144 Old Time Gardens 



they were seldom satisfactory if clipped, for the broad- 

 spreading leaves were always gray with dust, and 

 they often had a " rust " which wholly destroyed 

 their beauty. The finest clipped Lilac hedge I ever 

 saw is at Indian Hill, Newburyport. It was set out 

 about 1850, and is compact and green as Privet; 

 the leaves are healthy, and the growth perfect down 

 to the ground ; it is an unusual example of Lilac 

 growth a perfect hedge. An undipped Lilac 

 hedge is lovely in its blooming; a beautiful one 

 grows by the side of the old family home of Mr. 

 Mortimer Howell at West Hampton Beach, Long 

 Island. To this hedge in May come a-begging 

 dusky city flower venders, who break off and carry 

 away wagon loads of blooms. As the fare from and 

 to New York is four dollars, and a wagon has to be 

 hired to convey the flowers from the hedge two miles 

 to the railroad station, there must be a high price 

 charged for these Lilacs to afford any profit ; but 

 the Italian flower sellers appear year after year. 



Lilacs bloom not in our ancient literature ; they 

 are not named by Shakespeare, nor do I recall any 

 earlier mention of them than in the essay of Lord 

 Bacon on "Gardens," published about 1610, where 

 he spelled it Lelacke. Blue-pipe tree was the ancient 

 name of the Lilac, a reminder of the time when pipes 

 were made of its wood ; I heard it used in modern 

 speech once. An old Narragansett coach driver 

 called out to me, " Ye set such store on flowers, 

 don't ye want to pick that Blue-pipe in Fender 

 Zeke's garden ?" a deserted garden and home at 

 Fender Zeke's Corner. This man had some of the 



