164 WILD FLOWERS OF SCOTLAND 



this heather darken under the passing cloud, and 

 blush vividly out again when the shadow has 

 passed over; or the richer, deeper effects as the 

 crimson light of evening comes slant- wise across 

 the purple, as it is doing now. The hue will rest 

 upon the spirit, to fall on the page of the ledger 

 or manuscript, months after, amid the dulness of 

 short winter days and the fog of cities. Little 

 wonder that the dream is of purple heather. 



Why it should be called Erica cinerea, or grey 

 heath, is not very obvious. In ordinary circum- 

 stances its appearance is not grey, but vivid green, 

 supporting one tier or dividing several tiers of 

 bright purple. It retains its glory through many 

 summer and early autumn weeks, and then fades, 

 without, like the rose, becoming ugly. 



Widely spread as it is, this is not the commonest 

 heather. A third species is within reach of my 

 hand. Indeed I am reclining on some, half raised 

 above the ground by its wiry springiness. The 

 last to bloom, it is now fully out. The flowers 

 are numerous small, pink, and pretty. Though 

 there is plenty of it on the far side, I cannot make 

 out the colour at this distance. 



It is very vigorous in its growth, and more of a 

 shrub than any of the others ; only, it is a lazy 



