AUTUMN BERRIES. 199 



and yellow, but. will soon assume that bright 

 cornelian red which renders them so ornamental 

 in the hedges. 



Now that the hedge-rows are bare, the tendrils 

 of the Honeysuckle show that curious spiral 

 growth which is so constant in one direction — 

 from left to right; whilst the neighbouring 

 Black Bryony twines in a precisely opposite 

 direction. Blackberries hang in luscious bunches 

 by the roadside, and the Elder-trees swarm with 

 birds in search of their purple-black berries. It 

 is almost impossible to estimate the economy of 

 the Elder in the country. Every part of it is 

 used — its cream-coloured flowers, its berries, its 

 bark, its leaves, its wood ; and the old pharma- 

 copoeia is full of allusions to it. 



The myrtle-like Privet has the power of 

 conforming to almost any surrounding, and in 

 widely different situations is now putting forth 

 its rich masses of purple-black berries which 

 stand out so vividly against the green foliage. 

 Then there are varieties of the fruit — white, 

 yellow, and green — which contrast well with 

 the normal colouring. All the winter birds 

 love the Privet, feasting upon its berries far 

 into the fall. Just prior to dissolution, the leaves 



