grass in the swamps where the broad arrow leaves of the sagittaria fringe the shore and the floating leaves and fragrant blossoms of the water lilies adorn the pond.  The three days’ rain beginning with a soft drizzle and increasing into a steady storm which drives against the face with cutting force and shakes in sheets like waving banners across the wind-swept prairie only adds more variety to the beauties of the grass; and when the still, sweet morning comes, the pure green prairies make us feel that all stain of sin and shame has been washed from the world.

Where the grasses grow the best, there Providence has provided most abundantly for the wealth and the comfort of mankind.  The rich verdure of the meadows is the visible sign of the fruitful soil beneath the fattening clouds above.  The clover and the early hay fill the June fields with fragrance and the grass in the parks and lawns invite toil-worn bodies to rest and comfort.  What wonder Bryant wished to die in June, the month when the grasses tenderly creep over the mounds above tired dust and gently soothe the grief of the loved ones left behind.

* * * * *

The cold May seemed to detract little from the beauty and interest of the woodlands.  The warblers, the humming bird, the tanager, the bob-o-link, the ovenbird, the vireos, the chat, the red start, the oriole, the dickcissel, the black-billed cuckoo, all greeted their friends as numerously as ever.  So with the flowers:  the columbine, the shooting star, the painted cup, the puccoon, the beautiful though inodorous large white trillium, the delicate little corydalis, the star grass and the lady’s slipper, all came within a week of their average time in spite of the cold, and the showy orchis was only just over into June.  May added fifty-four new species of flowers to the April list, according to the record of a single observer whose leisure is limited.  Those who added the forty odd May arrivals in bird land to their April lists may have no such thrilling walks in June, but they may study their feathered friends of the summer, which is better, and if passion for new lists is not satiated, try the flowers instead of the birds.  June should yield a list of a hundred twenty-five different species, not including the grasses, and a very diligent flower-lover will make it much longer.

Transcriber’s Note

The following typographical errors were maintained in this version of this book.

Page   Error
TN-1  21    anl should read and
TN-2  23    live stock for livestock
TN-3  31    “sunburst.’ has the wrong type of close quote
TN-4  47    diskcissel should read dickcissel

Inconsistent hyphenation: 

bell-wort / bellwort blood-root / bloodroot blue-bird / blue bird fly-catchers / flycatchers music-full / musicful root-stock / rootstock whip-poor-will / whippoorwill wood-thrush / woodthrush