Music of the Wild 



lobed to the base, so that they appear to be sepa- 

 rated. The flower opens at the branching, a waxy, 

 white cup that resembles a lily in texture and has 

 six petals. Pollen-laden stamens surround the 

 pistil, that is straight and heavy, and on the drop- 

 ping of the leaves it develops the fruit. The flow- 

 ers are oppressively fragrant, but many people 

 admire them and are fond of the ripe apples. 

 Country children gather them just at the turning 

 to gold, and bury them in the bran barrel for a 

 treat long after the w r oods are bare. They are 

 called "May-apples," and are entitled to be classed 

 as the typical flower and fruit of the woods. Like 

 many other species, extinction threatens them. 



Last season from early spring I had been 

 watching a large bed of mandrake that I hoped 

 would bloom profusely and give me a good study 

 for this book. Passing the location one Sabbath 

 afternoon, I planned to stop and learn if it would 

 be ready for use on the morrow. From afar my 

 hopes sank, for I could see a carriage standing at 

 the place. When I arrived one man was holding 

 the horse, and another with two women were com- 

 ing from the woods. Each one of them carried as 

 many mandrake stems as they possibly could 

 grasp; every stem had an exquisite waxy flower at 

 the top, shorn of all vestige of leaf. The bed 

 was ruined, and the ground covered with roots 

 and leaves. If those people had not torn up, they 

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