158 FIELD AND HEDGEROW. 



darkened leaves have been blown, and their much- 

 divided branches stand bare like outstretched fingers. 

 Black-spotted sycamore leaves are down, but the moss 

 grows thick and deeply green ; and the trumpets of the 

 lichen seem to be larger, now they are moist, than when 

 they were dry under the summer heat. Here is herb 

 Robert in flower — its leaves are scarlet ; a leaf of St 

 John's-wort, too, has become scarlet ; the bramble leaves 

 are many shades of crimson ; one plant of tormentil has 

 turned yellow. Furze bushes, grown taller since the 

 spring, bear a second bloom, but not perhaps so golden 

 as the first. It is the true furze, and not the lesser 

 gorse ; it is covered with half-opened buds ; and it is 

 clear, if the short hours of sun would but lengthen, the 

 whole gorse hedge would become aglow again. Our 

 trees, too, that roll up their buds so tightly, like a 

 dragoon's cloak, would open them again at Christmas ; 

 and the sticky horse-chestnut would send forth its long 

 ears of leaves for New Year's Day. They would all 

 come out in leaf again if we had but a little more sun ; 

 they are quite ready for a second summer. 



Brown lie the acorns, yellow where they were fixed 

 in their cups ; two of these cups seem almost as large as 

 the great acorns from abroad. A red dead-nettle, a 

 mauve thistle, white and pink bramble flowers, a white 

 strawberry, a little yellow tormentil, a broad yellow 

 dandelion, narrow hawkweeds, and blue scabious, are all 

 in flower in the lane. Others are scattered on the 

 mounds and in the meads adjoining, where may be 

 collected some heath still in bloom, prunella, hypericum, 

 white yarrow, some heads of red clover, some beautiful 

 buttercups, three bits of blue veronica, wild chamomile, 

 tall yellowweed, pink centaury, succory, dock cress, 

 daisies, fleabane, knapweed, and delicate blue harebells. 



