I
It is the stilling of the insects that makes for the first of these silences; the hushing of the winds the second; the magic touch of the cold the third.
II
The voice of the great spring storm should be added to these, and the shriek of the wind about the house.
III
You should not only hear, but you should also feel this split—passing with a thrilling shock beneath your feet.
V
How many other of the small voices do you know? The chirp of the kinglets; the scratching of mice in a shock of corn; the—— but you write a story about them. So listen for yourself.
VI
Do all you can to preserve the quail. Don’t shoot.
VIII
Along toward spring you should hear him “drumming” for a mate—a rapid motion of his wings much like the hollow sound of a distant drum.
CHAPTER XIII
TO THE TEACHER
Do all that you can to teach the signs of the zodiac, the days of the seasons, and all the doings of the astronomical year. All that old lore of the skies is in danger of being lost. Some readers will say: “The author is not consistent! He loves the winter and here he is impatient to be done with it!” Some explanation on your part may be necessary: that the call of the spring is the call of life, a call so loud and strong that all life—human and wild, animal and vegetable,—hears it and is impatient to obey. If possible take your scholars upon a walk at this raw edge of the season when they will feel the chill but also the stirring of life all about them.
FOR THE PUPIL
Get an almanac and study the old weather signs.
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“When descends on the Atlantic”: from Longfellow’s “Seaweed.”
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frog or hyla: The hylas belong to the family Hylidæ and include our tree-toad, and our little tree-frog.
“For, lo, the winter is past,”: from The Song of Songs, or The Song of Solomon, in the Bible.