BETWEEN DIANTHUS AND EPILOBIUM 103 
competitors out of the field that no other St. John’s Wort 
has a chance of admiration, except Hypericum Coris. 
Coris ‘and reptans set up claims together on the Merry 
and Cherry Pecksniff scheme: ‘ No connection with the 
establishment over the way, and if the quality of goods 
there don’t please you, you are respectfully requested to 
favour me with a call.’ And hence it is that these two 
manage not to enter into any rivalry. Reptans lies on the 
ground, adhaeret pavimento; Coris makes a little aspir- 
ing bush about six inches to a foot in height. Reptans 
has green, ovate leaves ; Coris has wiry, blue-grey ones : 
reptans has one big flower to a shoot ; Coris has half a 
dozen smaller, more golden ones, arranged in loose airy 
clouds. There the dissimilarity ends, for Corts is as 
happy-tempered and as companionable as reptans in 
every way, though I hardly think he seeds to the same 
extent. I collected him years ago in the valleys leading 
up to St. Martin Vesubie, where you will find him sprout- 
ing out of almost every shady rock along the roadside, 
among the broad mats of Savifraga lingulata. So far as 
I know, he propagates best from cuttings, and is only 
unfortunate in having the unsurpassable reptans for a 
brother. For the first half-dozen Alpines must not 
include two Hypericums, or where should we put Gentian, 
Primula, Saxifrage, Viola? And Hypericum reptans, what- 
ever happens, can never be ousted from his place—not 
even to make room for the only less perfect Corvs. 
Of the Mallows not one, I think, has any value for the 
rock-garden. At least I rack my memory in vain to find 
one; for the only lovely Alpine member of the family 
is the gorgeous little scarlet trailing Malvastrum coc- 
cineum, which loves heat and drought to such an extent 
that it makes no pretence at being hardy here. It won’t 
even go so far as to flower even once, Ah, I have got 
hold of another—Callirhoé imvolucrata. 'The Callirhoes 
