THE PASSING OF SUMMER 157 



positive, who treat what they do not know as if it 

 did not exist, who could manage perfectly if in the 

 place of any one else, and can tell just what every one 

 should do on all occasions. It is achieved by obliterat- 

 ing the sympathies and closing the eyes of under- 

 standing. It brings peace and satisfaction where it 

 holds possession, all the peace and satisfaction that 

 could there find a dwelling-place. Is it the universal 

 or the narrow complacency that parts the white lips 

 of the Turtle-head with a still, calm smile < The 

 Evening Primrose bears a part in the season's scheme 

 of decoration. The utility of its floral adornment is 

 rather obvious, for it insists on crowding the large, 

 coarse buds and seed pods about the slender-necked 

 yellow flowers as they open to the settling clouds or 

 the close of day. It is a pleasant surprise to see the 

 tall, coarsely budded and weedy stem put forth a few 

 graceful yellow flowers to enrich the evening air with 

 a delicate perfume. These flowers do not survive the 

 morning, but the bristling stalk has many in reserve 

 and will continue to bring them forth night after 

 night. That which in the sunlight seems the coarsest 

 roadside weed has an evening beauty and fragrance 

 awaiting the discerning. 



