A GARDEN DIARY 105 



"How dare he! I mean I don't believe a 

 word of that!" I exclaimed. "Anything else 

 I am willing to believe, but not that We have 

 got our tails between our legs here at home if 

 you like ; I am quite ready to admit that. But 

 they ! Never ! " 



" Well, I don't know. I only tell you what 

 I hear. They have had a baddish time, you 

 must remember. Stormberg and all that ! quite 

 enough to give anyone the jumps, / should say. 

 Of course it has been kept out of the papers. 

 In the papers the Tommies always figure as 

 heroes. Is Anemone Blanda in flower with 

 you yet ? " this with a sudden rise of anima- 

 tion. 



"Anemone Blanda?" I repeated, feeling slightly 

 confused by the rapidity of the transition. " Yes. 

 At least no. I think not I haven't looked 

 lately." 



" It is with me ! Sixteen tufts in full flower 

 beauties ! I shelter them a bit of course, but 

 only to save them from getting knocked about. 

 You never saw such a colour as they are ! 

 Yours were the pale blue ones, weren't they ? 

 I know there's a lot of that sort in the trade 

 that are sold as Anemone Blanda, but they're 

 not the right Blanda at all. Mine are as blue 

 as, oh, as blue as blue paint." 



" We have numbers of bulbs at present in 

 flower," I said severely. " Scillas and chino- 



