April and Early May 



ing dreams. The mere thought of vent- 

 uring across such a tract of land made me 

 shrink with terror; yet to-day the chance 

 of discovering some new orchid, or even a 

 less rare plant, would lead me knee-deep 

 into its midst, without even stopping to 

 consider its slimy possibilities. Once the 

 reaction of disappointment should set in, 

 I own that my retreat might be far from 

 stately. 



But I began by saying that during one 

 season only, with the exception of winter, 

 are the eyes of the botanist fixed above 

 more uniformly than below. This is 

 during the early spring, when pretty 

 nearly the only flowers are borne by the 

 trees and shrubs. Ordinarily, these blos- 

 soms do not seem to be accredited with 

 any existence at all. I have heard peo- 

 ple exclaim with surprise, at the mention 

 of an elm in flower. The city room of a 

 friend of mine looks out upon the spread- 

 ing branches of a maple. Its occupant 

 18 



