THE OPEN SEA BEACH 297 



resembling our garden portulaca (Sesuvium por- 

 tulacastrum) covers the ground. This also lives 

 along the seashores throughout the West Indies, 

 and, according to Coulter, it grows inland through 

 Texas to California, presumably m saline locali- 

 ties. Everywhere along our sandy shores the 

 goatsfoot vine (IpomcEa pes-caprcB) with its trailing 

 stems, round notched leaves, and great purple 

 flowers binds the loose sand together with its 

 roots. A tall shrub (Suriana maritima) has yel- 

 low blossoms remarkable because all their parts 

 are in fives, five sepals, five, clawed petals, ten 

 stamens, and five pistils. In many places a cousin 

 of the cultivated heliotrope (Tournfortia gnapha- 

 loides) grows in immense clumps bearing small 

 white flowers in scorpoid racemes, which in Eng- 

 lish means they are borne on one side of stems 

 which are rolled up like scorpion tails. On dry 

 sand banks the Spanish bayonet (Yucca aloifolia) 

 grows to almost tree-like dimensions. Its stiff, 

 strong leaves are armed with terrible spines so it 

 is better to admire at a distance its splendid head 

 of tulip-shaped, white flowers. 



Along with the Yucca the shore grape (Coccolobis 

 uviferd) forms small forests. Often its branches 



