OLD-FASHIONED FLOWERS 



they crowd humbly like importunate 

 beggars, hiding their bright dresses 

 among the weeds and holding their 

 frightened perfumes as best they may, 

 so as not to attra6t attention. 



But, even there, the Pelargonium, 

 red with indignation, and the Begonia, 

 crimson with rage, came to surprise 

 and hustle the unoffending little band ; 

 and they fled to the farms, the cemete- 

 ries, the little gardens of the reftories, 

 the old maid's houses and the country 

 convents. And now hardly anywhere, 

 save in the oblivion of the oldest vil- 

 lages, around tottering dwellings, far 

 from the railways and the nursery- 

 gardener's overbearing hot-houses, do 

 we find them again with their natural 



n is] 



