Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1882-12-25
NATURES PREPARATION FOR
WINTER.

leaf of sumac and maple and
the insect music have all passed
away, and with them the season for
plant growth has come to a close,
and plant and animal life begins to
battle again with the frost and ice OF
winter months. Nature has provid-
ed for us in the abundant fruits of
the earth that are to disappear that
men and the higher animals may |
fight this winter battle successfully;
but in producing these, she has not |
forgotten that she has work to do in
wears to come. She has made pro- |
vision for taking up the work again
with as vigorous hand as ever,
when the spring months return. The
abundance and variety of her meth
DDS for tiding life over the dreariness
of winter and beginning successfully
her work at the earliest moment, are
marvellous. If species of plant or
insect is to die by the frost, the seed
of the one and the egg of the other
have been prepared for new gencr-
alton the coming year. If the plant
is to live, its buds are already pre-
pared to expand into leaves and
flowers, OF bulbs and root-stocks hay
inc the potency of buds, are hidden
beneath the earth. and in the tree
and shrub, in bulb and root-stock are
garnered rich stores of food for the
quick development of leaf and flower
when the warmth of spring wakes the
buds to the new life. If the insect
is to live, it has instinctively prepar-
ed it's store Of food, or it will sleep
unmindful of wintry storm and wake
at the appointed time welcome Wis
itor or pest, as its race has been
before. The higher animals are pro-
vided with thicker coats, with gath
cred stores of food, or with some
sure provision for their safety. Even
the wide-leaved trees, that might be
broken by wind and loads of snow,
have dropped their wealth of leaves,
and like vessels we'll commanded.
present only bare poles to the
storm.
But in the animal kingdom, there
are three remarkable provisions al
ready alluded to, for the preservation
of those whose supplies of food are
likely to fail. The first is the in
stinct to store food as best seen
among insects in the honey bee,
among birds in the noisy jay and
among our mammals in the striped
squirrel or chipmunk. The bee-keep-
er knows his bees must have so many
pounds of honey to be able to winter
without his help, and the blue-jay
apparently the most reckless bird
that flies, stuffs acorns and corn into
every crack and Granny he can find,
as though he intended not only to
have enough for himself, but expect
ed to be robbed of his scattered
| hoard, as he himself has lived, by
robbery or worse. But the little
chipmunk is model provider.
| AcOrns, beech-nuts, corn or pump
kin seeds-anything that will feed a
squirrel in winter-are equally well
come to him. And when he is on
his way to his hole, if ever a fellow
had "cheek" he has How he gets
such loads into one small mouth is s
marvel that no one would credit who
had not seen him at his harves
work.
The second of natures methods O
preserving animal life is by hiberna
ton. The lower animals, as insect
and some reptiles, become to all ap
, pearances entirely dormant, live with
out essential change during the col
s of winter and wake to active life onl
e when food is ready for them. 9th
ers, like the woodchuck after grow
n ing fat on the abundant food of Au
l. tumn, roll themselves up in nests an
sleep. Vital action is lowered, the
: consume but little oxygen and liv
upon the stores of fat with whic
they went into winter quarters. Th
black bear generally hibernates i
caves and under old tree-tops, but b
is never so sleepy that he is nc
| ready for q battle if disturbed an
| father south he does not hibernate {
1 all. In New England, he grows f;
Il on green corn, fOOIS ana nuts IN IL
Il fall, and so has had the credit {
! growing fat by Sucking his paws.
] This old action is only another illu
= tration of theories in mechanic lii
that something can come from not
ing. The truth about the bear
that he grows thin every day he lii
r in his den.
The third general method of pr
serving the species through winter
by migration as best seen amor
!, birds, but practiced also by some
Y the higher animals. AS the autun
" advances, many of the smaller bir
On On from our midst and from the
#. north quietly make their way sou
ep, to find warm weather and new stor
aHs- of food for the winter months. OF
are er assemble in flocks and seem to ha
grave consultations over the probe,
ee' ed journey. The metallic note
the wild goose comes to us fro
among the clouds as night and d
= the fockS wpnd their waV in lO