, they cannot safely neglect tlie precept so often repealed, to " rise with the lark and lie down with the lamb." — Ed». 84 CRUELTY TO ANIMALS. WILD ASSES. 85 l! 'I and at equal distances. While they were thus em ployed, Adam did not forge*, this month, to ask his la- ther why it was called June ; who mformed him hat it was generally supposed to have been so named in honor of the renowned Junius Brutus the Roman tho drove out the hateful family of the Tarqums^ Adam said he remembered the story in Adam Roman History, which he was then reading. He also asKett his father to "tell him something" while they were a wk. "Well," said he, "but first let me, while I now think of it, desire you to remind me that I draw ur, the earth to these young celery plants every fort- nUt. And,now,whatmustItellyou? Something, I suppose, in natural history ; or, shall it be an anec- dote Well, then, it has just entered my head, that vou saw a wretch of a boy yesterday beating a poor ass ; and though you did not think any one was look- in- at you, I was much pleased to hear you say that you wished the donkey would ' kick him down back- wards.'* This reminds me, that many years ago, in another part of England, where your grandpapa lived, a boy was beating a poor ass most cruelly and when some people scolded him for his brutality, he swore a horrid oath, saying the ass was his, and that if he pleased he would kill it. So he continued torturing the unhappy creature till it could bear Ins ill usage no lon-er ; and Winning at him with enraged and fright- fully flashing eyes, and mouth wide open and foaming, he dashed him to the ground, tearing him with his teeth, and stamping him till he was dead. The poor beast then went raving mad, and ran out upon aneigh- . Adam's displeasure was highly to be commended bul we all ha.e need of caution lest a spirit of revenge usurp the place of a just ind^,^ tion.— Eds. boring moor, doing mischief to every person and ani- mal that came in its way : at last it was freed from its torment by being shot dead. The ass by nature is not the dull, sluggish animal we daily witness. In its native soil, the desert of Arabia, it is a very fleet and fierce creature. It lives in society, or in herds ; and so jealous are they of admitting strangers among them, that if a tame ass, or a horse, were to join the herd, they would very shortly kick him to death.* "To-morrow, I understand, our neighbor, farmer Barter, intends shearing his sheep ; it is very early to do so ; but the season is an early one, and fine and warm, so I suppose he is right : besides, the farmers are generally guided in shearing their sheep by the el- der tree being in flower ; for that plant does not blow till the summer has set in. If you behave well, you and your sisters and brothers shall go. And now you may plant out some of the coss and Dutch and Capu- chin lettuces. Take the line, and set them at the length of your dibble apart from each other: after- wards, do the same by the cauliflowers ; and by the time you have finished that job, I shall be prepared to show you how to thin the turnip, and carrot, and pars- ley beds. This will be quite as much as we shall be able to finish to-day.'* While they were employed, Adam asked his father whether he would not some day • Xenophon, in his " Expedition of Cyrus the Younger," gives a very Interesting account of the wild asses witli which he met in the desert of Arabia ; and a very spirited sketch of the habits of the same animal is found in the book of Job : — " Who hath sent out the wild ass free 7 or who hath loosed the bondi of the wild ass ? Whose house I have made the wilderness, and the bar- ren land his dwellings. He scorneth the multitude of the city, neither regardeth he the crying of the driver. The range of the mountains is bid pasture, and he searcheth after every green thing."— Ed». 8 II 86 THE PLANE-TREK. SIlEEr-SIIEARING. 87 take them out to dine in the fields : this he very readily promised, saying that they would choose some verj- warm day, and go and sit under his favorite plane-tree. Adam asked if the plane was not that tree which is so much like the sycamore. "The leaves are alike,'* said his father, *' but the whole tree itself is far more elegant than the sycamore. There are two sorts of plane-tree : the oriental, which is so called because it comes from the eastern parts of the world, that is, Asia ; (oriens, you know, is the Latin for east ;) and the oth- er called the occidental plane, (from the word occidenSy meaning the west,) which Avas brought from North America. It is a most beautiful object, and was a great favorite with the ancient people of Asia, no doubt on account of its elegant appearance, and because it afforded them a thick shade with its thousands of no- ble, large, thick leaves, like kind and protecting hands turned into leaves by magic. In the warm climates of the East, where the natives live so much in the open air, these handsome ornaments to a country were much more admired than they are with us. It is re- ported that Xerxes halted his vast army for, I believe, more than a whole day, while he paid due honor to a grand tree of this description. The ancients also danced under its shade when they worshipped their god Bacchus, in gratitude for the protection they had received from the burning sun, as well as in compli- ment to its great beauty; at the same time they were also accustomed to pour wine upon its roots. Many people in our country would laugh at their being so fond of a tree ; but they ought to recollect, with how much more reason these same people would laugh at some of our troublesome modes of procuring a little pleasure. How they would laugh at one of our dull H tea and card parties ! Besides, let us never forget that they are the happiest persons who procure delight with the least trouble, expense, and anxiety. In those warm climates, the plane grows to an enormous size ; and it has the curious property of shedding its bark every year." On the following day, according to the promise they had received, they went to see farmer Barter's sheep washed, and afterwards sheared ;* and it was no small amusement to Adam to witness the violent struggling of the larger sheep, and of the old rams in particular; how they leaped all four feet oif the ground at once. The man employed to wash them was himself in the water ; but they were often too strong for him, and then he would get a good ducking, to the loud jesting and amusement of the spectators. After the wool was well cleansed from the dirt that had collected in it, each sheep was turned into a hurdle-cote that was fix- ed in a warm place, where they stood bleating, and the water dripping off into puddles from their spongy clothing; and every now and then one would shake it- self, and scatter a cloudy rain all around, sometimes making a little rainbow in the sun. When they were nearly dry, they were taken out one by one, and the wool clipped off with large scissors, the shearer kneel- ing unon the neck of the sheep to prevent its getting up ; for if any animal's head be kept down on the ground, it has no power to rise ; therefore it is, that when, in the frosty weather in London, a horse in a cart has fallen down, the men always hold his head against the ground while the harness is being unloosed, that it may rise again with ease. • Sheep, we suspect, are not often sheared upon the same day that they are wa;3hed. — Eds. ; I 88 STAG-BEETLE — MAY-FLOWER. As they were walking home, well pleased with what they had seen, they ran about collecting all the curiosities they could find, both animal and vegetable. They gathered wild roses and woodbine in abundance, and every now and then the sweetly delicate smell of a spacious beanfield came to them upon the soft summer wind, and added to their happiness. They also found several sorts of the green beetle, and ex- amined them; and they caught one of that very large and rare kind which is called the stag-beetle, to the great horror of all the young party ; for one or two nips which he gave those whose fingers came within reach of his great pincers, astonished them. They also caught one of those poor little creatures called the May-fly, which they were informed by their father is born at sunrise and dies at its setting. Adam said it was not worth being born, to have such a short life as that. " Do not suppose, Adam," said his father, *' that real enjoyment of life consists in living a long while. That man and that animal lives the longest, that passes through the greatest variety of scenes, and who is capable of feeling in a lively manner both joy and sorrow; and no one can feel what true joy is who is not quick in perceiving sorrow. You will per- haps understand me when you grow older. The toad has been found inclosed and alive in the trunk of a tree, where it must have remained more than fifty years ; and there is a wonderful instance related of one that was discovered in a block of marble, which— it would be useless to guess how long it had been there. Now, do you think that those two animals could have been as happy as the butterfly, which flutters so giddily over the meadows, and drinks the morning dew from the buttercup and honey-suckle ; and which now and f ' HAPPINESS AND LONGEVITY. 89 then, when he is weary, will sleep upon some sweet blossom, and lay his wings at rest upon it ? That lit- tie tender creature, however, has many more enemies than the long-living toad ; and, if it should escape them all, lives but a few days. Yet, who would not rather be a butterfly than a toad ? A cold and a stormy day is but a dreary blank in its little life ; but then observe it in the bright sunshine, and the soft summer wind, and no creature seems more happy. The toad, on the other hand, appears to be indifferent to every thing around him. He remains in his hole all day, and in the evening comes shuffling along the dust,y roads in search of insects. He is frequently trodden upon by the passengers, and blunders away at th« same pace as he did before the accident happened to him. I do not say that the toad is in itself an unhappy animal, for I believe that G-od has given more happiness than mi- sery to all his creatures ; I only wished to show you that the May-fly, or butterfly, in its short but very va- ried career, experienced fully as much delight as the toad during its long-drawn and monotonous exis- tence."* While the father was talking, several cows and horses that were grazing in the meadow suddenly started off*, and ran round it at their utmost speed, to • We suspect that some of our readers will hardly be convinced by these remarks, that animals of different species enjoy an eriual amount of happiness, whatever may be the comparative length of their Uvea, Happiness, not less than mental endowments and external advantages, seems, in this world at least, to be distributed in very different proportrona to different individuals of the same race, and probably with still greater in- equality to different species. It would be hard to believe, that the insect whose life is limited to a single day, enjoys in that brief space an amount of happiness equaling, by its superior intensity, the protracted and reito- rated pleasures of those animals, whose lives are, comparatively, whola centuries. — Eds. 8* M THE GADFLY. — STONE -CURLEW. the great amusement of the children, who could not imagine why they should do this, seeing that it was so hot. The manner too in which the cows held up their tails made the young party all laugh very heartily. The father told them that the cause was a very serious one to the animals, for that a gadfly had come among them, which was a great torment ; and that the insect, after stinging them most bitterly, usually left its eggs in the skin ; these the warmth of theoow's body hatch- ed, and thus the poor creature was made unwillingly to provide for its own misery. Before they reached home, they remarked the loud " clamor" of the stone-curlew, and admired the beauty of those small birds, the goldfinch, the yellow-hammer, and that very little creature, the golden-crested wren, called the English humming-bird ; all fluttering about and singing to their mates, while these were gravely and fondly employed hatching their eggs. Little Bel- la found some of that curious substance called cuckoo- spittle, and which she was shown inclosed a small green insect. They now reached the end of their walk, and had their dinner of that beautiful fish the mackerel, which generally makes its appearance about this time in shoals of thousands and tens of thousands. After work in the evening, while they were walking in the garden, they heard the loud screeching of the fern-owl, which is also called the goat-sucker; and in a few minutes the first two or three hurried notes of that sweetest of all songsters, the nightingale. It seemed as if it were aware that strangers were near, for it ceased for some time ; and hs the listeners re- mained quite silent, and without moving, it grew bold- er, and ventured to give a little flourish. The quiet all around still continuing, their ears were next de- FIRST NOTES OF THE NIGHTINGALE. f| lighted with all its sweet and wonderful variations : sometimes it dwelt upon one little melancholy tone for a considerable time; then it would change in an in- stant to a brilliant shower of notes, that quite asto- nished them to think that such loud and sweet tones should come from that little breast: for the bird is not so large as a sparrow. Adam was told that when he became a few years older, he should read some beautiful lines about the nightingale, written by the kind playfellow of his in- fancy, John Keats ; and others by the famous old poet, Chaucer, who died some hundred years ago. The shade of night having become more and more dark, the party were delighted to discover under the garden hedge the beautiful and tender light of the glow-worm, which looked as if one of the very smallest of the stars had fallen there. Upon searching closely they found a small ordinary-looking maggot; and that this deli- cate lamp was placed upon its tail. Mr. Stock inform- ed them that the male worms had wings, but not lights; and that the females hung out those pretty bea- cons that their friends might the more easily find them in the dark. A large bowl of gooseberry-fool for sup- per, formed a very pleasant ending, to as pleasant a day spent by these happy children. On the following morning, Adam and his father were occupied in digging a bed for some young endive plants, which they transplanted from the seed bed, and Adam was desired to observe how far apart he was to set them — about a foot. They then sowed some fresh seed for the winter stock. Afterwards Adam was trusted to transplant by himself a whole bed of lettuces setting them at the same distance apart as those which he before had removed : he already knew how to ma- 92 PRESERVATION OF BULBOUS ROOTS. nage the line ; that served as his guide in keeping them straiglit. He was likewise intrusted to sow a fresh bed of these pleasant vegetables for the autumn stock, being desired at the same time to scatter the seed very thinly, and all over the ground equally. This being done, they planted out some cauliflowers which they bought at a neighboring nursery ground ; and Adam was set about his favorite occupation of watering all these plants which had been removed, to prevent their withering. *' I think, Adam," said his father, " that we shall be able before dinner to sow a bed of turnips for the au- tumn use, and to weed the bed of parsnips and carrots : weeding, you know, is your chief delight ; you would leave your bed or your dinner to go and weed a carrot bed; would'nt you?" "Ah!" said Adam, "I don't mind your teasing me; I weed much faster than I did." " So you do," said his father, " and 1 am pleased that you did not complain again." After dinner they planted out some young cabbage and savoy plants : then weeded the onion and aspara- gus beds, and towards sunset watered again the young vegetables they had that day transplanted ; also the strawberries. " To-morrow," said his father, " I will look to our vines, and see whether they do not need a little pruning ; and now, since we have finished a good day's work, you may go and amuse yourself in any way you please, till bed time. On the following morning, they occupied themselves in attending to their flower-beds, clearing away the weeds, and transplanting such annuals as they had sown in the month of March. The tulips having done blowing, and the weather being dry, they took up the roots, and laid them on a mat in the shade, and after PIPING OF CARNATIONS. 