64 THE JOY OF GARDENS 



though tender herbs and cherries sweet are to thy liking. 

 Go thy ways, and come again. 



Over yonder flits another winged intruder, paying ad- 

 mission in the coin of beauty. It is the butterfly, and 

 with him comes his kindred of moths and other bright, 

 gauzy creatures. Truly the butterflies among the blos- 

 soms and the birdlings in the flowering thorn are appro- 

 priate combinations without fault in poetry. As we fling 

 the sparkling jewel weed over the fence, and uproot the 

 sweet-smelling catnip trying to get foothold among the 

 mignonette, the same fierce feeling of savagery rises at 

 the sight of the white moths waving their wings above the 

 nasturtiums. Well we know that not a royal butterfly 

 soars in from the meadow but is bent on a mission to take 

 toll or ask board for its offspring. 



The weeding industry may cover a multitude of sins 

 and questions which are debatable when there is argu- 

 ment over the rights of possession. To whom does this 

 garden belong to catnip and its confreres, to the robins 

 and the sparrows, to the butterfly kingdom, or to a wan- 

 dering soul beset with weeds of character who dreamed of 

 planting virtues and reaping heavenly rewards? 



