COMMUTER'S WIFE 307 



she throws in contrasting tints by way of expression, 

 and you will seldom see two sides of a leaf of the 

 same hue, and the leaf stem frequently gives a bold 

 dash of bronze or purple. Look at the wild grasses 

 of meadows and marsh lands. Do not all the flower 

 colours wash over them in the course of the year, 

 and our bare hillsides wear nearly the heathery hues 

 of the old world ? 



" In our climate the usual lawn implies a pro- 

 cession of men picking 9ut weeds, followed by an- 

 other lot sprinkling a mixture of grass seed and 

 earth ; then comes a din of mowing machines, and 

 in the fall an avalanche of top dressing, making one 

 think of modernizing the old proverb, ' A grain of 

 wheat is worth a grain of gold ' to read ' A blade of 

 grass costs a grain of gold..' 



" My lawn is full of resources, and therefore 

 makes few demands. An occasional sprinkling of 

 fertilizer is gratefully received and calls forth a 

 rich green blush of pleasure, but is not exacted ; a 

 very moderate trimming by a single mower keeps 

 its tresses in decent array. Then, too, it has its 

 seasons like the garden and many surprises to boot, 

 for in parts it has both moist and dry soil. 



" In April, pussy-toes, the little white vernal ever- 

 lasting, patter across it, and early blue violets hide 



