CHAPTER III 



THE GARDEN-ROOM 



UPON the left-hand side of my garden is a range of 

 shrubs. It starts with a big araucaria imbricata, or 

 monkey-puzzler, proceeds to laburnum, deutzia, ber- 

 beris, Portugal laurel, yew, and euonymus. These 

 mingle together, and the row terminates with an 

 arbutus. Remember to accent the first syllable of 

 this word. Only scholars, familiar with the classics, 

 pronounce it correctly ; and one of them put me 

 right in the matter. An American author was good 

 enough recently to send me a poem. With excellent 

 art it extolled the beauties of the Brandywine River ; 

 and this line occurred in it : 



" Home of arbutus and primeval pine." 

 If the poet had written, 



" Home of primeval pine and arbutus," 



nobody could have found any fault. 



Against this tall bank of handsome nobodies there 

 cuddles my garden-room. It is shaped like Cupid's 

 bow, with the entrance at the handle. Half has been 

 covered with red tiles ; the remainder of the roof is 

 an open cage, and over it many climbing plants 



make a translucent canopy of flowers and cool green 



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