130 A BOOK ABOUT THE GARDEN. 



for plants at the end of the building, where I should 

 be effectively concealed within my leafy bower. 



Here, without any attempt or desire to listen, I 

 overheard from time to time the remarks of those who 

 were passing near, and I was specially impressed by 

 the floral instruction which I received for the first 

 time on that occasion. One gentleman informed his 

 partner that the berries of the Solanum were " a kind 

 of Siberian crab ; " another, that the tulip, Hex 

 rubrorum, was "a double poppy;" a third, that 

 Eucharis amazonica was "one of those lovely 

 orchids ; " and a fourth (a lady) exclaimed in ad- 

 miration, as she gazed upon a bush of Cytisus, 

 "What a dear little duck of a young laburnum!" 

 But there were other flowers that night, which, even 

 in Flora's presence, were more admired than ours 

 heart 's-ease and forget-me-nots in the blue eyes of 

 Beauty, roses blushing and glowing on her cheeks, 

 lilies and tulips upon her 



" Hands, lily-white, 

 Lips, crimson-red," 



much more fascinating than those which we showed 

 in pots. In foliage we sustained a like defeat. They 

 turned from our Croton angustifolium to the shining 

 tresses of some Fair One with the Golden Locks, and 

 they saw no charms in our Adiantums, when compared 

 with the maiden-hair of Venus' self. 



The ball was nearly over. The carriage-lamps of 

 the departing guests were gleaming amid our ancient 

 oaks, as though pome of the planets had come down 

 to earth, and my own special lamps, within their 



