task now; these piles will soon be neatly stowed away under sheds, and in wood-houses, for they are all obliged to be removed from the streets, early in the spring, by one of the village laws.
Wood is the only fuel used in this county. In such a cold climate we need a large supply of it. Five years since it sold here for seventy-five cents a half cord; it now costs a dollar the half cord. Iron stoves are very much used here; they are considered cheaper, warmer, and safer than fire-places. But how much less pleasant they are! The smell of the heated iron is always disagreeable, and the close atmosphere they give to a room must necessarily prove unhealthy. A fine, open, wood fire is undeniably the pleasantest mode of heating a room; far more desirable than the coal of England, the peat of Ireland, the delicate laurel charcoal and bronze brazier of Italy, or the unseen furnace of Russia. The very sight of a bright hickory or maple fire is almost enough to warm one; and what so cheerful as the glowing coals, the brilliant flame, and the star-like sparks which enliven the household hearth of a bracing winter's evening as twilight draws on! Such a fire helps to light as well as heat a room; the warm glow it throws upon the walls, the flickering lights and shadows which play there as the dancing flames rise and fall, express the very spirit of cheerful comfort. The crackling, and rattling, and singing, as the flame does its cheerful work, are pleasant household sounds. Alas, that our living forest wood must ere long give way to the black, dull coal; the generous, open chimney to the close and stupid stove!
Wednesday, 31st.—Cold. Walked in the afternoon. It began to snow while we were out; but one minds the falling snow very
