Music of the Wild 



able. Home means solid foundations, light, jjure 

 air, congenial surroundings; and while the marsh 

 is the most beautiful place in the whole world in 

 summer; in early spring, late fall, and winter it is 

 bare and cheerless. In recompense for this, sum- 

 mer outdoes herself in a babel of music, masses of 

 glowing flower color, delicate mosses too fragile 

 to touch, and s^^aj'ing vines festooned everywhere 

 they can find something to which to cling. 



One lovely swamp vine that I never have seen 

 used in decoration or conventionalized or in fact 

 Ground reproduced anywhere outside botanies, is the 

 ^"* ground nut. Unfortunately for my study, the 

 only perfect vine I ever have found grew on that 

 thing I most detest, disfiguring the face of na- 

 ture — a wire fence. This fence crossed a tract so 

 swampy, rails soon decayed, and wire 's\'as substi- 

 tuted. The location was on the banks of the Elk- 

 hart River, in a very marshy country. 



The vine springs from a jiear-sliaped tuber that 

 botanists pronounce edible. The leaves grow along 

 a stem, five to a group. The ground nut bloom 

 clusters slightly resemble wistaria, but in beauty 

 and exquisite perfume far exceed its loveliest 

 flo^vers. The bean-slia})ed l)lossoms are essentially 

 so M'ild, so of the swamps. They grow in a 

 short tassel, are of rich lirown and maroon color, 

 and as clusters are tm-ned in the light a change- 

 able shade of lilac shows strongly; and added to 



336 



