LA MORTOLA. 97 



tion must sureh' be unique ! A thousand flowers perfume 

 the evening air. The Banksia Rose is here in perfect 

 loveliness. Everywhere its dainty clusters of semi-double 

 yellow or white flowers gleam among their unarmed 

 foliage. The Riviera may be proud of this beautiful rose 

 which will not grow in the open at home. Nor does it 

 succeed well in greenhouses. The same ma^' be said of 

 the Bougainvillea, that magniflcent tropical liana which 

 is so much at home on this part of the Riviera. 



Meanwhile the sun has set and faint shades flit over 

 the coast. Old Bordighera looks colourless and lifeless; 

 it is set in a frame of white roses. Foliage and bright 

 flowers grow indistinct in the twilight. Onh' the C\presses 

 stand out from the dark mass against the luminous evening 

 skv — those ancient trees bordering with serried rank 

 the path which leads from the upper part of the garden 

 down towards the sea. Has this dark tree, which rises 

 so straight and sternh- towards the sk\-, realh' a gloom\' 

 appearance ; or does it arouse sad sentiments in us because 

 it has ever been a s^'mbol of mourning and is so often 

 seen among the tombs? These sombre trees ma^' perhaps 

 be appropriate to the landscape here, if it is true that 

 '•La Mortola" is so called from an ancient cemetery. The 

 C^'presses alone preserve the memory of these resting 

 places, now made bright bv flower-beds and luxuriant 

 vegetation. 



CHAPTER VII. 



Above La Mortola Gardens is the .Strada Nazionale 

 leading to Mentone. It rises, making a sharp bend in 



