THE MISSION OF THE VINE 



hardy vines at the enhance will break the harsh lines and 

 suggest pleasanter retreats to the mind. There is a good 

 deal in this work-a-day life that is necessarily disagreeable, 

 but we should keep the necessary evils in the background. 

 There is a stupidly constructed little portico outside the 

 window of your flat; not large enough for a chair, indeed it 

 seems to have no purpose in existence; but it has, for it is 

 just right when viewed as a shelf for plants and a few hardy 

 ferns. A lovely drooping asparagus will thrive here, and 

 give the entire neighborhood a restful bit of cool green to 

 look upon during the heated season. I sometimes wonder 

 that landlords building flats and tenement houses do not 

 widen their window sills and throw out little cornices, and 

 even include an occasional roof-garden for the very sake of 

 encouraging these miniature gardens among their tenantry. 

 They are eagerly taken possession of by the average woman, 

 who is at heart a lover of flowers, in proportion as she has 

 womanly instincts. But then, since landlords are generally 

 men-people, and build their houses to fit their own points of 

 view, it is only as we womenfolk demonstrate that roof- 

 gardens pay, that we can hope to see our tenements made 

 more agreeable. 



" E'en in the stifling bosom of the town 

 A garden in which nothing thrives has charms 

 That soothe the rich possessor ; much consoled 

 That here and there some sprigs of mournful Mint, 

 Of Nightshade, or Valerian, grace the wall 

 He cultivates." 



[73] 



