"THE SWEET O' THE YEAR" 105 



the smell so widely different from the often oppres- 

 sive perfume of other plants, as lilies, narcissuses, 

 or violets. Now just such a healthy milk- fed look, 

 just such a sweet, healthy odor is what we find in 

 cows an odor which breathes around them as they 

 sit at rest in the pasture. The 'lips,' of course, is 

 but a general resemblance to the shape of the petals 

 and suggests the source of the fragrance. The cow- 

 slip, as we have said, is a singularly healthy-looking 

 plant, indeed, nothing about it is more remarkable. 

 It has none of the delicacy and timidity of the prim- 

 rose. All its characters are well and healthily pro- 

 nounced. The paleness is uniform, steady, and 

 rather impresses us as whiteness; and the yellow of 

 the cup is as rich as gold. The odor is not faint, but 

 saccharine and luscious. It does not shrink into the 

 sheltered covert, but courts the free air and sun- 

 shine of the open fields; and instead of its flowers 

 peeping timidly from behind surrounding leaves, it 

 raises them boldly on a stout, sufficient stalk, the 

 most conspicuous object in the meadow. Its poetry 

 is the poetry of common life, but of the most de- 

 licious common life that can exist. The plant is in 

 some respects careless to the verge of disorder; and 

 you should note that carelessness well, till you feel 

 the force of it, as especially in the lame imperfec- 