93 a few days, when they were quite dry, cleaned them thoroughly from dirt, separating the oif-sets, and put them away in paper bags till the latter end of the au- tumn, when they were to be planted out again. They did the same likewise to the ranunculus, anemone, and hyacmth roots, which had done blowing. Afterwards they planted from the seed beds some wall-flowers| stock July flowers, sweet-williams, columbines, and others I do not now recollect. Adam was also shown how to obtain fresh carnation plants, by laying the Bhoots under the earth after slitting them half through with a penknife, and pegging them down with little hooked sticks ; these, his father told him, would all take root, and become fresh plants by the next spring, when they should carefully cut them away, and trans- plant them about the beds. They likewise pursued the same plan with the double sweet-williams. The pinks they multiplied, by plucking out the first joints of the branches, and setting them in a light soil. This is called " piping." These they took care to water fre- quently. Adam's mamma and sisters took upon them- selves to see that no flower was trailing upon the ground, but supported all that needed it with sticks. Wliile they were hoeing up the weeds in the shrubbery, Adam, of his own accord, told his father, that he had been reckoning up the flowers that blow in this month, and he thought he could count them all. His father told him, if he could do so, he should have a holyday, and go to Woodlands, and cut himself a bow from the yew-tree in the church-yard. He began : " There are sunflowers, carnations, lupines, pinks, marigolds, golden-rods, larkspurs, hollyhocks, stocks, wall-flow- ers, snap-dragons:" then he stopped for a little while. "Well" said his father, "you will lose your wager. 94 FLOWEKS OF JUNE. FLOWERS OF JUNE. 05 if you can give me no larger list than that." — "Ah ! papa, but you have no right to hurry me," said Adam. He then continued : " There are lady's-slippers, nas- turtiums, lilacs, campanulas, orchis, convolvulus, turk's-caps, guelder-roses ;" and here he could go no farther. " Well," said his father," " you have lost your wager ; though not shamefully ; therefore, I dare say, we shall go to Woodlands, notwithstanding. You forgot your little favorite, the periwinkle ; then there is the larkspur, rocket, apocynum, chrysanthemum, corn-flower, gladiolus, anemone ; and, indeed, / do not remember any more garden flowers just now; though there are many which were blowing last month, and which still continue in flower. We forgot the water- lilies ; both the yellow and white flower in this month, and they are very handsome too ; the persicaria, also, and perhaps many more. In the fields, however, a long list, indeed, might be made out : and though I remember many, I dare say I shall not be able to tell you half. The deliciously-scented hawthorn (or, as you call it, * May') we had for some days, if you re- member, in this month ; then there was the bramble, wildrose, elder-tree, acacia, barberry, pimpernel, wild thyme, of which, you remember, I told you the bees are so fond; and that they will fly so many miles to pro- cure. The dwarf-mallow, the little bright-colored everlasting-tare, white-bryony, the diflerent sorts of grasses that look like downy feathers. Darnel and poppy among the corn ; which, with their pretty red coats, look like soldiers among the laboring men, and are of no more use than those spruce gentry. Then there is eye-bright, with its tasteful name ; and the beautifully varied heath, field-scabious, butterfly-orchis, water-betony, cockle, deadly-nightshade, with its rich royal purple and golden eye; that handsome yellow flower, called parkleaf St. John's-wort ; the white- mullein; corn-marigold; the delicat€-looking, but de- structive bear-bind ; feverfew-; yellow and white arch- angel; clover, that has so dainty a honeyed scent. A gentle wind coming over a field of clover after a shower affords almost as exquisite a delight as that of a bean-field. Well, Adam, I cannot remember any more, and I think you have a very good list ; but there are a great many that 1 must have overlooked, for we have not a nobler show of blossoms and flowers in any month, than in the beautiful month of June." SULTRY WEATHER. — BATHING. 97 CHATTER VII. JULY. " Now the hot July hurries, half- array 'd, From tending his green work on sultry hill, In bower and field, seeking the shrunken rill ; Or cave, or grot, or grove of pleasant shade, But flings his length where huddled leaves have made Cool covert for faint noon. Now not a bill Of happiest bird breaks the grave silence, still, With call to his song-fellows ; and not a blade O' the tall graa-s wags, so idle are the winds. The bee with laden thighs v^L dares not stir For his far home ; and the quick grasshopper, Though amorous of the sun, yet haply finda Deep shelter in green shades is better far Than burning in the blaze of the malign dog-star." "Lyric Leaves," by Cornelius Webbe. " Adam," said his father, " I think it will not be many hours before we have a thunder-storm ; the , weather is so close, and what little air there is, comes to one's face as if it passed through a bakehouse." Adam said he had been lying on his back under the mulberry tree without his coat and waistcoat, and with a wet towel on his fice, but that it did not make him any cooler. His father said they would go down to the river and bathe. As they walked along, they remarked how very troublesome the flies were, sting- ing their hands and faces angrily, and as if spitefully. They also noticed how bitterly they tormented some cows, which were standing half up their legs in a pond under the shade of some ash trees. They kept lashing their sides with their long tails to no purpose ; the little persecutors returned to the same spot the moment the tail passed to the other side. Sometimes they remarked that the animals made all the skin of their bodies to shiver, and this action might rouse up for an instant one or two timid flies, but the remainder of the swarm stuck fast to the hides of the beasts. Now and then a cow would lift up one fore leg and stamp it down again ; then, with a hind leg, she would kick her belly. Then she would shake one ear, then the other • toss up her head, wink with her eyes, in the corners of which a dozen tormentors were collected. All was to little purpose. "In the hot country of India," said Mr. Stock, '' the buffaloes get into the pools in shady spots, and leave no part above the surface of the water but the nose, to allow them to breathe." *'If I were one of these cows, I would do so too," said Adam. Adam had been a courageous bather in the sea when an infant; he therefore jumped in very freely but began to be frightened at first, because the water took away his breath, and he could not speak without sobbing : all this, however, went off in less than a minute, and he played about as happy as a duck, and tried to swim. When they came out, and while they were dressing, his father told him to bear in mind as long as he lived, that if he wished to be a healthy man It was very necessary that he should be a cleanly one! *'Next to kind and endearing manners," said he, "no- thing is more pleasing in man or woman than a deli- cate cleanliness of person. And one of the surest 9 98 BATHING . — THUNDER. means of being so is, to bathe regularly during the summer months, and in the winter ones as regularly to use the warm bath. There are few people who do not spend in wine and other luxuries ten times the sum of money that it would cost to have a warm bath every other day all the year round."* As Mr. Stock finished speaking, they heard a very low rumbling, like the noise of a heavy cart on an iron road. Pre- sently they observed, from a dark, lead-colored cloud, a bright flash, like a fiery snake, dart down upon a dis- tant hill; after waiting for some time, the thunder followed, as if it had been the same heavy cart that had fallen, and was afterwards dragged rattling along; then had stopped, then fallen again, and ended by rumbling till it was out of hearing. The dark cloud all this time was changing its appearance and shape ; sometimes it was very ragged at the edges, like wool, pulled or snatched off. Every thing around was quite silent; not even a little bird was heard to whistle. The sheep in the fields huddled their heads together, and bent them down towards the ground. Presently the wind rose all at once with a great roaring, and whirled up the dust of the road in a cloudy pillar ; then ceased again, and all was silent. In a few se- conds some large drops fell, and immediately after a broad flash burst out of the cloud, followed almost in- stantaneously by a crashing and tearing, as if houses were being overturned and dashed to pieces ; and every • Those who cannot avail themgelves of the bath, may find a very easy and effectual substitute in the daily use of a sponge, moistened in pure water, and followed by the friction of a dry towel. In dwelliug- houyej, where the cold of the chambers is tempered by means of a stove in the main passage, the process may easily be continued throughout the year.— Ed3. A THUNDER-STORM. 99 now and then there were great bangs heard like can- non firmg ofi-. At the sudden bursting of this thunder- clap, some horses in a neighboring field snorted, start- ed, and galloped away. For a moment or two after the thunder had ceased there was a dreadful stillness and then the ram came down in a torrent, driving up the dust of the road, and making a soft noise as if it fell upon wool, till it was soaked through and beaten down ; when it made a quick splashing, and seemed to be lashing the ground. They now had to run for it, and did not reach home till they were nearly soaked through. The lightning and thunder still continued, and the rain seemed to smoke along the ground, and upon the thatched roof ot a shed opposite to their house. Sometimes the thunder sounded very high in the air, as if above the clouds; at others, as if it were down in the road, ihat which but a few minutes before had been a lovely day, with a blue sky, and stately clouds like snowy rocks that scarcely moved at all, was now one dull, lead-colored covering. In about an hour it be- came lighter, and in another hour they had the plea- sure to see that stormy cbud sailing away from them stjll lookmg black, with its edges touched by the li-ht of the golden sun. From time to time they heard tnat the storm had not ceased, though it was not so loud ; at length it was so far off that the thunder made only a low surly rumbling; and the cloud which had before looked so angry, when over and near them, now shone like a snow-covered mountain, with cra^rs and precipices, and deep hollows and caverns. The family all remarked how pleasantly cool the air had become and how calm; and admired the fresh and glitterin- appearance of the grass, and the leaves of the trees" 100 VELOCITY OF SOUND. JULY FROM JULIUS CvESAR. 