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"Very well," she assented, "let me have it"; and with a voice that reflected, to this young man's ears, at least, at one moment the rippling of silver brooks, the trill of woodbirds, the sigh of zephyrs scented with daffodils, and the next the full, round resonance of an animated day in June, she read: *
She saw bright country in her dreams. Prosper was abroad on a spurred horse; his helmet gleamed in the sun; his enemies fell at his onset. The deer browsed about her, from the branches a squirrel peeped down, the woodbirds with kindly peering eyes hopped within reach of her cradled arms. Soon, soon, soon, she should see him!
Last autumn one sat above my head in the dark October woods, and put his little soul into a song that seemed to be Ohhhh! Ohhhh! The leaves are falling: Ohhhh! Ohhhh! A sad voice calling; Ohhhh! Ohhhh! The Woodbirds flying; Ohhhh! Ohhhh! Sweet summer's dying, Dying, Dying. A mist came into my eyes as I listened, and yet I thanked him.
The mountain-laurel clung to the bleak hillside, careless of wintry wind and snow, as its sturdy branches spread year by year, with its evergreen leaves for Christmas cheer, its rosy flowers for spring-time, its fresh beauty free to all as it clothed the wild valley with a charm that made a little poem of the lovely spot where the pines whispered, woodbirds sang, and the hidden brook told the sweet message it brought from the mountain-top where it was born.
All red and silver was this loveliest of Christmas trees! When it was finished, there was a momentary thrill, and they all cried "Ah!" in tones of wonder. Then Hansi noticed that a noble herd of deer had approached; the gentle creatures were looking on with the deepest interest. The woodbirds came flying from all directions, and sang as if it were summer.
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