[Illustration: MEADOW SWEET.]
It is a beautiful plant, as well as a fragrant one. At the top of the
tall stems are large clusters of small five-petalled flowers,
creamy-white. The stem itself is handsome; it is often three or four
feet high, smooth, stout, and of a reddish colour. The large leaves grow
alternately on the stem; they are made up of several pairs of leaflets
with a single leaflet at the end. The upper surface of the leaves is
dark green, but the under side is generally covered with a soft white
down.
The scent of Meadow Sweet is very pleasant in the field to-day, but I
think we should find it rather too strong if we took a bunch into the
house. Yet Queen Elizabeth is said to have loved Meadow Sweet strewn on
the floors of her apartments.
CHAPTER IX
IN THE CORN-FIELD
One morning early in July, while we are having breakfast at Willow Farm,
we ask Mr. Hammond if he thinks we shall find any flowers in his
wheat-field. The farmer laughs and says he hopes we shall not, but he is
very much afraid that we shall. As we are here on purpose to look for
flowers we are glad to find them anywhere.
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