The earliest violet was gathered there, for the corner was enclosed on three sides, and somehow the sunshine fell more genially in that untrimmed spot than in formal gardens where it is courted.

Against the house a pear was trained, and opened its white bloom the first of all: in its shelter the birds built their nests.

The chaffinches called cheerfully on the plum-trees and sang in the early morning.

When the apples bloomed, the goldfinches visited the same trees at least once a day.
A damask rose opened its single petals, the sweetest-scented of all the roses; there were a few strawberries under the wall of the house; by-and-by the pears above enlarged, and the damsons were coated with the bloom.

On the tall plum-trees hung the large purplish-red plums: upon shaking the tree, one or two came down with a thud.