OPEN WOODS 333 



because of its delicious fragrance. It delights in pine woods, 

 which it literally carpets in early spring with delicate, modest 

 bloom. You may dig the snow away from shaded corners and 

 find it bright and sweet, looking at you with almost startled eyes. 

 In places it has been plucked to its total extinction. One trembles 

 to see such flowers exposed in great bunches on our city streets 

 for sale. Vandal armies of Italian and Irish boys tramp through 

 our woods and pull them up by the roots for a few cents' gain. 

 Nor are they the only ones who threaten the extermination of 

 some of our beautiful native plants. City girls and even botanical 

 classes on their excursions gather more flowers than they need, 

 not being careful to leave the root behind. Will not those who 

 love flowers do what they can for their protection.'* 



The Mayflower is associated, whether correctly or not, with 

 Plymouth Rock and the landing of the Pilgrims. The legend, as 

 beautifully given by Whittier, is that, after their first dreadful 

 winter, this was the first flower to greet the Pilgrims, and that 

 they took courage when they saw so bright a beauty blooming so 

 bravely in poor soil under wintry snows. 



Mrs. Sara J. Hale, in her book Flora s Interpreter, makes this 

 astonishing statement: "The trailing arbutus is a sort of straw- 

 berry-vine found in New England in March, the earliest of all 

 spring flowers." 



64, Prince's Pine. Pipsissewa 



Chimdphila umbellata ("winter loving"). — Family, Heath. 

 Color, light pink, with a purple tinge from the anthers. Leaves, 

 shining, smooth, evergreen, acute at apex, lance - shaped, 

 sharply toothed, whorled on stem or scattered. Time, June. 



Sepals, 5. Petals, 5, round, concave, open. Stamens, 10, 

 with hairy filaments and purple, divided anthers. Pistil, i, 

 with a broad, sticlcy stigma, 5-divided along the border. 



A beautiful plant, embodying the very essence of the woods, 

 with flowers, 3 or 4, terminating a leafy stem. Later in the season, 

 when the leaves alone are left, by pulling up one of the long, un- 

 derground shoots covered with the leaf-branches we have a pretty 

 bit of festooning for the house. Branches 6 to 10 inches high. 



