see I now? The night is fair,
The storm of grief, the clouds of care,
The wind, the rain, have pass'd away;
The lamps are lit, the fires burn bright,
The house is full of life and light:
It is the Golden Wedding day.
The guests come thronging in once more,
Quick footsteps sound along the floor,
The trooping children crowd the stair,
And in and out and everywhere
Flashes along the corridor
The sunshine of their golden hair.

On the round table in the hall
Another Ariadne's Crown
Out of the sky hath fallen down;
More than one Monarch of the Moon
Is drumming with his silver spoon;
The light of love shines over all.

O fortunate, O happy day!
The people sing, the people say.
The ancient bridegroom and the bride,
Smiling contented and serene,
Upon the blithe, bewildering scene,
Behold, well pleas'd, on every side
Their forms and features multiplied,
As the reflection of a light
Between two burnish'd mirrors gleams,
Or lamps upon a bridge at night
Stretch on and on before the sight,
Till the long vista endless seems.

LXVIII. EARTHWORMS.

CHARLES DARWIN--1809-1882.

_From_ THE FORMATION OF VEGETABLE MOULD THROUGH THE ACTION OF WORMS.

Worms have played a more important part in the history of the world than
most persons would at first suppose. In almost all humid countries they
are extraordinarily numerous, and for their size possess great muscular
power. In many parts of England a weight of more than ten tons of dry
earth annually passes through their bodies and is brought to the surface
on each acre of land; so that the whole superficial bed of vegetable
mould passes through their bodies in the course of every few years. From
the collapsing of the old burrows the mould is in constant though slow
movement, and the particles composing it are thus rubbed together. By
these means fresh surfaces are continually exposed to the action of the
carbonic acid in the soil, and of the humus-acids which appear to be
still more efficient in the decomposition of rocks. The generation of
the humus-acids is probably hastened during the digestion of the many
half-decayed leaves which worms consume. Thus the particles of earth,
forming the superficial mould, are subjected to conditions eminent