IN DEVONSHIRE LANES. 213 



of bramble and briar, of honeysuckle, wild clematis, 

 and whitethorn are clothed in greenery of the 

 emerald. On either side the high steep banks are 

 still gay with the last of the primroses; everywhere 

 the white and radiant star-flower, the vivid blue 

 speedwell, and the paler-hued forget-me-not gleam 

 in brilliant patches of colour amongst the setting 

 of almost universal green. Everywhere the ivy grows 

 in astonishing abundance. Here and there the 

 bluebells clothe the wayside with an azure carpet, 

 and the unpleasant pungent odour of the white- 

 flowered garlic taints the air; whilst the blooms 

 of the crane's-bill, the ragged robin, the wild straw- 

 berry, and saxifrage gleam in contrast with the rest. 

 The ferns are full of vitality; every bank is 

 garnished with the long narrow leaves of the hart's- 

 tongue, the ribbon-fern of the country folk, the 

 slender stems of the bracken, or the more delicate 

 leaves of smaller and more fragile species. Here 

 and there great tufts of hard fern are firmly rooted 

 in the crevices of the mossy bark high up the 

 trees and on the broad horizontal branches an- 

 other indication of the humid atmosphere. Insect 

 life is now abundant. Flitting and dancing among 

 the flowers of the wayside we may notice the gaudy 

 buff-tipped butterfly, the even more ubiquitous 



