Autumn Colours These sudden storms, followed by hours of brilliant
sunshine, have conjured the most extravagant colour schemes. In the early autumn, the jaded green took on a springtide freshness. I noticed one day, while standing at the head of Lake Bala in North Wales just after sunrise, that the great woods of sycamore and oak along the northern shore were shining under a pale green fire, as though the buds were just opened. And it is the same here in the south, amongst the cherry orchards of Kent. Some of the trees are already taking on that delicate, transparent coral tint which accompanies the fall of the leaves ; but those which have not reached this stage are still wearing their April dresses. One old tree, uprooted by a doodle-bomb, is lying along the ground, roots in the air, and a new shroud of bright green foliage bursting from the doomed branches, making even death graceful. That is the only sign of death, for the flare and tumble of normal autumn events are not emblems of death, any more than is a child's journey up to bed, lit by a smoky candle-flame, to a dance of ominous shadows. It is sleep. not death ; a gathering of strength. All this welter of colour is really a glimpse into the furnace of life, in nature's power-house.
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