THE APRIL MOON 105 CONCERNING SMALL OWLS 111 A HIDDEN HIGHWAY 117 WEATHERCOCKS 127 APPLE-BLOSSOMS 133 THE BUILDING OF THE NEST 139 A MEADOW MUD-HOLE 147 AN OPEN WELL 164 _PART III.—IN SUMMER._ A NOISOME WEED 171 A WAYSIDE BROOK 178 WAYSIDE TREES 183 SKELETON-LIFTING 186 WHY I PREFER A COUNTRY LIFE 190 A MIDSUMMER OUTING 197 A WORD ABOUT KNOWLEDGE 203 THE NIGHT-SIDE OF NATURE 207 THE HERBS OF THE FIELD 215 _PART IV.—IN AUTUMN._ A LAKE-SIDE OUTING 221 DEW AND FROST 227 A HERMIT FOR THE DAY 232 SNOW-BIRDS 243 BLUE JAYS 249 THE GROWTH OF TREES 257 FOSSIL MAN IN THE DELAWARE VALLEY 260 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ PART I. IN WINTER. ------- A Winter Sunrise. The waning moon was scarcely visible in the western sky and not a star shone overhead, when I ventured out of doors, at the call of the gathering crows. These noisy scavengers of the river’s shore had evidently slept with one eye open, and at the first faint glimmering of the dawn signaled, in no uncertain tones, the coming day. Across the brown meadows floated their clamorous cries and roused me when my own slumber was most profound; but I responded promptly, willing at least, if not wildly anxious, to witness a winter sunrise. I have said the meadows were brown; such was their color when I saw them last; but now, every wrinkled blade of last year’s grass was daintily feathered with pearly frost. A line, too, of steel-gray crystals topped every rail of the old worm fence, and capped the outreaching branches of the scattered trees. The glint of splintered glass filled the landscape.