68 HORTICULTURE. 



it has a bent and bowed-down look in its head and branches, that 

 ill accord with the graceful bending of the elm, or the well-rounded 

 curve of the maple. But as the day-laborer has a soul, which at 

 one time or another must blossom in all its beauty, so too has the 

 apple-tree a flower that challenges the world to surpass it, whether 

 for the delicacy with which the white and red are blended — as upon 

 the cheek of fairest maiden of sixteen — or the wild grace and sym- 

 metry of its cinquefoil petals, or the harmony of its coloring height- 

 ened by the tender verdure of the bursting leaves that surround it. 

 We only mention this to show' what a wealth of beauty there is in 

 common and familiar objects in the country; and if any of our 

 town readers are so unfortunate as never to have seen an apple or- 

 chard in full bloom, then have they lost one of the fairest sights that 

 the month of April has in her kaleidoscope. 



Spring, in this country, is not the tedious jade that she is in 

 England, — ^keeping one waiting from February till June, while she 

 makes her toilet, and fairly puts her foot on the daisy-spangled turf. 

 For the most part, she comes to us with a quick bound ; and, to 

 make amends for beiag late, she showers down such a wealth of 

 blossoms, that our gardens and orchards, at the end of April, look as 

 if they were turned into fairy parterres, so loaded are they — espe- 

 cially the fruit trees — ^with beauty and promise. An American 

 spring may be said to commence fairly with the blossom of the apri- 

 cot or the elm tree, and end with the ripening of the first strawber- 

 ries. 



To end with strawberries ! What a finale to one's life. More 

 sanguinary, perhaps (as there is a stain left on one's fingers some- 

 times), but not less delicious than to 



" Die of a rose in aromatic pain." 



But it is a fitting close to such a beautiful season to end with such 

 a fruit as this. We believe, indeed, that strawberries, if the truth 

 could be known, are the most popular of fruits. People always af- 

 fect to prefer the peach, or the orange, or perhaps the pear ; but this 

 is only because these stand well in the world — are much talked of 

 — and can give " the most respectable references." But take our 



