FROM BLOMIDON TO SMOKY. 25 



exquisite flowers somewhat resembling those of 

 the forget-me-not. Flowers fully developed 

 were delicate blue, while buds and half-opened 

 blossoms were pink. It seemed to me that I 

 never saw a plant more perfectly in harmony 

 with its surroundings. Lifting no surface for 

 the storm winds to seize upon, it nevertheless 

 covered much ground. Its delicate leaf tints 

 sympathized with those of the polished stones 

 and sea-bleached driftwood upon which it grew, 

 yet its flowers drew from sky and sea a more 

 pronounced beauty of color sufficient to allure 

 the butterfly and attract the bee. The botanical 

 name of this charming plant is Mertensia mari- 

 tima^ though why Gray's manual calls its flowers 

 white is more than the Cape Breton plant can 

 answer. 



As we neared the mainland, stunted spruces 

 and firs grew more abundant and bolder, flowers 

 more numerous, and the road plainer and less 

 rocky. Birds other than the weird terns flew 

 before us, or sang to us from their cover. 

 When we reached the higher ground, the sense 

 of novelty and isolation faded, and the world 

 seemed more like its old southern self. The 

 road ran along the shore as closely as it could 

 without much winding, and as we progressed 

 northward we left St. Anne's Bay behind us, 

 and gained a view southeastward along the coast 



