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Old Time Gardens 



A pleasing little book entitled Dante's Garden 

 has collected evidence, from his writings, of Dante's 

 love of green, growing things. The title is rather 

 strained, since he rarely names individual flowers, 

 and only refers vaguely to their emblematic signifi- 

 cance. I would have entitled the book Dante 's Forest, 

 since he chiefly refers to trees ; and the Italian gar- 

 dens of h i r, 

 days were of 

 trees rather 

 than flowers. 

 There are pas- 

 sages in his 

 writings which 

 have led some 

 of his worship- 

 pers to believe 

 that his child- 

 hood waspassed 

 in a garden ; 

 but these refer- 

 ences are very 

 indeterminate. 



Garden of Mary Washington. 



The picture 

 of a deserted 

 garden, with its sad sentiment has charmed the fancy 

 of many a poet. Hood, a true flower-lover, wrote 

 this jingle in his Haunted House: 



"The Marigold amidst the nettles blew, 



The Gourd embrac'd the Rose bush in its ramble. 

 The Thistle and the Stock together grew, 

 The Hollyhock and Bramble. 