101 and the flowers in the sunshine : and they snuffed up with delight the smell of the earth after the rain. Adam asked a multitude of questions about thunder and lightning, of which his father told him it would be extremely difficult at his age to make him understand the explanation. He, however, informed him, that thunder was the report of the lightning, as the noise af- ter the flash of a gun was the report of that. Then he wished to know how it was that it was so long after the flash before they heard the thunder. " Because," said his father, " sound occupies some time in coming to our ear from a distance. Do you not remember when you once saw a man driving an iron wedge into the root of a tree, that you heard the blow just after you saw him strike ? It was because you were at a short dis- tance from him, and the sound was that length of time in coming to you. Some clever person disco- vered, that sound flies one thousand one hundred and fifty feet in a second of time. Therefore with a watch you can tell how far off a storm is by counting the number of seconds between the flash of lightning and the hearing of the thunder. Or you may make a rough guess by counting the beatings of your pulse in your wrist. About seven beats of an ordinary pulse are equal to the time in which sound will travel one mile. If, therefore, the instant you see a flash of light- ning, you were to put your fingers to your wrist, and count fourteen pulsations before you hear the thunder, you may know that the storm is somewhat more or less than two miles distant. You ought to know that rule in arithmetic, Adam ; it is very easy." Some time after this, the father told him that hs had heard him a few days before reading aloud a part of the Roman history, from which he ought to be able to tell the reason why this month was called July. Adam, however, had forgotten the circumstance, if he had ever noticed it. Mr. Stock told him it was so named in lienor of Julius CcBsar, who, after he had obtained the government of the Roman empire, altered and corrected the calendar. ' One of these days they were employed in planting out, for their winter table, some young savoys, winter cabbages, broccoli, and endive ; of which two last plants they sowed some more seed for the principal winter and spring crops. "And, Adam," said his fa- ther, " as we are all fond of kidney-beans, we will sow a couple of rows, which will furnish our table througli the month of September. If the ground had not been lately moistened with that heavy rain, it would have been as well to soak them for an hour or two in water before planting. Those cauliflower plants, too, which were sown in the month of May, should now be plant- ed out in rows ; they will be welcome to us in October and November. You may finish these two tasks, while I begin a trench for our winter celery; and as you will have done before,! shall, you may sow some more mustard and cress, and hoe out the weeds, and thin that bed of turnips ; but in managing this work you must be careful to pull away those only which are the most feeble-looking, and where they are growing too closely together. Choose the healthiest plants to re- main, and let them stand at about a six inches' remove from each other. You will find sufficient occupation in the task I have here given you. In the evening, after our walk, we will all have a supper of currants and strawberries, and milk, with sujjar." When they had finished these tasks, Adam was al- lowed to sow two rows of the Charlton and Knight's 9* N t' 102 DRYING HERBS pea. Vegetables that come to table very late in season, and when it is supposed they liave left us for the year, furnish almost as agreeable a surprise, as when they come before they are expected. Then he planted out in rows some coss and Silesian lettuces from tlie seed beds. The onions, too, that had attained their full size, and were beginning to change to a yellow color, his father desired him to bend down their tops to the earth, which prevents the vigor and juice of the plant from running all into the stems. Those which were perfectly ripe, he was told to take up and lay in the sun, upon a dry spot of ground, under a south wall. He did the same with the shalot and garlic plants. After this, they disposed the vines of the cucumbers, laying them in straight lines, and carefully digged up the earth about the stems of the plants. The latter portion of the month was occupied in gathering and tying up in bundles the winter herbs for drying; such as mint, balm, and sage. At the end of the month, too, as the peas, beans, and potatoes had grown up, they put sticks to the peas and scarlet-runners, and cropped off the tops from the kidney-beans and pota- toes. At the same time, with their hoes, they drew the earth up to the stems. When the weather was hot, and the ground very dry, they employed every evening in watering the young crops, and those which had been lately transplanted. In the early part of the month they once or twice heard the cuckoo, but he had nearly lost his voice ; and instead of his two usual clear notes, he stuttered out three hoarse ones. Adam wanted to know the reason of this change in his song. " I do not know the cause," said his father ; *' neither have I heard a satisfactory one given. The common people say, that THE CUCKOO. — THE GRASSHOPPER. 103 the reason is, because there are no more little birds' eggs for him to suck. I believe, however, that there is no truth in this; and I also believe that the poor cuckoo has, through some foolish prejudice, acquired a disagreeable character which he does not deserve. Remember, Adam, that it is better, on all accounts, not to give hasty credit to reports which tend to injure another. In the first place, such a course is more ho- norable as well as generous; and, in the next place, it shows that you possess a spirit and an understand- ing superior to the common race of mankind, (and, I am sorry to say, of our countrymen in particular,) who take delight in gossiping about the errors, rather than the amiable qualities of their neighbors." While they were thus discoursing, the slender chirp of a grasshopper, on the lawn, met their ears. "Ah ! ah !" said Mr. Stock, " there is my pleasant little skip- per in the summer grass. He is always welcome to me, because he brings to my mind two noble poets, who have delightfully described his happy nature ; — Cowley and Keats. Only notice, Adam, how sweetly simple these lines, by Cowley, are. They were trans- lated by him from an old Greek poem, by the flimous Anacreon, who lived nearly two tliousand five hundred years ago. I do not remember all the lines, but these are the prettiest : — Happy insect ! what can be In happiness coin])aret] lo lliee ? Fed with nonrishnienl divine, Tlie dewy morning's ffenile wine ! • Nature wails u|'on tliee si ill, Ami ihy verdaniciip does fill. •••••• Thou dost drink, and dance, and sing ; • Hap()ier than Ihe happiea-t kin? ! All the fields which thou doat see. ^^^ GRASSHOFPERS. All the plants belong to thee : All that summer hours produce. Fertile made with early juice. Thou dost innocently joy, Nor does thy luxury destroy; The shepherd gladly heareth thee, IVIure harmonious than he. •••••• To thee, of all things upon earth, Life is no longer than thy mirth. Happy insect, happy ! thou I)o8i neither age nor winter know. But when thou'st drunk, and danc'd, and sung Thy fill, the flowery leaves among j Sated with thy summer feast, Thou retir'st to endless rest.' " And now observe how charmingly our friend Keats has described this same little frisky insect : * The poetry of earth is never dead ; AVhen all the birds are faint with the hot sun, And hide in cooling trees, a voice will run From hedge to hedge about the new- mown mead ; That is the grasshopper's ; he takes the lead In summer luxury ; he has never done With his delights.' " In the early part of this month, they were also en- tertamed during their hours of labor with the notes of those two brilliant little songsters, the black-cap and white-throat; and, in the course of one of their walks, they heard the curious and uncommon cry of the quail* which, as well as that of the very singular bird called ^16 corn-crake, they particularly noticed after sunset The voice of the latter bird greatly amused them • for sometimes it appeared as though they must be so close to the creature as nearly to tread upon it, and in a few leconds after the sound seemed many yards removed. That corn-crake is a cunning fellow," said Mr. Stock ' STRATAGEMS OF ANIMALS. 105 *' for when he is caught, he will pretend to be dead, and will lie down without moving in the slightest degree. I knew a gentleman who Avas out sporting; when his dog surprised and caught one, and all the while they stood over it, the creature lay perfectly still. He turned it over on the ground with his gun ; still it lay to all appearance dead. He moved away from it with the dog about a yard or two, and, after waiting some mi- nutes, he observed it open an eye, upon which he re- turned and took it up in his hand, when it lay like a stone; he then put it into his pocket and walked away. After some time, however, he felt a struggling, and the poor little thing, impatient of its confinemen't,' was striving to escape."* "Ay," said Adam, "that reminds me of the plover, which will run lim.ping and screaming as though it were wounded, in order to lead you astray, in case'you should happen to be near its nest. And sometimes, when I have caught a spider, and it has found that it cannot get away from me, it has tucked up its legs and folded itself up into a ball, and shammed to be dead ; and after watching it some time without med- dling with it, the cunning little fellow has slily put out his legs again, and run off." While they were walking, and in conversation, they suddenly heard a loud rush as of a hundred pair of The opossum of the southern states is famed for exhil)itin? similar tricks to those of the corn-crake, whenever he is exposed to imminent danger, with no apparent means of escape. This trait in his character IS so well known, that when the children in Virginia and Carolina wish to intimate that a person is aiming to practise deception, they say " ha IS playing 'possum." i- , j j, It is usual in describing such actions of animals, to speak of them aii the result of shrewd calculation; but it may be allowable to doubt whe- ther It be not wholly the result of uurea;>onuig instinct.-EDS 106 PARTRIDGES. — ST. SWITHIN. wings, and close before them, at the border of a tur- nip field, arose into the air a small covey of partridges with their young; the latter were just able to lly above the ground. "My gracious !" cried Adam, "how they made me jump! I should never have thought that a bird no bigger than a partridge could make such a noise as that." "The reason is," said the fjither, "because their wings being very short in proportion to their size, they are obliged to move them with the greater rapidity in order to sustain themselves in the air. I am rather surprised, however, to see the young ones so strong at this early period of the month. The season must have been very favorable for them, for they cannot have been long hatched. Why, let me see, St. Swithin's day has not passed more than a week.-' "Ay," said Adam, "why do they say, that if it rain on St. Swithin's day, it will rain for forty days afterwards ? It is not true, papa, for we had no rain yesterday, and I do not think we shall have rain to- day." " The saying, my dear boy, is derived from an old tradition, of which the following is the substance : Swithin, or Swithum, bishop of Winchester, who died in the year 868, desired that he might be buried in the open church-yard, and not in the chanoel of the min- ster,* as was usual with other bishops, and his request was complied with ; but the monks, on his being ca- nonized, (that is, made into a saint,) considering it disgiaceful for a saint to lie in a public cemetery, (which means, you know, a burial-place,) resolved to • " Chancel of the minster ;" the east part of the cathedral.— Eds. ST. swithin's day. — BUDDING. 107 move his body into the choir, which was to have been done with solemn procession on the 15th of July; it rained so violently for forty days together at this sea- son, that the design was abandoned. And from this circumstance arose the saying, that if it rain on St. Swithin's day, (the 15th of July,) there will be rain for forty days afterwards. The foolish people, however, who pretend to believe the tradition, when they find that the charm is broken by their having one or two perfectly clear and fine days, will endeavor to account for the miracle by asserting that it is raining some- ivhcre ; as if it did not rain somew^here every day throughout the year. Besides, how could it possibly rain in every place, all over the world, every day for forty days ? You see how necessary it is to bring a little thought to your assistance upon occasions like these, and how easily the commonest reflection will show their absurdity." In the early part of the month, Mr. Stock busied himself, among other duties, with pruning and putting into trim order the various wall fruit-trees and espa- liers. He also showed Adam how the delicate opera- tion of ''budding'' was performed, which is a more elegant mode of grafting one sort of fruit-tree upon another, than the old and more common system of ino- culation, (for so it may be called.) The manner in which this is performed, consists in carefully cutting away a portion of the bark of the tree containing a bud, the fruit of which you desire to propagate upon another tree. On one of the branches of this tree you but a slit in the bark, ihe length of the piece you have already taken away from the other, and cross-ways at each end of the slit you cut another, so that you may turn back the bark in two flaps like folding-doors ; 'iij 108 LAYERS OF CARNATIONS. then you place the piece containing the bud close against the inner wood of the branch, and lap the two folds over it, binding the whole tightly together with threads of bass or Russia matting. If the operation be performed neatly, the bud will adhere to the tree, be supported by its sap, and grow like the rest of the plant, bearing the fruit that the tree does from which it has been taken. " I will plant out some of the new strawberries that have been sent us," said Mr. Stock, " and you may, every evening, when there has been no rain during the day, water those which are in blossom. You may al- so sow a few of the quickly-growing annuals for suc- cession; we shall have them coming into blossom in the latter part of the autumn, and making our garden look like spring. You may also plant out the cuttings of the sweet-williams, pinks, and rockets. And we will make some layers from our best carnations. I think I showed you how to manage them ; so you shall try to perform this operation yourself. With your penknife, you know, you must cut about half througn one of the knots, sloping the cut upwards, where the stem is green — not hard and woody ; then make a shallow trench near the root of the plant, and turning up the shoot that has been partly cut, peg it into the ground at the joint where it has been cut, with a forked twig, in order that it may remain in one po- sition. After this, cover the stem over with mould, pressing it down rather closely. In the course of about three months, the layers will have made shoots, by which circumstance you may know that they have taken root at the cut joint ; you can, therefore, with safety separate them from the mother plant, and trans- plant them into borders. I! MOWING. 