IN CALIFORNIA 93 



Herrick, than whom none of the poets had a 

 prettier fancy in flowers, calls violets ''maids of 

 honor to the spring," and you may be sure Flora 

 did not forget California in her apportionment of 

 these vernal handmaidens. Species white and spe- 

 cies blue, species yellow and species of all these 

 colors and a dash of brown thrown in all these are 

 to be gathered in one situation\or another, but yel- 

 low is the color that predominates; and blue vio- 

 lets, so common in Eastern woods and fields are but 

 infrequently seen in California. To a far greater 

 extent, too, than in the East, the petals of the vari- 

 ous species are of varied hues, pansy-like. Of this 

 character is the commonest species of the south, the 

 yellow Viola pedunculata or wild pansy, whose two 

 upper petals are conspicuously painted a warm 

 brown on the back. It comes with the shooting 

 stars in February, an incarnation of jaunty bright- 

 ness, and Lowell, had he seen it, might have found 

 it as worthy the golden riot of his fancy as that yel- 

 low flower he did immortalize the buccaneering 

 dandelion of our lawns. 



In the same choice company will be found the 

 first brodiaeas of the year little compact heads of 

 lilac topping slender stems, with a grass-like leaf or 

 two. They are among the best known and best be- 

 loved of wilding blooms in California ; and the spe- 



