60 AN ISLAND GARDEN 



with. Oh, for days twice as long! Yet these 

 approach the longest days of the year. 



22d. Another glorious day of heat; the sun 

 fairly drove me into the shade to work among the 

 house plants on the piazza. Hot, hot, and bright, 

 and outside the garden growing things begin to 

 pine for showers. When the sun declined toward 

 the west in the afternoon, I sat in the shade and 

 from the veranda turned the hose with its fine 

 sprinkler all over the garden. Oh, the joy of it ! 

 The delicious scents from earth and leaves, the 

 glitter of drops on the young green, the grati- 

 tude of all the plants at the refreshing bath and 

 draught of water ! The rich red Wallflowers sent 

 up fresh clouds of incense, the brilliant and deli- 

 cate Iceland Poppies bowed their lovely heads and 

 swayed with pleasure at the bright shower. But 

 rain is greatly needed, searching rain which shall 

 drench the ground and reach the roots, and give 

 new life to everything. 



23d. Again hot, still, and splendid. Spent all 

 the morning hammering stakes down into the 

 beds near Hollyhocks, Sunflowers, Larkspurs, 

 Lilies, Roses, single Dahlias, and all the tall grow- 

 ing things. Many were tall enough to fasten to 

 the stakes, all will be, presently. One enormous 

 red Hollyhock grew thirteen feet high by actual 

 measurement before it stopped last year, in a 

 corner near the piazza. Oh, but he was superb ! 

 At night the lights from one window streamed 

 through a leafy arch of clambering vine, and illu- 

 mined him as he swayed to and fro in the wind, a 

 stately column of beauty and grace. A black-red 