109 " Wlien you have finished this task, you may as well look round, and see if there be not some late-sown annuals left in the seed bed, and plant them out ; and 1 will help you to transplant some of the young holly- hocks, lychnises, and peonies, with some others. Then we will clip the box-edges with the shears ; and the first thing to-morrow morning, before the dew is off the grass, I will mow the lawn. You ought to learn to mow ; you are strong enough. All you have to do, is, first, to be careful not to cut yourself; and next, to keep the blade of the scythe nearly flat, turning the edge very slightly down towards the grass. If we keep our lawn mown twice or three times a week, so long as the grass continues growing, we shall have the turf looking as even, and smooth, and bright as Mrs. Dodwell's velvet pelisse. By the way, talking of mowing, af*er we have gathered some of the flower- seeds that have become ripe, w^e will all go and have a roll in our neighbor's hay-field ; for we have not yet had a hay-holyday, and, by the color of the cocks, I think they will probably cart it home to-morrow." Adam could no longer contain himself at these joy- ful tidings ; so away he ran to the house, shouting like a scarecrow — " Bella, Mary, Arthur, Tom, John, Taunton ! hurra ! we are all going into the hay-field as soon as I have done my work ; and I hav'nt much to do ; go and tell mamma, and ask her if she will not go with us. Oh ! what fun we will have ! Ha ! ha ! ha ! Who cares for old Buckthorne the bailifl'? I don't; do you? We'll go and ask farmer Girnel if we may'nt amuse ourselves ; we shan't do any harm you know ; and then we' 11 laugh at old Buckthorne. I cry, being first smothered. Well, I say, you all get your lessons done, and I'll make haste too with mv 10 ^ 1 1 . II i f'll 110 HAY-MAKING. task." So, with a smack of his hands, a jerk up of his trousers, and a kick-out beliind, away he ran again to his work. I know of no out-of-door occupation that is so much like an amusement as hay-making. The mowers, in- deed, are the only real laborers, and their work, when the weather is hot, becomes a very severe trial of strength and endurance. Some mowers, when there chances to be a moon, will begin their task after sun- set, and work through the night, till the morning sun has gained strength enough to make them weary and faint, when they will rest till the heat has again de- clined. These are the real workmen in hay-making; the others make holyday, and a delightful one it is ! In the first place, they are occupied only in fine wea- ther; then they are all the while in the open air; their business is merely to turn over the swa^h after the mowers, to scatter it thinly over the field, that the dry- ing sun and wind may penetrate it, to rake it into rows, to pile it into heaps, to cart it home. And all the while they are working, every breeze that comes across them brings with it a delicious and wholesome smell. The jest, and the laugh, and the song, rise by turns; and the greatest of all earthly blessings, a healthy appetite, is their constant attendant. How pleasant a sight is a company of men and women in a hay-field, seated under the shade of a spreading oak, eating their meal of bread and cheese, or bacon ; and passing from hand to hand their little barrel, or bottle, as they call it, of beer. Many an epicure has envied the relish with which he has beheld them attack their homely meal : many a wit, too, might envy the honest laugh of approbation that always rises with the hun- dred-times repeated jest. / FIELD-MOUSE. — HUMELE-EEES. Ill I After partaking of an early dinner, the whole family of Stocks, father, mother, brothers, and sisters, set out for the hay-field, where the young ones all galloped and tumbled about till they were out of breath. In the midst of their mirth, however, they did not over- look many objects of curiosity which presented them- selves to their notice. One collected all the field-flow- ers she could find in the hedges: another found a mouse's nest with four young ones in it; an ingenious and pretty little structure,' shaped like a ball, and lined in the inside with wool and fur. Having all admired the skill of the builders, their mother recommended them to place the nest again carefully where they found it. " The field-mouse," said she, " is an inoffen- sive creature, and the poor things you have in your hand would die if they had not their parents' care. So put them back, John ; and if they have the good fortune to escape the sharp eyes and claws of the owl, many months of happiness are in store for them." Af- ter watching the flight of a humble-bee for some time, Taunton saw it pop into a hole in the ground ; so he called the brothers, and with sticks they turned up the earth in the direction of the hole till they came to a space of some depth below the surface, about the di- mensions of a pint basin, which was filled with cells, containing young bees, not yet hatched, and some with honey that was as pure-looking and colorless as wa- ter. But they did not perform this desperate feat of invasion without suffering from the vengeance of the assailed party, for Tom received a pretty sharp sting from one of the defenders of their citadel. The next object that engaged their attention, was one of those very handsome insects, the hornet, which they observ- ed to fly into a small crack in the trunk of an oak tree. : jl :\i ii 112 HORNETS. — REFRESHMEm'S. CRVELTY to ANIMALS. " Here 's another nest !" shouted Adam. " Yes," said his fatlier, " and I recommend you to have nothing to do with it at this time of the day. The sting of a hor- net is vastly more formidable than that of either a bee or a wasp, I promise you, that even Tom, brave as he is, will not easily forget the sting of an exasperated hornet. The only way of destroying those creatures, as well as wasps, is by suffocating them with burning sulphur at night. When the hour came fot the haymakers to take their afternoon's rest and draught, Mr. Stock desired he might have the pleasure of giving them all a treat of bread and cheese and home-brewed ale ; two of the brothers, therefore, ran home and brought with them the provision and a noble can of liquor; and all the party sat down together and partook of the unexpected bounty. The ale was mightily relished ; so much so, that an old wag, evidently the jester of the company, taking up the can, repeated the old repartee amid the applause of his fellow-laborers : — " Well, neighbor Stiles, here's toward ye ; What I leave you won't lo — ad ye.'* And, from the persevering manner with which he at- tacked the ale, they all began to think that his joke would prove to be a very serious one ; for he pulled away and soaked it in, as if he had been a sand-bnnk. In this agreeable manner did our young party pass the remainder of their day in the hay-field : and on their return home after sunset they amused themselves with watching a couple of barn owls, flapping with si- lent wings over the meadows in search of prey. Mary hoped they would not be able to find her little friends, the field-mice. They also ran after and caught seve- 113 ral cock-chaffers, which every now and then came blun- dering very unpleasantly against their faces. "You have been too well brought up, my dear boys," said their mother, "for me to caution you against torturing those harmless insects, as you have seen the ignoranl and unfeeling lads in the village do, who thrust a pin through them tied to a piece of thread, and then grin with delight at the agonizing hum of the persecuted creatures. Boys who take delight in such cruelty when they reach the state of manhood, accordino- as their stations are cast in society, become huntsmen soldiers, or common murderers; for, indifference to the feelings of our fellow-men usually follows hard-heart- edness towards the brute creation." They now arriv- ed at home, and the happy family were all soon fast asleep, by the hour that the gay and fashionable world are beginning the pleasures of the evening. On the last morning of the month, while they were at breakfast, Mr. Stock set Adam the task of writin- down a hst of all the plants that came into flower dur^ ing the month, desiring him, at the same time, to name the color of each. In about an hour he brought his father the following list, who smiled and was pleased not only with the fulness of it, but at some of his good httle boy's remarks; and he told him he gave two of the most favorable proofs that he would become a cle- ver man : which were, that he was observant, and possessed a good memory. Here is Adam's cata- logue :-" Speedwells of different kinds, deep blue bright and dull blue, blue and pink, and pale pink • a very pretty little flower, I think. Bladderwort; gold yellow and pale yellow; not great favorites of mine • I am not very fond of yellow flowers. A great many sorts of grass that are beautiful in shape, and some of d 114 FLOWERS or JULY. them pretty in color. The field-scabious ; pale purple ^ a darling flower of mine. Bed-straw ; a small white flower : it smells, when it is dried, like a hay-field. The hound's-tongue ; a dullish red. Azalea ; rose-co- lor. Bell-flower of several, sorts, and of different shades of blue : the shape of these flowers is very beautiful. Dog's violet ; blue, with purple lines ; but it has no smell. Bitter-sweet nightshade; purple, with green spots. The sweet, delicious honey-suckle, the friend of the bees, and my friend. The tall star of Bethlehem ; greenish : I do not much care for it. The evening primrose; bright yellow. The crimson-co- lored persicaria. The pink, that every body must love. Catchfiy ; many sorts of them; red, white, rose-color- ed, and red and white. Navelwort ; yellow. Stone- crop ; gold-color. Campion ; rose-color. Meadow- sweet ; yellowish white. A great many sorts of ro- ses and dog roses, of different shades of red. The bramble ; white and pink. The strawberry ; white. Poppies ; bright red with black spots. The handsome white and yellow water-lily. The lime-tree, with very small pale yellow bunches of flowers, that smell so sweetly after a little shower of rain : it is very pleasant to stand under a lime-tree, and hear and see the bees humming and gathering their honey. The cistus ; yellow, pale yellow, and white. The colum- bine; purple. Traveller's joy; white: it sometimes climbs all over a hedge. Pheasant's eye; dark red. Crowfoot; yellow. Wild thyme; purple and white: the flower that papa told us the bees will fly so far to suck. Mamma's favorite, the eye-bright ; white and purple, with yellow streaks. Snap-dragon ; blue and violet-colored, and purple and white. The foxglove ; leddish and dotted : it is a tall and slender flower, and FLOWERS OF JULY. 115 I looks very handsome with its rows of bells down the stalk. Crane's-bill; there are several sorts of this flower, of a blue, red, pale blue, and pale red : I am very fond of this flower. Marsh-mallow, and the oth- er sorts ; of a lilac-color, and striped. The everlast- ing-pea ; a handsome red flower. Tares ; blueish and gray. Trefoil ; pale red and pale purple. St. John's- wort ; there are many sorts, and all yellow : the park- leaf St. John's-wort I think the handsomest. Seve- ral kinds of the hawk-weed ; yellow, bright yellow, and orange. Thistles; purple and crimson. The or- chis ; green and dull purple. These are all the field flowers I can recollect, papa ; and I believe most of our garden flowers that were in blossom last month are still blowing.'* "Well, Adam," said his father, "I did not expect that you could give me such a list as this. If there were no more flowers now than those you have nam- ed, we should still have reason to be proud of the month of ^ult." \ CHAPTER VIII. AUGUST. 'Come to the yellow fields, golden with corn ! The brawny Auoust, with fast-reaping hand, Laya low the earth's tall plumes of pride; and blith« Young gleaners, in bee-swarrns, trample the shorn Stout stubble down, with naked feet and torn, In little laps garnering allowed tithe ; And wheaten sheaves are bound with strawy band, And to the hungry barn brown Ceres' wain is borne. "With no more music than the woods afford. No daintier food than is the wild strawberry, With water from clear brooks which clean deer ford, We may be fed, and pleased, And fear not but the day's sweet exercise Will bring night's balmiest slumber to our eyes." Lyric Leaves. "Adam," said Mr. Stock, "do you remember what Octavius Caesar, the first of the Roman emperors, was called?" "Yes, papa, he afterwards took the name of Aui^Listus." "Well, then, the title of the present month was changed in honor of him. Before his ad- vancement to the dominion of the Roman empire, Ju- ly and Aun^ust used to be called Quintili« and Sex'tilis, or fifth and sixth months, being the fifth and sixth in succession from March, which was, originally, the first of the year : and, in consequence, September, October NAMES OF THE MONTHS. 117 November, and December, were considered, as their names signify in Latin, the seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth months. " Come, my boy, we must set to work, and prepare yonder bed for the purpose of sowing some winter spinach for our early spring crop. That bed, I mean, under the south wall; it is a good piece of soil, and lies dry and well for the winter sun. • Now, you shall do all this yourself; so dig it up in your neatest man- ner, and next week you shall sow the seed. Scatter it thinly over the surface, then tread it in, and, lastly, rake it over lightly. If we have good fortune with the seed, we shall have a fine crop of spinach for our din- ners of early lamb, and many a good supper of it with poached eggs. I will now give you full directions for managing this spinach bed, in order that I may prove whether you bear in mind what I tell you. So, re- member that you get the prickly-seeded spinach for the winter crop, because the plants are more hardy. Then, do not forget, when the plants have come up about an inch above the ground, to weed the bed, at the same time thinning it, leaving a space of about four inches between each plant of spinach. While you are per- forming this task, I will be preparing two beds for sow- ing cabbage seed for our next summer and autumn supply ; and then I will prepare and manure that piece of ground for transplantmg some of the young broccoli plants, which will be coming into perfection next spring with the lamb and spinach. I shall plant them about two feet asunder, and you must remind me to water them now and then, if the weather continue dry. I must also hoe up the earth round the stems of those which we planted out last month. After this job, I shall transplant some of those savoys, at the same dis- t.'i 113 LABORS OF AUGUST. tance from each other, and I expect many a fine dish from them, all through November, December, and January. " Tlie next thing will be to prepare a bed or two for onions, to come in with our spring salads, and some carrots. As you and your brothers and sisters are fond of radishes and small salad, you may prepare a small bed for each. They will be ready for cropping by the time you have consumed the last stock. And do not forget to remind me, towards the end of the month, that I sow some cauliflower seed for our spring supply." In the course of the present month, both father and son did not omit to clear the young asparagus plants from weeds, and to transplant more celery from the seed beds into trenches : also to keep carefully earthed up those which they had planted out a month or two previously, and which were growing. They were also careful in watering regularly, while the weather was dry, those young plants which they had last trenched. In the course of their employment, too, they examined every now and then the artichokes ; and as the fruit began to fill, they cut off all the small heads that grew upon the suckers, in order that the whole vigor of the plant might be reserved for the principal fruit. And as these reached their full size, and were fit for the ta- ble, they broke the stems down to the ground, after cutting the produce. Then they planted out lettuces from the seed beds, and endive upon well-dug ground, setting the roots about a foot apart; first trimming the lower ends and the leaves. Those which had been put out last month, and had grown to a full size, they tied up closely with bass, in order that their inner leaves might become white and fit for salads. COLOR OF PLANTS. 