with its soft, faint odour, and delicately flushed petals, that so sweetly

'Doth peep forth with bashful modesty'

from amidst the strong, spiny stems, and luxuriant mass of rich green leaves. It is called dog-rose, from the belief that dogs relish the brilliant scarlet heps, that gleam so brightly in the autumn months, and which form so abundant a provision for birds. A conserve is also made from the fruit, and sold by druggists. There are no fewer than eighteen species of wild rose, some very common, amongst which is the Scotch or Burnet rose (Rosa spinosissima), which I dare say you have often observed blooming in heathy or chalky ground. Its leaves are much smaller, of a darker and less glossy green than those of the dog-rose; its flowers a soft, rich cream-colour, sometimes tinged with red, and its sharp, needle-like prickles crowd upon the stems.

There is a long, trailing, white dog-rose (Rosa arvensis), that has pretty white blossoms growing n clusters, and is especially common in Yorkshire. It is said to be the white rose chosen by the Yorkists as their badge in those terrible civil wars, of which you will all have read, commonly called the 'Wars of the Roses.'

The heps of all these roses are prized by birds, and yield them an abundant harvest. There are several pretty legends attached to the rose, which we are told was originally white, but received its beautiful blush tint

from Eve, who, enraptured with its delicate beauty, pressed her lips on the snowy petals, and thus imparted a warmer tint of colour to the blossom. One of them further states that the stems were thornless until the expulsion from Paradise.

Mixed with this hedge of thorn and eglantine rise the beautiful white pyramidal clusters of the privet (Ligustrum vulgare), its abundant snowy blossoms rendering it a most elegant shrub.

"The privet, too,

Whose white flowers rival the first drifts of snow

On Grampia's piny hills.'

Its leaves are a rich, glossy green; and its dark clusters of purple berries serve not only as winter food to birds, but yield a beautiful green dye.

Trailing through the hedgeway, we may find the pale pink blossoms of the blackberry (Rubus fruticosus), or the whiter flowers of the dewberry (Rubus cæsius), which has more pointed, longer leaves than the bramble. It is less common, too, and bears a bluish fruit.

The raspberry (Rubus idæus) is also common, especially so in Scotland, and forms a favourite covering for game. It has a woody, round, erect stem, and red fruit, which is considered superior in flavour to the cultivated plant, and which, like the blackberry, makes a delicious preserve.

'Ofttimes without man's aid we grow
All independently, and throw

Our fruits upon the ground below,

Where there is none to gather them.'

The mountain bramble or cloudberry (Rubus chamcemorus) blooms during this month on the summits of hills and mountains; and scarce has the snow dissolved from their cloudy tops ere it puts forth its pure white blossoms. It is an elegant plant. Its berries, which are a brownish-orange colour, ripen in August, and are preserved by the snow. The Highlanders and Laplanders highly esteem the fruit, which has an acid flavour. The scientific name of rubus is derived from the Celtic rub, signifying red.

Behold the pretty bright flowers of the soft, velvety silver-weed (Potentilla anserina), gleaming like stars from the hedge-side! The blossom is a pure yellow, the numerous leaves a pretty green, their under-surfaces wearing a grey, silvery hue:

'Silver-weed, with yellow flowers

Half hidden by the leaf of grey.'

The roots of this plant are sometimes roasted like chestnuts, and eaten by village children.

And here beside it blooms a lovely cranesbill or geranium (Geranium pratense), which is not uncommon in the hedge during this month, but loves best to blossom in the moist copsewood. It is a tall plant, often as high as two feet; its leaves are deeply cut into segments; its delicate but handsome flowers a beautiful deep blue or purple colour, frequently as large as a halfpenny.