'^ WHAT VEGETABLES 27 



loupe, and this is always eaten raw, although I 

 have read that in southern France some kinds 

 are made into jam or preserved. Successful 

 melon raising is, unfortunately, possible, as a 

 rule, only where the summers are too warm for 

 our own comfort, for they demand warm nights. 

 So luscious, however, are they that I try them 

 every year in my Maine mountain garden, and 

 once in a while I succeed fairly well. I wouldn't 

 waste time on them in such an unfavorable 

 locality if it were possible to buy the best kinds. 

 Those sold in city markets and peddled in the 

 country are always a lottery; in a dozen you 

 are lucky if you find two or three that delight 

 the nose and the palate. In restaurants they 

 are usually served iced, which destroys what 

 little flavor they had. One is more likely to 

 have luck with the Honey dew melon, which is 

 as fragrant as a peony — unless it is picked ands 

 sold before it has ripened on the vine, which is 

 too often the case. Never buy or gather a 

 cantaloupe unless it is quite fragrant; the 

 riper it is, the richer the perfume. 



Melons are such a lure to my epicurean soul 

 that I sometimes think it is foolish to spend my 

 summers in our coldest state, where I cannot 

 raise them. However, I have a strong imagina- 

 tion and an enviable faculty for remembering 

 sense impressions and gastronomic treats, so 

 that I get considerable pleasure from just 

 reading about melons. Particularly in that 