119 "Papa," said Adam, '' why are the insides of the endive plants white after they have been tied up?" " Because," said his father, " they are deprived of the benefit of the light of the sun, which is absolutely ne- cessary for giving to them the green tinge which they acquire when growing in a natural state. Have you not observed that the stalks of potatoes, and of other vegetables immediately under the surface of the ground, are always white ; and that the parts of the same stem above the ground are green : that is, when they are growing in the open air ? To show you that this ef- fect must arise from the action of the sun's rays, you must remember to have noticed the long stalks from potatoes that we have found growing in the cellar where no light could come to them. They were al- ways perfectly white, and the leaves were paler than the lightest straw-color. All plants become pale and feeble when shut up for a length of time in dark rooms. So earnestly, too, do they seem to desire the light, that potatoes and other vegetables with long stems, when laid in a dark corner of a cellar in which there is a small window at a distance, will uniformly stretch out and grow towards the light ; and as soon as they reach It, the portion presented to the light will become green, while all the remainder of the stalk that is still indark^ ness Will continue white. I cannot tell you why the light should make them green, any more than I can ex- plain to you why one flower should always bo red, ano- ther blue, and another yellow. A reason can, of course, be given lor it, as a reason could be given for every thing that happens in nature ; nothing takes place with- out a cause, and this cause was ordered b> the same mfinitely wise Being that created the plant. Some cnejiiical philosophers have, with great ingenuity, ac^ 120 WEEDING . — WASPS. counted for the difTerent colors in flowers and plants, and when you are a few years older, you will do well to make yourself acquainted with their clev^er reason- ings ; at your present age it would be impossible to make you comprehend them. *^In the course of your other engagements, Adam, do not forget your weeding. Your hoe and your fin- gers must both be busily employed throughout this month. The young weeds must be cleared from the beds of young plants, and the old ones must be cut down before their seed ripens ; since the wind would then scatter it all over the garden, and your labor next year would be greatly increased. ".While you are so employed, too, look round, and observe what annuals have ripened into seed ; then cut them off carefully, and lay them upon a sheet un- der the shed in the sun. As soon as they have become thoroughly dry and hard, we will employ some eve- ning in rubbing them out, and packing them away in parcels. We will also sow some corn-salad for our winter and early spring dinners. "Every evening, so long as the Aveathcr continues dry, you may give each of the cucumber plants some water, and our crop will in consequence be the more abundant. " I am not sure that I shall sow any more turnips this year; but I must make up my mind before the middle of this month, or it will be too late. You, however, may hoe that bed by the medlar tree, where those young ones are ; and thin out the smallest plants for the cow, leaving the larger ones at about six inches' distance from each other." One day, while they were at work, they noticed how much they were troubled by wasps : at his father's de- BRE.^SING OF VINES. 121 sire, therefore, Adam filled some phials about half full of treacle and water, and hung them in various quar- ters of the garden, upon branches of the wall trees. The quickness with which these little creatures disco- ver any sweet provision (of which they are very fond) is truly surprising. It is worthy of remark, that at dinner, during the fruit season, wasps rarely intrude at table till the pies are opened ; when, in the course of two or three minutes, they will be found to have made their way into the room and become a part of the guests, though uninvited and unwelcome. Their scent is as keen as that of a blood-hound. " See if there be any manure-water, Adam," said his father ; " if we have none, get the two-gallon watering- pots; dip some of the soft pond-water and put a good handful of salt into each; and then give it to those vines against the house : in the mean time I will be removing the young shoots upon them, above the fruit. And after that I will trim and dispose the peach and nectarine trees. Remember, also, with your hoe and rake, to clear and remove the weeds from the fruit-bor- ders. A neat appearance is not the only benefit that will be derived from this step; but the fruit itself will be more quickly ripened, and its flavor improved, by the rays of the sun being reflected from the smooth surface of the ground." They also from time to time attended to their flower- garden; watering the annuals regularly, and putting sticks to support those which required them. They cut down also the stalks of those perennials that had done blowing, and at the same time loosened the earth at the top of the roots, removing some of it and replacing it with new mould. They likewise propa- gated many others by dividing the roots ; such as the «i 122 MIGRATION OF TIIi: SWIFT. BUTTERFLIES. 123 double rose campion, catohfly, double scarlet lychnis, and double rocket, gentianella, and polyanthuses. Their choicest auriculas they shifted into fresh pots, and sowed fresh seed in pots, sprinkling the seed close- ly, and covering it about an inch deep. They also transplanted bulbous roots, such as lilies, &;c., and sow- ed some of the seed of the same. Young seedlings of wall-flowers, stocks, sweet-williams, and columbines, they transplanted out into the borders. This work they contrived when the ground was moist after rain. In the nursery-ground they trimmed the evergreens, clearing the ground of weeds, and transplanting young seedlings. And those which had made strong shoots from their stems near to the ground they cut away close off. Upon those trees which Mr. Stock had budded about three weeks or a month before, he loosened the bass that bound them, to prevent the bud from being too closely pressed, as the branches had swelled. One day, while they were at work, Adam directed the attention of his father to one of those long-winged species of the swallow, which go by the name of swift. It had been washing itself in the shallow part of a pond by the road-side, and was now grovelling in the dust. The creature had probably been performing this ope- ration in order to clear itself from the vermin with wbich its body had been tormented. " Only observe, Adam," said Mr. Stock, *' what difficulty it has to rise into the air, on account of the uncommon length of its wings. The swift is the last of the swallow tribe that visits this country, and it is the first to take leave of us. This is now the eleventh of the month. In about a week from this time, if you take notice, I make no doubt you will not see one in our neighborhood ; they will all have taken their departure for foreign climates. No one, however, has been able to find out where they go to. The great length of their wings, and the ex- traordinary speed of their flight, are favorable to their performing long journeys. You will suddenly miss them altogether ; and instead of wheeling round and round the old ivy-crowned church steeple, screaming and darting to and IVo like lightning, they will, perhaps, in the course of a fortnight or three weeks, be continu- ing the same occupation round the summit of a mosque or temple in Algiers or Ceuta, in Africa. They are happy creatures ; wonderfully provided for their neces- sities, and enjoying a whole year of summer weather. " If you make proper observation, you will find that new insects have come into existence this month, and are sporting away their sunny lives from flower to flower. In particular, you will see the elegant little blue butterfly fluttering about with remarkable activity ; and another gay little beau, called by the zoologists (which name means, persons learned in the nature and qualities of animals) the 'papilio phleas.' Papilio is the Latin name for butterfly^: what phleas means, I am unable to say, unless it come from a Greek word of similar sound, and which signifies claij or mud; im- porting, perhaps, that this insect, like many others, derives its birth from wet and marshy districts. I have, upon many occasions, noticed that a violent enmity exists between these two little beauties. Fre- quenting the same tuft of clover, or blossom of the hare- bell, whenever they approach, they dart at the same moment at each other with courageous rapidity; they buffet and contend, till one is driven from the field, or to a considerable distance from his station, perhaps many hundred yards; when the conqueror returns to his post in triumph; and this strife is maintained as U\ ^i 124 MICROSCOPIC ANIMALS. long as the brilliancy of the sun animates their cou- rage." One evening, while the family were taking their usual walk, and admiring the beautiful shapes and co- lors of the clouds round the setting sun, and the dark tint of the trees as seen against the flaming gold of the sky, the children noticed the swarms of gnats above their heads, and which kept pace Avith them as they walked. "And what a noise they make," said Mary; '*it is like the boys of the village at play, a good way off." "Yes," said her mother, "and those small, gray, and unseemly looking creatures, when examined closely with a microscope, make as fine a show, with lofty tufts of feathers, as any lady you ever saw goin^r to a grand ball. The great and wise Creator of all tilings has shown the same minute attention in the formation and adorning of the smallest as of the largest of his creatures : and why not ? The gnat and the^'os- trich, the ant and the elephant, are equally objects of his care; and large and small are only so by compari- ■ son, according to the formation of our eyes. If we make use of very powerful magnifying glasses, an ant may be made to appear the size of a dog or a sheep ; and by the same instrument we discern creatures that tlie human eye could never have perceived without such assistance. The most astonishing circumstance however, to reflect upon in the creation of these mi-' nute beings, is, that their internal formation is in all material points the same as that of the most gigantic creatures. They have a heart and lungs ; and as they suffer from pain, there is no doubt that they are fur- nished with nerves. Now, when you hear, Adam, that in so large a creature as a man, his nerves are distri- buted over every portion of his frame, and that num- TRANSPLANTING OF TREES. 125 bers of these nerves are more delicate than the finest hair on his head, what are we to think of the same organs of feeling being proportioned to the body of an animal so small as not to be visible without the help of a magnifyingglass ! This thought alone is sufficient to make the deepest philosopher and the most inge- nious mechanic feel the insignificance of all his disco- veries, and skill in handicraft. The most perfect in- strument that ever was invented by man, is a clumsy piece of work compared with that little solitary piece of mechanism that composes only a small part of the animal frame ;— I mean the eye." In the course of the present month Adam and his lather planted out many of the small seedlino- forest and other trees, where they were found too" much crowded together. These they set in uniform rows ia their nursery bed, both for future use, for their own shrubbery, and for sale. Towards the end of the month too, they prepared a plot of ground for transplantinci other trees in autumn, which is the fitter season. This they did by first clearing off all the large weeds and laying them in a heap ; afterwards they dug the earth all over, and deep, trenching it up in high ridges, that It might derive all the benefit possible from the rains the dew, and the sun. ' In addition to the labors of the month already men- tioned as performed by our two industrious and happv gardeners, they sowed the seeds of various bulbous plants, such as tulips, hyacinths, irises, and crown-im- perials ; also, the seed of anemone, ranunculus, mio-. nonette, and auricula, in pots and boxes. They like- wise planted out young sweet-williams, wall-flowers scabious stocks, and many other perennials, for au^ tumnal flowering. 