58

THE FELLERS AND THE FOREST-TREES.

the east side of the house; while, on the west, were two large orchards.

But in front of our dwelling was another lofty hill, having its side covered with what we called "The Wood." This, although a full mile in length, was only the remains of what had once been an immense forest.

Many a day have I spent in the wood, and about what I have seen and heard and done there I could relate some strange stories.

My companions were my brothers and the children of a few cottagers, who lived in the neighbourhood and were employed upon my father's farm.

The wood was the place for a game. There we played at hunt-the-hare, or at hide-and-seek. Sometimes we tried who best could climb the trees; and sometimes we went nutting, or picking blackberries and sloes. One fact I must mention with sorrow: -we were often engaged in searching for nests, that we might plunder the eggs, or "rob the poor birds of their young."

But what pleased us most of all, and indeed delighted every body, whether youthful or aged, was the sight of the fellers cutting down the noble forest-trees, most of which were sturdy old oaks.

No sooner did the sound of the axe reach our ears than we flew to the spot where the men were at work; and oh, how we rejoiced to witness the fall of a very tall tree, with a crash that could be heard at a surprising distance.

Then we watched the men while they stripped the tree of its bark, or lopped off its branches; and, after its trunk had lain for some time entirely bare, we were highly amused to see them trying to move it out of the wood. Six or eight horses were frequently required. Hooks were fixed in the trunk, with chains attached to them and to the horses. They had much difficulty in getting it

over the old roots and stumps and moss with which the ground was overspread. The fellers had often to use their axes and saws as they went along, and to cut or break away whatever prevented their passage; for besides the large and lofty trees, there were young ones, which, with brambles and thorns, filled up nearly all the space between them, so that it was hard indeed to find a way, through which the trunk of the tree that was felled could be dragged along.

When they got it to the road nearest the wood, they fastened the horses to some tackle, by which they lifted the trunk into a carriage. This they sufficiently loaded with trees cut down by the fellers, and taken one by one through the wood in the manner described; and then it was drawn to the timber-yard of the man who had bought them, and there they were sawn into planks.

The small branches which were chopped off the trees, and which the country folk call "the spray,' were bound in bundles and stored up in a rick. A rick sometimes contains thousands of bundles. These are used for firewood, and are sold, a load at a time, to the farmers and cottagers.

My brothers and I enjoyed a rich treat on the cold winter nights, when, gathered round a blazing wood fire in the old farm-house in which we were born, we talked of the pleasures we felt in the wood, and especially those derived from the sight of the Fellers and the Forest-trees.

THE FALL OF MAN.

SERPENTS are looked upon by both man and animals with utter dislike. In those countries where they are numerous they are the occasion of considerable inconvenience and fear. Much care is necessary to guard against being bitten by them;

their bite being always attended with great danger, and in many cases producing speedy death.

All living things seem in dread of them; and instances have been known in which the mere sight of one has deprived smaller animals of the power of motion, and caused them to die of fright. In hot countries, the frogs and other reptiles, as well as many insects, keep up a loud noise at night; but we have known all these within reach of the sound hushed to silence in a moment by the cry of a snake, so much alarmed are they at being near so venomous a creature. The whip" snake for instance, a very poisonous kind, makes a peculiar whistling sound, and the terror produced by it will instantly hush hundreds of frogs, crickets, and such other nocturnal disturbers of the peace.

When a person is bitten by a venomous snake, although the bite can scarcely be seen, the poison rapidly spreads over the whole body; and, although the manner in which this takes place cannot be perceived, the effect is soon visible in the death of the person so bitten. No wonder people are afraid of snakes!

But what has this to do with "The fall of man?" It must be remembered, that it was a serpent that was made the instrument of Satan's attempt to poison the mind of man-not by its bite, but by the wicked thoughts he put into Eve-and just as poison spreads over the bodies of those who are bitten by these venomous reptiles, so did evil thoughts and feelings spread themselves over the minds and hearts of Adam and Eve when they believed Satan more than God. The consequences of their letting Satan poison their minds so, we all know. Not only did they lose their holiness and their happiness together, but all their descendants have sinful natures or characters too; and the world, instead of being filled with good and happy beings, has be

come a place filled with sinners, and with suffering, sorrow, and death. Oh! how should we hate sin.

Some may perhaps think, though they do not like to say it, that the punishment of the sin of Adam and Eve was greater than it deserved; but such people forget that it was a sin without the least excuse, as well as one that showed just as much, if not more, their determination to disobey God than any other could. They had but a single command to obey, and that an easy one, so that in disobeying this, they broke the whole law of God, as well as sinned without excuse. The simpler a command is, and the fewer the commands which are given to us, the greater the sin of disobedience.

Do not therefore let us think lightly of Adam and Eve's sin, but remember that their punishment was just; and, while we reflect on the fearful consequences which flowed from it, let us love the God who, though offended in a wilful and daring manner, resolved on the plan of salvation by which Adam and his descendants might not only be saved from the punishment of sin, but be made holy again and fit for the heavenly paradise above.

EFFECT OF SIN IN THE OLD WORLD.

ALL young people have read accounts of Etna, Vesuvius, and other burning mountains or volcanoes, and have felt that the eruptions which have from time to time taken place from these mountains, are indeed terrible. To witness the burning lava rushing down the sides of the mountains, sweeping everything before it, and turning green and fruitful spots into brown and barren wastes overturning stately trees-changing the course of streams-and sometimes overwhelming villages and towns in its course, must have been