The dog-wood gives almost the purple colour of the mulberry; the chesnut softens all with its frequent mass of delicate brown, and the sturdy oak carries its deep green into the very lap of winter.

These tints are too bright for the landscape painter; the attempt to follow nature in an American autumn scene must be abortive.

The colours are in reality extremely brilliant, but the medium through which they are seen increases the effect surprisingly.

Of all the points in which America has the advantage of England, the one I felt most sensibly was the clearness and brightness of the atmosphere.

By day and by night this exquisite purity of air gives tenfold beauty to every object.