11* i<\ 126 ANCIENT MYTHOLOGY. One afternoon, after they had finished as much work as Mr. Stock thought sufficient for the day, he summon- ed the family, and proposed that, as they had last month assisted in the hay-harvest, they should now go and witness the more important gathering in of the wheat. " This used to he," said he, " a far more mirthful season with the ancient Greeks and Romans, and even with our own ancestors in this island, than it is in the present day. With them it was a season of great joy, and feasting, and dancing ; not forgetting, at the same time, to offer the tribute of gratitude and thanksgiving for the bounteous wealth with which they were stored against the approaching season of wintry desolation. The Greeks and Romans, as you have heard and read, worshipped many gods, whom they represented under various forms and appearances, according to the object of their wants, praise, or prayer. For instance, Jupiter or Jove they considered the great and presiding father of the universe, the controller of all events ; and, in or- der to impress the unlettered multitude with the most reverential sentiments of his majesty, bounty, and be- neficent nature, as that of a parent and provider for his children, they represented him under the form of a mild, grave, thoughtful, and very handsome human be- ing. He was supposed always to preside in heaven. Then all the other grand objects in nature they suppos- ed to be controlled by distinct and separate deities, in- ferior in power, yet powerful in their several spheres. Thus, all the four elements had their several presiding deities, the fire, air, earth, and water. Others, again, were supposed to control the actions of men ; and the regions of the dead, where reward or punishment was adjudged for a life passed in good or evil practices, had their separate divinities. All these, according to their CERES. — HARVEST-HOME. 127 immediate wants and necessities, men were in the ha- bit of intreating, or of celebrating in hymns of praise and thanksgiving for blessings received, or desires ful- filled. The deity presiding over the fruits of the earth most necessary for the sustenance of man, as corn, they represented under the form of a very beautiful woman bearmg m her hand a wheat-sheaf and a sickle, and they called her Ceres. She was distinctly styled the goddess of harvest : and when the husbandman cast his seed into the earth, he would implore her assistance in bringing it to perfection : and when this was ac- comphshed, he celebrated her goodness in thanksgiv- ing and acts of joy, accompanied with dancing, and the crowning of her statue with flowers. " You are aware that our island was formerly con- quered by the Romans ; those people, therefore, intro- duced many of their customs among our ancestors: and this ceremony of feasting and dancing at a harvest- home together with the crowning of the last sheaves witli flowers, is derived from them; and in some parts ol England it has not wholly passed away, althou-h the religion to which it gave rise never prevailed here and has yielded to one which, in its pore state, is cal^ culated to make men both wiser, and more like the be- nevolent Creator of all things, and therefore more nappy. *' If these rejoicings and feastings have nearl v passed away ' said Mr. Stock; - if the one has been"i!iou-ht foolish, and the other has been discontinued from too great a love of gain, I do not find that people are wiser than they were in those simple times; I am sure they are not richer, for they have more wants ; and thev are certainly not happier, for overlabor and anxiety af- ler riches do not produce peace of mind. I am sorry I" 128 FARMER OLDFIELD. for my countrymen, who seek happiness from aiming^ to be like tlieir superiors in station, rather than in mo- deration and content ; and I am more sorry for the poor laboring husbandmen, who are ground down in their wages, and no longer are suffered to rejoice in such merry-makings, on account of the pride and ava- rice of their rich employers. Old England is no longer the merry country it used to be to the working classes. There is more learning and less happiness among us; which should not, and I hope, ere long, will not be the case. However, master Oidfield, whom we shall visit to-day, is one of the few farmers who keep up the cus- toms of their ancestors. He gives his men a good sup- per of beef and beer at harvest-home; he allows them moderate wages, yet better than many of his neighbors do ; and the consequence is, that he is not only better served than they, but in the midst of all the burnings of ricks, and other violent outrages that have taken place in the county, his property has been spared." After passing the afternoon in the wheat-field, the children amusing themselves with catching and exa- mining the most curious butterflies and other insects that came under their notice, the whole party, harvestmen and all, when the last load of corn had been ricked, sat down to a famous old-English supper of beef, pudding, and home-brewed ale, that had been prepared for them in the barn. After their homely but substantial meal, the men all had one mug of ale each, and a pipe of tobacco, and the v/hole party went singing home to bed, where they slept as many rich men do not ; that is, all through the night. Mr. Stock and his family, on their return, were just able to notice tv/o fern-owls flying round and round an old oak, uttering their loud and disagreeable FLOWERS OF AUGUST. 129 I scream. The children wanted to know what they were doing there, and were informed that they were in search of their food, which consists of moths and cock-chaffers. They also heard the merry chattering ol that little bird, the nut-hatch. At breakfast the next morning Adam, unbidden, gave his father the following list of flowers that had 'come mto bloom during the month : " Dear papa, among the shrubs that blossom in August, are, several kinds of roses, one of them the Chinese rose; though I think that seems to be almost always blowing; for I remem- ber seeing a tree against a house, that was covered with flowers when the frost was on the ground. Then there is the althea-frutex, the shrubby cinquefoil, and that beautiful thing the passion-flower. Among the evergreens, there is the ever-blowing rose ; that "Very grand flower and plant, the magnolia. And among the plants are, American groundsel ; marvel of Peru ; the beautiful cardinal-flower ; a great many kinds of my favorite pinks and carnations ; the sweet and yel- low sultan ; lady's-traces ; and the beautiful blue cam- panulas. Among the bulbous roots, there is the mea- dow-saffron, which flowers before the leaves come up • the belladonna lily; and the Guernsey lily. In the fields are, the enchanter's nightshade, which is, I think reddish and blue ; several speedwells, all blue • but some very dark, and some pale. The red valerian, which is rose-colored. A great many sorts of rushes, but I like the bulrush the best. And a great many grasses too, and the shapes and colors of some are pretty. The scabious, a dark and light purple The pleasant-smelling bed-straw, which is like a hay-field when It is dried. Wild madder, not very pretty ; and plantains, not pretty too. Scorpion-grasses, bright I! 130 FLOWERS OF AUGUST. FLOWERS OF AUGUST. 131 blue. Scarlet pimpernel, that has a violet-colored mouth; and the bog pimpernel, which is rose-colored. Seven or eight sorts of the bell-floAver ; all blue, or blue and white, and some of them rather large and hand- some. Touch-me-not, yellow. Three sorts of violet ; the dog's, heart's-ease, and yellow-mountain. Mul- leins ; one sort is tall and handsome, and of a bright yel- low. The centaury, which is bright pink. The common woodbine, or honey-suckle ; every body knows the co- lor of that. Gentians, a deep blue, a bright blue, and purplish. Sea-eringo, bright blue; and field-eringo, which is white and purplish. The common shepherd's needle, white. Four or five sorts of the water-pars- nip; they too are white and greenish. Water-hem- lock, white again. Slender hare's-ear, yellowish. Common thrift, rose-colored. Matted thrift, of a pur- plish blue. The great broad-leaved docks; the leaves are finer than the flowers, which are not handsome. Water-plantains, white with yellow spots, and light purple. The common evening primrose, which is light yellow. WilloAV-herb, crimson. Heaths, rose and white, red and white. Persicaria, crimson ; a very pretty flower. Saxifrage, bright yellow; and campions, which are white, rose, and yellow. Chick- weeds, a very little w^iite flower. Blackberry. Straw- berry. The bright yellow creeping cinquefoil. Phea- sant's eye, a very handsome little flower, crimson with black spots. The golden crowfoots. Several sorts of mint, dark purple and reddish. Marjoram, light purple ; and the sweet-smelling wild thyme. Common eye-bright ; mamma's favorite again. Snap-dragons blue, white, rose-colored, and yellow. Purple sea-rock- et. Stork's-bill and crane's-bill, rose-colored, purple, and reddish purple. Mallows, pale rose ; the boys at I school called them cheeses, and we used to eat them. Common furmitory, rose-colored, and dark red. The everlasting-pea. Tares, pale blue, and purple and white. Trefoils. Dutch clover and common clover ; all these my friends, the bees, are very fond of; and if you pull out the little pipy blossoms and suck the ends, you may taste the honey. The St. John's-worts, which were in flower last month, are not yet out. The blossom, which is as shining as gold, and the leaves, that are of a bright and glossy green, are very hand- some. There are nine or ten sorts of hawk-weed, and all of a yellow color. The common burdock, which is purple, and many kinds of thistle, which make the humble-bees tipsy. Goldy-locks and tlie common tansy, which are both a bright yellow. Sea-starwort, blue and yellow. The common golden-rod and the daisy. The ox-eye, yellow ; and the corn bluebottle, the shape of which is like a wreath round mamma's head. Sweet lady's-traces, whitish ; and the red-ber- ried bryony, also white." " Well, Adam," said his father, "this is, indeed, a long list, but I cannot think that you made it all out without any assistance." *' No, papa," said he, smil- ing, " I looked into the ^Domestic Gardencr^s ManU' aV the other day, and saw them there ; §o I copied them out ; but I only took the names of those which I knew and liked."* • To the adult reader of this little work, if he or she have a taste for studying the practical or scientific department of horticulture, the author would strongly recommend the above-named Manual as B.vade mecum. The writer of the work is not a mere gardener, hackneyed in the beaten paths of the art, (although he is essentially so, loo,) but he is a patient natural philosopher, and an admirable chemist; and he has, upon every passible occasion, brought the sublime 8f>eculations resulting from the study of those ennobling sciences to bear upon the improvement of hia favorite occupation— that of horticulture, - ' 'I I w 132 SAYING OF MR. VINCENT. II "Ah— ah! you sly rogue !" said his father; "howe- ver, it was a very innocent cheat to put upon me. I hope, for your own sake, my dear boy, you may never be guilty of a more serious piece of deception, and then nothing can prevent your becoming a very happy man. Bear in mind, to your life's end, the saying of your friend, Mr. Vincent, that 'there is notlting in the whole world worth the cost and trouble of a lie.' The uniform simplicity and honesty of his character, throughout his valuable life, have gained him more admiration and love from those who have known him, than his shining musical talents ; yet these of them- selves alone would command the respect of mankind. " Well, I think, if we look back, we shall not find any part of the year in which we have more cause for delight and gratitude, than in the brilliant harvest month of August." ^v..Ni.v.t-%»\ir..,.:? CHATTER IX. SEPTEMBER. Ruddy September, with wide wicker-maumla,* Treads his full orchards now, and at all hours Gathers delicious sweets, where are no sours. And numerous rural youth, in clamorous bands. With nut-hooks armed, clamber with knees and hand* Old hazel trees, and brown nuta rain in showers, Paltering and pelting every maid that stands Within their sportive reach, who fall like flowers When hard hails pelt, and feign alarming cries. And thus the merry month wears well away, With feast and fruit, revel and roundelay."— Corwe/tws WebU. At five o'clock in the morning of the 1st of Septem- ber, while Adam and his father were at work in the garden, they heard the report of a gun. " This is the first day for partridge-shooting," said Mr. Stock ; " and probably with that shot some poor bird at this moment lies dead, or has flown away wounded and bleeding." Adam inquired whether it was more cruel to kill birds than sheep and oxen. " Certainly not," said his father; *'I only object to the manner of doing the act. It seems to be as much the nature of man to require flesh for his support, as grass and other vegetables are necessary to the sheep and ox. If, therefore, life must be sacrificed that man may live, I would have life 12 • Baskets. 134 CRUELTY TO ANIMALS. ■ I I *i taken in the most easy and sudden way possible ; and, above all things, I would not have it made a sport and a pastime. We should feel very much shocked if butchers were always to make the slaying of sheep and oxen a season of amusement and lengthened cru- elty. The abominable custom of bull-baiting, and si- milar barbarities towards our dome?tic animals, has, indeed, been abolished by law; yet, although the com- mon people are not permitted to hunt bulls to death, the gentlemen are allowed to worry with dogs a poor hare or stag, till its heart bursts with fright and agony. It may be said that these are wild creatures, and that there is no other mode of destroying them than by the gun or the hound. This is not true : many other ways may be pointed out, by which they could be as effectually as suddenly killed. But this is not the object of the sportsmen. Their delight is not merely in the death of the hare, fox, or stag, but the longer the time before that death is accomplished, the greater is their pleasure. If any one of those animals will run twenty or thirty miles before it is caught and killed, their happiness is complete. Besides, their ob- ject is not to destroy them as vermin and mischievous creatures; for the greater part of our sporting nobility have in their parks portions of land laid out for the only purpose of preserving foxes, that they may hunt them ; and any poor little farmer who should kill one that has invaded his hen-roost, or a hare that has de- voured the bark of his young fruit-trees, would, in all probability, be harassed and persecuted by the rich owner, for what is called the offence : yet the person who would prosecute him kills the creature himself, only in another and more cruel way. I myself knew an instance of a poor small farmer, who, with his GAME-LAWS. — SHOOTING. 135 whole family, was deprived of their only means of ivehhood, because he had killed a fox beloncriacr to almost the who e stock of the poor fellow's young ducks and chickens. These, among many others are the acts of injustice which make the common (that IS, the poor) people reflect with so much bitter- ness upon their superior in wealth. rnn/iT''''"^^" '""Z ^'^^' '^'^^'^''S, if the marksman could be as sure of his aim as he would be in wring- mg off the neck of the bird, it would be the most de- sirable mode of extinguishing life; for when the shot strikes a vital part, it is as sudden in effect as can be , contrived. But the case is frequently otherwise, and many a poor bird flies away with a mangled body and When they had finished this little dissertation upon hunting and shooting, - Now, Adam," said Mr. Stock as soon as you have completed that job of weed- hoeing, I would have you dig up yonder bed of licxht loamy sod ; and dig it as deep, and make it as light'as you can; and then plant out about fifty or a hundred of those lettuces from the seed bed which we sowed last month ; and do the same at the end of every week during the present month: we shall then have a good supply of sallad during autumn, winter, and early sprmg; but remember, that the last crop must be taken from those that were the last sown in Au-ust and the best situation for them would be under" the south wal there. Plant them all in rows, six inches w? m' ?i^ ^^ ^''^ '^""^ distance from each other " While Adam was occupied with the above task his father was preparing a nursery-bed to receive some 136 LABORS OF SEPTEMBER. BIRDS. — MIGRATION. 