COUNTRY LIFE
AN early crop of mushrooms, a basket of blackberries or anything that will turn a shilling attracts old R. and even the cold spell gives him an opportunity. Out come his saw and axe and a battered pram, and off he goes to bring back a tree, or as much of a tree as he can get away with without being arrested by anyone in authority. He has to work hard for his money. Sometimes he cuts down a living tree without bothering whether it is of a wood that burns green or not, and at other times he hunts for a fallen log and hauls it away to his " barrow." When he gets the timber home—a journey made at dusk as a rule—he cuts it up and puts it into sacks which he sells for three or four shillings each. R.'s first venture in the seasonal trade stimulates a few others in the village, and for a week or two one encounters furtive little parties carrying or trailing wood home.
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