. Strolls by starlight and sunshine;. Natural history. NIGHT WITCHERY. 57 Who has listened to the aeolian - harp of the telegraph ? ' What wondrous harmony is here wooed from the passing breeze, or almost from the calm air itself—or from some remote tem- pest, perhaps — and reverberated in cathedral tones to the ear ' laid close against the resonant, weather-seasoned pole! Did the reader ever listen close against the dead pine-tree and marvel at the sounds of teeming life thus disclosed within — life which knows no night nor day nor rest? Think you that the wood- pecker in its snug cave aloft,
. Strolls by starlight and sunshine;. Natural history. NIGHT WITCHERY. 57 Who has listened to the aeolian - harp of the telegraph ? ' What wondrous harmony is here wooed from the passing breeze, or almost from the calm air itself—or from some remote tem- pest, perhaps — and reverberated in cathedral tones to the ear ' laid close against the resonant, weather-seasoned pole! Did the reader ever listen close against the dead pine-tree and marvel at the sounds of teeming life thus disclosed within — life which knows no night nor day nor rest? Think you that the wood- pecker in its snug cave aloft, or the squirrel in the hollow rail, has heard your stealthy footfall through its door-way? No; the tidings have come through turf and root and trunk, vibrated into' their being. If you would know the haunting tenants of the si- lent beech by your side in the dark woods, lay your ear closely against its bark, when, if the trunk be roughly struck, the slight- est movement within its heart" is betrayed in the vibrant wood and conducted to your ear. More than once in my strolls have I thus listened beneath the flicker's hole, and heard the clinging claws apparently beneath the bark at my ear as the sharp head peered out from the little round door-way Please note that these images are extracted from scanned page images that may have been digitally enhanced for readability - coloration and appearance of these illustrations may not perfectly resemble the original Gibson, W. Hamilton (William Hamilton), 1850-1896. New York, Harper & brothers
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, booksubjectnaturalhistory, booky
