New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-04-30
4 BACKYARD SPRING.

Il
The month that ends to-day has been marked
by many storms and by an almost continuous
rawnc,s Of temperature. Undoubtedly this has
been due to The fact that in the great stretches
of tho continent north of the United States
winter has not yet relaxed its grip. Since last
November an unprcccdentedly large quantity
of snow has fallen. and the climatic conditions
have been such that in the higher l1iltndcs
much of this snow has remained long AFTER the
usual period of its disappearance. We doubt
not. indeed that to-day there is excellent sleigh
rg in many rarts of Canada that ale not wont
10 be considered Arctic in climate The incvl-
table result Of this has been to impart chill
10 the tcmpcraturc Of the whole northern por-
ton of the continent and when the wind has
blown from these extended snow fields we have
experienced, not only the chill but the very
pres ,ncc Of winter
BIT the ability Of Nature 10 adapt herself
10 all climatic contingencies is unlimited. Her
adjustments are marvellous in their accuracy
and perfection. When she cannot do what she
would she doe, what she can. II she Is unable
10 produce for lis the bud and the flower on the
day when they are due She holds them i'll hCT
laboratory until il is safe for them 10 appear
ALWAYS and ever She is ready 10 meet any
conditions that arise. Men may grumh!e I'M
pot,nilv at the weather or clumsily change
their plans because of il. But Nature never
crumblcs she never strikes, nor does She ever
change her plans or rather, continuous change
is the very law Of her being. Her movement
in certain direct ons may be temporarily ar
rested but finally and in some way, she will
fulfil her divine mission
For this reason the bachwardncss of spring
during the present month suggests to the
thoughtful mind not the impotence, but the
power Of Nature. Her seeming torpor only
vols her wondrous ACTIVITY In ways that the
careless observer rcclis not Of she has been
ccasolcSsly busy, preparing Tor The delayed
epiphany of spring, when the season will greet
MS with the lcaiy glory of the forest, and the
tender vcrdurc Of the field and the fragrant
garlands Of the early flowers. Nor with all IFS
back Nardnc.s are the signs of spring wanting
even now The arbutus with its sweet though
fugitive perfume, has bloomcd. The hepaica
has reared its exquisite flower amid the dead
leaves Of the woods The spring beauties,
ancnoncs and vioets, have been found by the
lover Of Nature in many soqucsercd spots
Other varieties Of early plants and flowers arc
beginning TO appear in rapid succession. The
grass also has begun to grow luXurianty and
nothing in the whole rcpcrtory of the season
is more fauItessly lovely than the green grass
Of early spring, except, it may be, the buds
and blooms of tho trees as they are about to
burst forth.
In a few days the landscape will be glorfed
by the fruit trees in bloom, and the senses will
be cnthrallcd by their matchcss perfumes. To
be in the country at such time as this, when
the landscape is spattcrcd with the glory of
opening leaf and budding flower, and the blue
sky is tleckcd with the great white, ilcccy
clouds Of spring. and the binds sing in joyous
melody, is an experience that no toiling dwcller
in the city should fOrcgO The artificial and
conventional life that man has constructed for
himself ought not to be scorncd. IL is way
mark Of his moral and social progress. 1t
puts within his reach many kinds of physical
comfort and intellectual enjoyment that cnnobe
existence and enlarge the horizon of achieve
ment AMI hope. Bat while the town and the
city do so much for modern civilization in these
directions. the life that can be lived in them is
not complete. No man can long continue TO
live at his best. or think at his best, who al
lows his sympathetic love of Nature to shrivel
mp or die. Books cannot tell us everything
that is worth knowing; nor can the artificial
functions of civilized life howsoever refined
they may be, satisfy all the cravings Of the
human soul We all need at some time or
other to escape from the surface life Of routine
in which most Of us live and stand in the great
temple of Nature ont in the fields, or in the
woods, or on the scashorc. To stand thus oc-
casonally in tho silent presence chamber of
eternity gives us . clearer vision Of the great
things of life, u trilcr perspective of its rca-
tons, and Il more accurate conception Of mans
real place in the scheme of creation.