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in the midst. A rich perfume streamed upward, 
and almost overpowered the sense that perceived it, 
and a voice came, soft and sweet, as befitted such 
lady-flowers. 
“We are beloved by all men,” it murmured, “ and 
gratefully we endeavor to reward that love. If you 
gather us, sweet little girl, be careful not to bruise 
our stalks, else we shall soon droop and wither, for 
we cannot live long without water, and the delicate 
veins of our tubular stems are easily crushed and 
broken. You see how long they are. They rise 
from the very bed of the lake, and how deep soever 
it may be, it matters not, for they are endowed with 
an elastic power that lengthens the stem and keeps 
our flowers and leaves still on the surface. The 
upper sides of our leaves repel the water, too, so 
that they cannot sink. We open our corolla at 
seven in the morning, and at four we turn to take 
