The Blue Flower Border 253 



be the ugly jarring of juxtaposing tints of the same 

 color. Yellows do little injury to each other; but 

 I cannot believe that a mixed border of red flowers 

 would ever be satisfactory or scarcely endurable ; 

 and few persons would care for beds of all white 

 flowers. But when I reach the Blue Border, then I 

 can speak with decision ; I know whereof I write, 

 I know the variety and beauty of a garden bed of 

 blue flowers. In blue you may have much differ- 

 ence in tint and quality without losing color effect. 

 The Persian art workers have accomplished the 

 combining of varying blues most wonderfully and 

 successfully : purplish blues next to green-blues, 

 and sapphire-blues alongside ; and blues seldom 

 clash in the flower beds. 



Blue is my best beloved color; I love it as the 

 bees love it. Every blue flower is mine ; and I am 

 as pleased as with a tribute of praise to a friend to 

 learn that scientists have proved that blue flowers 

 represent the most highly developed lines of 

 descent. These learned men believe that all 

 flowers were at first yellow, being perhaps only 

 developed stamens ; then some became white, 

 others red ; while the purple and blue were the 

 latest and highest forms. The simplest shaped 

 flowers, open to be visited by every insect, are still 

 yellow or white, running into red or pink. Thus 

 the Rose family have simple open symmetrical 

 flowers; and there are no blue Roses — the flower 

 has never risen to the blue stage. In the Pea 

 family the simpler flowers are yellow or red ; while 

 the highly evolved members, such as Lupines, 



