i8 NATURE NEAR LONDON 



is not unlike it at the first glance ; but if the two be 

 placed side by side, this, the scorpion grass, is but a pale 

 imitation of the true plant ; its petals vary in colour and 

 are often dull, and it has not the yellow central spot. 

 Yet it is not unfrequently sold in pots in the shops as 

 forget-me-not. It flowers on the bank, high above the 

 water of the ditch. 



The true forget-me-not can hardly be seen in passing, 

 so much does it nestle under flags and behind sedges, 

 and it is not easy to gather because it flowers on the 

 very verge of the running stream. The shore is bordered 

 -with matted vegetation, aquatic grass, and flags and 

 weeds, and outside these, where its leaves are washed 

 and purified by the clear stream, its blue petals open. 

 Be cautious, therefore, in reaching for the forget-me-not, 

 lest the bank be treacherous. 



It was near this copse that in early spring I stayed to 

 gather some white sweet violets, for the true wild violet 

 is very nearly white. I stood close to a hedger and 

 ditcher, who, standing on a board, was cleaning out the 

 mud that the water might run freely. He went on with 

 his work, taking not the least notice of an idler, but 

 intent upon his labour, as a good and true man should be. 

 But when I spoke to him he answered me in clear, well- 

 chosen language, well pronounced, "in good set terms." 



No slurring of consonants and broadening of vowels, 

 no involved and backward construction depending on 

 the listener's previous knowledge for comprehension, no 

 half sentences indicating rather than explaining, but 

 correct sentences. With his shoes almost covered by 

 the muddy water, his hands black and grimy, his brown 

 face splashed with mud, leaning on his shovel he stood 

 and talked from the deep ditch, not much more than 

 head and shoulders visible above it. It seemed a voice 



