98 THE GARDEN OF A 



caught, and all that the people accomplished was 

 to catch each other's dogs, who went hunting on 

 their own account. 



Be this as it may, Bugle and Tally-ho have become 

 intelligent members of the family in a short time, and 

 made their first trip up two flights of stairs in a very 

 creditable manner without undue bumping. How 

 they will go down is another matter. If they hesi- 

 tate, Bluff will probably push them, for he gave both 

 Lark and Pat their first lessons in stair climbing. 



The clouds are breaking away, and I think my 

 mind is also clearing as regards my garden. I will 

 let it keep its inheritance. The Mother Tree shall 

 be its keynote. 



From these two windows I gain not only a bird's- 

 eye view of the stretch of our own land, once a farm 

 lying a little aside the top of one of a series of slop- 

 ing hills, but also its relation to the surrounding 

 country. 



The house stands higher than the road, from which 

 it is divided by some great elms, clusters of shrubs, 

 and a bit of grass. This bank is kept from falling 

 into the road by a wall, the stones of which are 

 hidden by a tangle of honeysuckle. At the north a 

 driveway to the stable makes the division from a strip 

 of woodland from which the underbrush has been 



