148 
THE FERN WORLD 
and partly of stone. Some of the houses are perched over 
others, and are approached by winding-steps. Fern and 
grass till the interstices between the bricks and stone. 
Gardens are placed in odd corners in all sorts of spaces, 
which exist in all kinds of almost impossible situations ; and 
where there is no room for gardens, little spaces at the foot 
of the walls are utilized, where fuchsias and creepers, snap- 
dragons, geraniums, and ivy grow. 
From the quay the road winds round and round in its first 
ascent. Stone steps in almost every direction appear to lead 
everywhere — up into the houses, which would but for them 
lie impossible of approach, down into and up into gardens 
placed in marvellous corners — and away into pantries and 
out-houses. Now on the side of the High-street a wall parts 
off a small enclosure which does service for a garden. In 
other places such enclosures are filled with high and rank 
weeds. 
Now as our paved path winds on and up we pass under a 
wall built up of big stones, and topping the wall above us, 
and springing out over our path are long clumps of fuchsia 
and other garden fiowers. These flowers are growing, in 
fact, on the level of what are the gardens above us. As we 
wind upwards we reach a point where our path opens up a 
view of the harbour and the sea beyond. At this spot, 
looking over the wall on our right in the direction of the sea, 
we catch sight of a tiny garden bright with hydrangia, sweet 
pea, nasturtium, and fuchsia. This garden is hung, as it 
were, over the wall, is no more than some six yards long and 
one yard wide, and is actually higher than the pointed slate 
roof of a house, which, from where we stand, has the appear- 
ance of clinging by its side to the cliff. 
We go on winding up and up. All at once, as we are 
proceeding we hear the merry voices of children, appearing 
to come from high up in the air. Looking up whence the 