137 young cauliflower plants that had been sown in the latter end of the preceding month, and which he in- tended to remove in about ten days or a fortnight, set- ting them about three inches asunder. When he had planted out as many as he tliought proper, he covered them with a frame and glass, shading them also from the sun till they had struck root; when this had taken place, the glass and covering were removed, and re- placed only in cases of heavy rain. In about five weeks from that time he again planted them out in a sheltered bed, where they were to remain all winter. In the progress of this work they likewise hoed, weed- ed, and plentifully watered those cauliflowers which were intended for the table in October and November. The same course was also pursued with respect to the young broccoli plants ; setting out seedlings, hoeing, weeding, and watering those that had already advanced. Young savoy and cabbage plants they pricked out for the late autumn and winter crops ; and twice during the month they planted out celery for the spring sup- ply ; trimming the roots and tops, and setting them about four inches apart. Those rows which had been planted in former months, they took care to keep con- stantly earthed up, and on those days when the plants were dry; cautiously avoiding injury to the stalks^ or burying them too deeply. Those endive plants that had reached their full growth they tied round with bass to whiten their hearts ; and those which had been sown last month they planted out in a warm bed for winter salads. The spinach, onion, and turnip beds were thinned out and constantly weeded. In flne dry weather, too, they gathered the seeds of all such plants as had become fully ripe. Here was a great deal of work done, and it is not to be supposed that it was done in an hour, or even a day ; indeed, with their other duties in the garden, it occupied our laborers from time to time through the whole month. During the first week they noticed, during the day, the loud and frequently repeated clamor of the stone-cur- lew; and Adam was pleased with watching the flights of those pretty little songsters, the goldfinches, with their broods of young ones; at one time flying from branch to branch of the gooseberry and currant trees, then hovering^ in the sunshine over a shallow brook that crept along at the bottom of their garden, where they " Would sip, and twitter, and their feathers sleek ; Then off at once, as in a wanton freak." — John Keats. And all day long upon the chimney-tops some swal- lows would sit and twitter, and trill and take up the tune from one another like practised concert singers. Adam said, he supposed they were settling the time when they should fly away to another country. " Aye," said his father, " they, and the linnets, the martins, and the starlings, will, in about a fortnight's time, begin to gather in flocks, and leave us forpleasanter skies; and in their place we shall have the woodcock, fieldfare, and several other kinds of winter birds. The black- bird and the thrush remain constantly with us, and about this time make our homesteads ring again with their fine deep and mellow voices. It is delightful to hear the stillness of a woody dell broken at sunset by the rich and commanding note of a blackbird. These charming songsters formerly bore, and in some parts of the country still bear, the name of the ouzel cock, and the throstle : how agreeably Shakspeare has de- scribed them in the following simple words of a song! 12* 138 ANECDOTE OF THE WOODCOCK. ' The ouzel cock so black of hue, With orange tawny bill ; The throstle with his note so true ; The wren with little quill.' The flight of the woodcock has long puzzled the English naturalists.* It is a bird not remarkable for length of wing, and when it has taken up its abode among us, is rarely seen flying; and even when dis- turbed by a dog and gun, will remove to but a very short distance ; yet it almost always enters our island on the eastern coast, and is supposed to make the long journey over sea from the country of Norway. Large flocks congregate, and suddenly make their appearance among us on a briglit moon-light night. Their depar- ture too is as sudden, and as secret. It should seem, that, like moths, they are attracted by a strong light ; for some twenty years ago, the keeper of the North Fore- land light-house, in the Isle of Thanet, informed me that he had not unfrequently in a morning found one or two at the foot of the building, dead from the vio- lence with which they struck their skulls against the windows." " I wonder they did not break the glass," said Adam. ** The glass is so thick that it would al- most break your head if you were to butt against it," said his father. " You are aware," he continued, *' that the woodcock is considered to be so dainty a bird in its feeding, that when it is served up at table, the entrails also are cooked with it, and laid upon a toast. I know no other instance of the entrails of an animal being esteemed palatable ; at least, by persons in civilized society : they are, however, thought to be a delicacy. That portion of the bird is called the trail. The woodcock very rarely breeds in England ; when it does, the circumstance may arise from its naving been • See While's Natural Hialory of Selborne.— Eds. RIPENING OF FRUITS. 139 wounded in the winter by the sportsmen, and its be- ing consequently unable to take its long journey in the spring, the time Avhen it usually leaves us. The wood- cock makes its nest upon the ground, and during the period of hatching its eggs is so tame, that a gentle- man who discovered one upon the nest, often stood over and even stroked it; notwithstanding which it hatched Its young ones, and disappeared with them' at he regular time. The woodcock is called a silly bird because of its gentle and trusting nature : men and' women who put too much confidence in each other are frequent y called silly, and always by knaves. While Adam was employed about one or other of the tasks enumerated a page or two back, his father was engaged in superintending the fruit of the peach and nectarine trees, and vines, by removing superflu- ous leaves, which would cause too heavy a shade and prevent the ripening influence of the sun. A slic^ht covering of leaves is advantageous to fruit, for they shield It from the sharp chills that arise an hour or two before sunrise. He also prepared ground for the transplanting of young fruit-trees, and laid out and digged beds for strawberry plants. One of the plea- santest occupations of this month, however, was the gathering of the apples^ and pears, which is ahvavs done when the weather is fine and very dry : but he and his brothers and sisters who helped him were particularly cautioned not to pull the fruit awav roughly, for fear of injuring the bearing wood. Towards the latter part of the month, our gardeners turned their attention to the various flower roots that required their care. They digged and prepared ground for hyacinth and tulip bulbs; planted out ranunculus and anemone roots; sowed seed of the same plants in 140 GATHERING NUTS. pots or boxes for the next spring, not forgetting to re- move them under shelter when the storms and frosts of winter set in. They also cut away and planted out in beds and pots the strongest layers of carnations that had struck root ; shifted auriculas in pots, and sowed fresh seed; transplanted perennials, such as carna- tions, sweet-williams, stocks, seedling wall-flowers, &c. Tliey digged up the flower borders, both for the purpose of neatness, and to destroy the weeds ; clipped the box edgings, and planted out fresh where there were gaps and deficiencies. Adam kept the grass constantly mown once a week, and with his shears trimmed its edges. He also rolled the walks and de- stroyed the weeds. Never w^ere such gardeners seen for neatness and punctuality. One fine afternoon in the last week of the month, the whole family set off" to a neighboring wood with sacks and satchels, upon a nutting expedition. Each was furnished with a hooked stick for the convenience of pulling doAvn the boughs of the trees. On their way, Tom, like another St. George and the dragon, slew a snake that had crawled forth to bask on a sunny bank, and afterwards carried it in triumph on his stafi*, which had serv^ed him for a spear. Besides their two favorites, the blackbird and the thrush, they were entertained with the sweet little note of the wood-lark. "A very curious mode of taking the com- mon field lark," said the father, " I read the other day in that beautiful work upon sporting and other amuse- ments, entitled ' The Field Dook.^ It is called ' twirl' ing for larkSy^ and is peculiar to the French. The following is the manner in which the author has de- scribed this sport : * The larks are attracted in great numbers to any given spot, by a singular contrivance TWIRLING FOR LARKS. 141 called a mirror. This is a small machine made of a piece of mahogany, shaped like a chapeau bras, (what we term a cocked, or opera hat,) and highly polished, or else it is made of common wood, inlaid w ith small bits of looking-glass, so as to reflect the sun's rays upwards ; it is fixed on the top of a thin iron rod, or an upright spindle, dropped through an iron loop or ring, attached to a piece of wood to drive into the ground. By pulling a string, fastened to the spindle, the mirror twirls, and the reflected light unaccountably attracts the larks, who hover over it, and become a mark for the sportsman. In this way, says an old sportsman, I have had capital sport. A friend of mine actually shot six dozen before breakfast. While he sat on the ground, he pulled the twirler himself, and his dogs fetched the birds as they dropped. Sometimes as many as ten or a dozen parties are out together, firing at a distance of five or six hundred yards ; and in this way the larks are kept constantly on the wing. The most favorable mornings are, when there is a gentle light frost, with little or no wind, and a clear sky; for when there are clouds, the larks will not ap- proach. One would think the bird^ themselves en- joyed their destruction; for the fascination of the twirler is so strong, as to rob them of the usual fruits of experience. After being fired at several times, they return to the twirler, and form again into groups above it; some of them even fly down and settle upon the ground within a yard or two of tlie astonishing instrument, looking at it this w^ay, and that way, and all ways together, as if nothing had happened.' " After they had rambled about and filled almost all their sacks, the boys collected a good store of beech nuts for their aunt's squirrel. " If we were now ia 142 A SUNSET IN AUTUMN. some parts of the New Forest in Hampshire," said Mrs. Stock, " we might hear the herdsman's horn callir^g his hogs home to bed after their day's meal of acorns and beech-mast. When we return home, one of the brothers shall read, in Gilpin's Forest Scenery, the entertaining account of the way in which they manage those swinish aldermen at this season of the year.'* The sun had now drawn nearly to the close of his journey, and was shooting his level beams between the trunks of the trees. The party, therefore, began to bend their steps homeward, and upon reaching the outskirts of the wood, they all at once expressed their admiration and delight at the grandeur and beauty of the heavens. It was one of those gorgeous sunsets for which our climate is so remarkable during the first autumnal months. They saw above and around them nothing but the richest and most vivid colors. In the centre was the golden glory of the luminary; next to this, and mixed in streaks with gold, were dashes of pale ^reen ; at a greater distance, and circling the sua 60 as to form, as it were, the mouth of a vast cavern, were purple clouds deeply crimsoned towards their edges ; and at the extreme edge nearest the sun they were of a bright copper-gold. Still farther removed, the clouds were mottled like tortoise-shell ; their sides next the sun being rose-pink, and the opposite ones of a grave indigo tint. Above was one superb expanse of gold, green, purple, and crimson; and below, the rays of the orb were giving the surrounding trees gold for gold : for there were, in succession, the plane, the hazel, the maple, the ash, and the hornbeam, all of a fine bright yellow, and made brighter. The dull brown of the sycamore was enlivened; the orange-leaf of the PLEASURES OF AUTUMN. 143 elm, the tawny yellow of the hawthorn, and fine red of the wild cherry, all showed to advantage. Besides these pleasant delights to the eye, they were regaled ^vith the agreeable smell of the wood, and of the dried leaves which they crushed under foot in their passage. They also, from time to time, slightly caught the odor of burning weeds, brought in a long unbroken train by the evening breeze from some of the neighboring corn fields; for the harvest was all gathered in, even to the beans, which are the last to ripen. "After the pleasures you have had this day, Adam » said his mother, -I think you cannot much regret the commg in of autumn. It is true that it is the first show of decay m the year; the mornings and evenin-s are sometimes chilly, and saddened by mists and fo-"« and our merriest songsters have deserted us ; yet like the age of a well-spent youth, it has its beauties: 'each season of the year and of life, bringing with it appro- pnate blessings. We never can be very unhappy so Jong as we possess one cheerful friend,-good health with an innocent hearL To-morrow you will brin- your father your montKly list of flowers ; we shall then see whether we have great reason to be discon- tented with autumn. Here we are at home ; and now you may all have son^.e fruit or a syllabub for supper- perhaps you would not object to both : well, I believe 1 must indulge you, for you have all been good chil- dren." ° On the following morning, at breakfast, Adam pre- sented his father with the following list, which he had written out : - Among the shrubs in flower this month pnpa, there are the China rose, both the pale and dark red color; the shrubby cinquefoil, and the laurustinus. Among plants and bulbous roots, are the Michaelmas 144 FLOWERS OF SEPTEMBER. daisy, the autumnal gentian, golden-roil, sunflower, meadow-saffron, autumnal crocus, European cyclamen, and five or six kinds of lily. These are all in our gar- den. Then, in the fields, there is the spiked speedwell, of a deep blue color; the wild English clary, .violet- colored; red valerian, crocus-saffron, purple; a great many grasses ; lady's-mantle, green ; lobelia, lightish blue ; the pansy violet, and yellow mountain violet ; the common nightshade, white ; the dwarf-branched centaury, a fine pink ; the common honey-suckle, or woodbine, red and buff; two or three sorts of gentian, all blue ; the common shepherd's-needle, or Yenus'- comb, white ; slender hare's-ear, rather yelloAv; com- mon meadow-saffron, light purple, or white ; common evening primrose, a bright yellow; fine-leaved heatli, crimson ; biting persicaria, red, white, and green ; blackbird weed, greenish white, or reddish ; common strawberry tree, greenish white; yellow mountain saxifrage, yellow, or dotted with red ; maiden pink, rose-color; campion, or catchfly, white, and white and red; common chick-weed, white; narrow-leaved chick-weed mouse-ear, white ; Irish rose, a light blush ; hautboy strawberry ; pheasant's eye, or corn Adonis flower, crimson, and dotted with black; crowfoot, gold-color; common vervain, blueish; ten or eleven sorts of mint, all of different shades of purple and red ; common eye-bright, white, yellow, and purple; two or three sorts of snap-dragon, either blue, violet, and yel- low, or orange; toad-flax, gray, with blue stripes; sweet alysson, white; purple sea-rocket; crane's-bill, two or three sorts, crimson or purple ; marsh-mallow and dwarf-mallow, pale rose or lilac ; large-flowered St. John's-wort, yellow ; hawk-weeds and hawk- beards, yellow; goldy-locks, bright yellow; common FLOWERS OF SEPTEMBER. 