ANOTHER HARDY GARDEN BOOK 



Scarcely did I dare all Summer to think 

 of this garden, and no mention of it was 

 made in any letters received, so that upon 

 our return the middle of September I went 

 to look at it, expecting to see a bare expanse, 

 broken by dead evergreens and brown Box- 

 edging; but the rains had begun the very 

 day we sailed, and the Summer had been 

 cool with frequent rains. 



It was just sunset when we reached home 

 that September day, and as I stood on the 

 marble steps, looking down upon what my 

 imagination had portrayed as a dead gar- 

 den, it seemed as if a miracle had been 

 wrought. The evergreens were green and 

 flourishing, the Box-edging was covered 

 with tender shoots of new growth, the grass 

 of the paths was thick and free from weeds 

 and the beds were rilled with blooming 

 Asters, of which there were certainly hun- 

 dreds in each bed, and although three colors 

 had been used, white, palest pink, and faint 

 blue, each bed contained but one variety. 

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