30 AMONG THE WILD-FLOWERS 



(foreign), purple loosestrife (foreign), toad-flax 

 (foreign), chelone or turtle-head, a native, and 

 the purple mimulus or monkey- flower, also a 

 native. It was a likely place for the cardinal- 

 flower, but I could not find any. I wanted 

 this hearty English girl to see one of our native 

 wild- flowers so intense in color that it would 

 fairly make her eyes water to gaze upon it. 



Just 4hen the whistle of the engine sum- 

 moned us all aboard, and in a moment we were 

 ofl". 



When one is stranded anywhere in the 

 country in the season of flowers or birds, if he 

 feels any interest in these things he always has 

 something ready at hand to fall back upon. 

 And if he feels no interest in them he will do 

 well to cultivate an interest. The tedium of 

 an eiglity-mile drive which I lately took (in 

 September), cutting through parts of three 

 counties, was greatly relieved by noting the 

 various flowers by the roadside. First my 

 attention was attracted by wild thyme making 

 purple patches here and there in the meadows 

 and pastures. I got out of the wagon and 

 gathered some of it; I found honey-bees work- 

 ing upon it, and remembered that it was a 

 famous plant for honey in parts of the old 

 world. It had probably escaped from some 

 garden; I had never seen it growing wild in 

 this way before. Along the Schoharie Kill, I 

 saw acres of blue weed or viper 's-bugloss, the 

 hairy stems of the plants, when looked at 

 toward the sun, having a frosted appearance. 