145 chamomile, white, and yellow round the edge; sweer lady's-traces, white ; spurge, reddish; red-berried bry- ony, white; jointed pipe-wort, white, and a little co- lored with purple. These are all I can find and think of, papa." ** And your list is a very good one," said Mr. Stock, ^'though a botanist would have added nearly as many more specimens; when, therefore, we consider the fine show of colors m flowers, the beauti- ful varieties in the foliage of the trees, the brilliancy of the sunsets, with the well-tempered heat of the weather, and the delicious fruits that are ready to drop into our mouths, who could, with justice, feel dissatisfied with the month of September 2' 13 CHAPTER X. OCTOBER. " Few flowers, October, coronal thy head. And those are loath'd by the love-kisshig bee, • ••••• Now all the honey of their moutha is shed. • ••••• The violet, too, like an immortal mind, Lives, yet not breathes ; and every nook and bower, Which sun and poets loved, withers — grass, leaf, and flower." Lyric Leaves, " The month of October is frequently a very fine one in our climate," said Mr. Stock to his son Adam, as they were sowing some Mazagan beans in a seed bed under a south wall, hoping that they would survive the winter frosts, and, when transplanted, ripen early in the following spring. *' The weather is often warm," he added, " but not too warm for work ; for the nights have become longer, and therefore the heats of the day have decreased : yet the earth still retains some of the influence of the midsummer sun, and, in consequence, the temperature of October is more agreeable, although, perhaps, not so invigorating as it is three months be- fore the coming on of the dog-days. The autumnal fogs are now come on ; and it is pleasant to watch in the early morning, as the sun gains power, the gradu- ATTRACTIOXS OF OCTOBER. I47 iS 7 '^ ""'' '^^' ?>-ay-colored veil, whicl. af- terwards forms Itself into grand rocky clouds. The sunsets, too, are richly varied and beautiful in Octobe It IS m many respects a cheerful month, for the hav and corn are all safely stored in the farmer's yard • Z hops, too, that flavor and preserve our noble co^nry ales, are picked and stowed away in the merchants- warehouses in their bulky sacks; [called Jocke^'rthe f uus and vegetables, which are to serve for our win! ter feasting and repast, are also gathered. The oak and beech mast are npe for the squirrels to hoard up pigeons. The hedges look red with the fruit of the ha V horn and dog-rose, which supply the blackbird he fieldfare, and the thrush, with manf a hearty med in he bitter weather. Our forests are dressed in "hefr richest CO ors, of sober and sunny auburn, and b igl wl'lhf iTn"""^ dull-looking heaths look gay w h the golden blossoms of the prickly furze. Our cellars, too, are stored with cider; and the ale brewed Adam hat'b "• '""' °' *^ '''''■ '^'^^ ^^ -t how ; nth ^ ""°^°" ''"'• '^'^ => ''"'-^ ^^flection how much cause we may discover for deli-ht and gratitude, wliere, in the first instance, we have felt some despondency or discontent. Every season of the food Vn ''? ''"'' =*"'"'^'='*^^' ''"'"g^ ^''h ■' «b"ndant foodforadmiration and love of the Giver of all things. Now go and fetch your memorandum book and while I am finishing this task of preparing the bed to sow the beans, I will dictate to you, as you write upon ed du ing the present month: you will then be at no I wTll r r " '° "•^ '•'■'' -P'oy-ent of your time! i will do the same each month to the end of the year; I ; 14S ADVANTAGES OF A DIART. and, in the next year, I shall wish you to keep a diary ; that is, a daily record of all you have done in the gar- den : you will by this means more readily amend any errors you may hereafter commit. Besides, by acquir- ing the habit of setting down all you may have observ- ed in the animal and vegetable world immediately around you, you will, by degrees, be laying up a large store of knowledge and useful experience ; and some years hence, when you shall become a man, you may desiie to write upon this, your favorite occupation, for the instruction of others : your diary will then be found useful to you for reference ; in addition to which, the labor of writing for the public will cause you no greater effort than that of inditing a letter to a friend. All young persons should devote a few minutes to putting down upon paper the principal occurrences of the day, and, as often as possible, their thoughts upon those events ; and, while doing this, they should strive to write in as clear and intelligible language as possible. Let them once acquire this habit, and all difficulty in after-life will vanish." In a few minutes Adam had brought his book and pencil, and prepared to receive his father's directions, who dictated to him as fol- lows : — " With respect to the beans I am now sowing to be transplanted hereafter, we must remember to cover them with hand-glasses, if the frosts should prove se- vere ; and upon the first approach of mild weather, when they are about an inch or two above the ground, we shall take them up and set them in rows an inch and a half asunder. " The next thing will be, during the last week in tne month, to sow a few rows of the early Charlton peas in this same south border, about an inch and a EMPLOYMENTS OF OCTOBER, 149 half below the surHice. Should hard frosts visit us, we must cover them with straAv, pea-haulm, or dry fern. These will come ripe early in May, if we have luck, and the season prove favorable. " Transplant some of the lettuces that we sowed last month and in August. Some should be planted under frames ; they will be finer when required for our win- ter salads. Those which are left in the seed beds must be cleared from weeds, and thinned when standing too near together. During the severe weather we must cover the beds with matting stretched over arched hoops. " The small cauliflower plants to be covered with hand-glasses if the weather become wet and cold, par- ticularly at night; raising the glasses during the' day, to admit the fresh air. In the last week of the month we must transplant others from the seed bed into a well-manured south border under glasses, putting two or three under each glass. For about a week, or till they have taken root, the coverings must be kept close ; afterwards, they maybe raised during the day; and during frosty weather shut doAvn again. " For our cabbage plants we must select a piece of good ground, covering it over with rich and rotten ma- nure. This we must dig in, one spade deep, taking care that the manure be properly buried in the bottom of the trenches ; and then set out our plants in rows, two feet asunder, and the same distance between the rows. The weaker plants we will leave in the seed bed, and remove them when the frost has departed. " Hoe between the broccoli plants, and draw up the earth around their stems ; it will protect them during the winter, and promote their growth. " The winter spinach must be kept ptrfectly clear 150 EMPLOYMENTS OF OCTOBER. of weeds this month, and thinned, leaving the plants separated, at a distance of about four or five inches. *' Once a week, and when the weather is perfectly dry, we will tie up the endive with strings of bass, and draw the earth nearly to the top of the leaves. This is the best way of blanching that pleasant salad plant. " Clear well the aromatic herb beds from weeds : I mean the sage, thyme, savory, mint, balm, and so forth. Then scatter some manure over the surface of the ground and dig it slightly in. Cut off the decayed flower stems, and the plants will be the finer for our care in the spring. The mint should be cut dowa close to the ground. " We must, during this month, dress the asparagus beds. This will be done by cutting down all the stalks near to the ground ; hoeing away all the weeds into the alleys ; digging these one spade de«p, and spread- ing the earth evenly over the beds. The old beds should be covered with quite rotten manure, and after- wards with the earth from the alleys. Remember to carry away immediately the stalks of the old plants and the weeds. When this has been done, you may plant in each of the alleys a row of cabbages. " On dry days earth up the celery ; but be careful not to break the leaves, or to bury the hearts of the plants. " As we are all fond of small salad and radishes, you may sow some of each, with some cabbage-lettuce, to cut while it is young. " In the latter part of the month, (if the weather be dry,) we will dig up the carrots and potatoes, and carry them into the cellar for winter use. All the spare ground, too, should be well dug and trenched. " Gather the baking and other winter pears and ap- ples ; and lei them be carefully gathered — not bruised. EMPLOYMENTS OF OCTOBER. 151 Remmd me that, at the end of the month, I look over the wall trees, and prune and nail such as require those operations. All trees, too, that we wish to trans- plant, may be so done at the end of the month. We may plant out, too, and prune our gooseberries and cur- rants. You yourself shall propagate some gooseber- ries and currants; and these are the directions you must follow m performing that operation : Select the best bearmg trees, and cut off the shoots of the present year's wood : shorten these cuttings to the length of about eighteen inches each, and set them half-way in the earth in a shady border, three inches asunder in rows of ten or twelve inches apart. "On a dry day we will dress the strawberry beds: which IS to be done by cutting away all the runners close to the mother plant; clearing the rubbish and- weeds away; hoeing between the plants without dis- turbing the roots ; then by digging up the alleys, and laying a portion of the earth neatly over the beds and closely round the plants. If we would have fine straw- berries next year, we must on no account neglect this , precaution. " The raspberries must be pruned this month, and the young suckers removed to create new plants. ' "The shoots of vines and filberts, &c., should be laid down about five or six inches deep in the earth, and they will have taken root by this time twelvemonth and may be removed. * " Trim the auricula plants in pots ; remove the dead leaves, and the plants themselves away from the as- saults of wet and frost. " Make fresh layers of carnations. Dress and dicr up the flower borders, and transplant such flowers as we may find necessary to be so done. Divide the 152 EMPLOYMENTS OF OCTOBER. roots of others that have too much increased. Plant bulbous roots. Prune and plant all flowering slirubs, and evergreens. In transplanting a tree, take it up, if possible, with its full ball of earth ; when this can- not be done, make a hole sufficiently deep and wide to receive the roots every way with perfect freedom ; then loosen the earth at the bottom of the hole. After hav- ing pruned the long and straggling roots of the plant, and cut away such as are dead or broken, place it per- fectly upright in the hole, and having thrown a small quantity of loose earth, well broken, equally upon the roots, shake the plant gently to make the earth fall in closely about the fibres. When the hole is filled, tread softly round the plant, and water it directly. ** Mow the grass on the lawn, for the last time be- fore next spring ; and weed the gravel-walks frequently and thoroughly." Having finished his instructions for the month, Mr. Stock observed, that plenty of work was provided for them, and that he had named nothing which was not of importance to be attended to. A succession of beautifully clear and serene days, enabled the happy family to make several excursions in their neighborhood. In one spot they saw apples gathering, and visited the press in which the fruit was crushed to make cider. In another field they no- ticed the farmer at his employment of sowing corn for the succeeding year. Their father desired them to ob- serve, that nature herself was engaged in the same task as the husbandman, for that every breeze which passed over some clumps of thistles, carried away a portion of its seed inclosed in a ball of down, nearly as light as the air itself. *' When these have settled on the ground," said he, " the night dews or rain will i BIRDS.— DORMANT ANIMALS. I53 dabble and decay their wings of gauze ; and perhaps eed'suffiT'^r^'"","''^ ''°J''''"S 1^-1. ->1 press tie nitv off.K '^ '"'° "? '""' '° Sive it the opportu- n.ty of taking root, and next year becoming in turn a mother plant " Bella remarked, that the^wall "vs were all goneN " Yes," said her mother, '' we no lo^! ger see those pretty creatures that made their nest on one of the rafters of our barn, and used to fly in and ou over Tom's head while he was carpentering Fa- m.l.nty, and the confidence that he wLld not'disturb them or their young, made them fearless. If thev es- c^e the many perils which surround them by sea and and, we shall no doubt welcome them ag^ain next spring, and perhaps their offspring. The hen ch' f- si"nSUirdsT '"''""° '" '^='^^"^= al-osfall t'r sinking birds have gone, except the faithful blackbird now"t;'t' ^"''.-''-r-''^'^''^*' =•" of-hich s 'g now . but the redwmgand the fieldfare have returned^ so have the dainty snipe, the hooded crow useful to pigeon, who coos as long as the weather keeps mild In some parts of North America, the flocks of wood- to darken the air for a distance of nine or ten miles • and have settled in such numbers upon the trees as o Zl'7r:'''T'' '''^-'-^- ^» theVnTo? t that IS, those which go to sleep durin