APPLES 



and cheer, even against a frosty sky. And 

 these old veterans are house trees, too — they 

 do not suggest the forest or the broad expanse 

 of nature, but, instead, the proximity of man 

 and the home, the comfortable summer after- 

 noon under their copious leafage, the great 

 piles of ruddy-cheeked fruit in autumn. 



I need hardly say anything of the apple- 

 blossoms, for those who read these words are 

 almost certain to have long appreciated their 

 delicately fragrant blush and white loveliness. 

 The apricot and the cherry are the first of 

 the fruit trees to sing the spring song, and 

 they cover themselves with white, in advance 

 of any sign of green leaves on their twigs. 

 The apple has an advantage ; coming more 

 deliberately, the little pink buds are set amidst 

 the soft greens of the opening foliage, and 

 the leaves and flowers expand together in 

 their symphony of color and fragrance. The 

 grass has grown lush by this time, the dande- 

 lions are punctuating it with gold, and every- 

 thing is in the full riot of exuberant spring- 

 time. 



But there are apples and apples and apples. 



79 



