224 FLOWERS AND FOLKS. 



life from them, does not thereby lose an iota 

 of its native character. If a man is only 

 original to begin with, so the parable 

 seems to run, he is under a kind of neces- 

 sity to remain so (as Shakespeare did), no 

 matter how much help he may draw from 

 alien sources. 



This truth of the vegetable world is the 

 more noteworthy, because along with it there 

 goes a very strong and persistent habit of 

 individual variation. The plant is faithful 

 to the spirit of its inherited law, but is not 

 in bondage to the letter. Our "high-bush 

 blackberries," to take a familiar illustration, 

 are all of one species, but it does not follow 

 that they are all exactly alike. So far from 

 it, I knew in my time and the school-boys 

 of the present day are not less accurately 

 informed, we may presume where to find 

 berries of all shapes, sizes, and flavors. 

 Some were sour, and some were bitter, and 

 some (I can taste them yet) were finger- 

 shaped and sweet. And what is true of 

 Rubus mllosus is probably true of all plants, 

 though in varying degrees. I do not re- 

 call a single article of our annual wild crop 

 blueberries, huckleberries, blackberries, 



