THE COUNTRY LIFE. 249 



elm, and grass that glows with golden butter- 

 cups, quietly leaves the side of the double 

 mounds and goes straight through the orchards. 

 There are fewer flowers under the trees, and the 

 grass grows so long and rank that it has already 

 fallen aslant of its own weight. It is choked, 

 too, by masses of clogweed, that springs up 

 profusely over the sight of old foundations ; 

 so that here ancient masonry may be hidden 

 under the earth. Indeed, these orchards are a 

 survival from the days when the monks 

 laboured in vineyard and garden, and mayhap 

 even of earlier times. When once a locality 

 has got into the habit of growing a certain 

 crop, it continues to produce it for century after 

 century ; and thus there are villages famous 

 for apple or pear or cherry, while the district 

 at large is not at all given to such culture. 



" The trunks of the trees succeed each other 

 in endless ranks, like columns that support the 

 most beautiful roof of pink and white. Here 

 the bloom is rosy, there white prevails : the 

 young green is hidden under the petals that 

 are far more numerous than leaves, or even 

 than leaves will be. Though the path really 



