The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1893-09-30
WHERE LAVENDER BLOOMS.
Description of the Famous Fields Near the
English Town of Hitchin.

Description of the Famous Fields Near the
English Town of Hitchin.
The sun shines brightly and the sky
is a cloudless blue as we leave the
Hitchin station and begin our walk to
the lavender fields, for which this
country town is famous. Long before
we reach them, writes Z tourist, we
scent the exquisite perfume of the
flowers, heavy upon the still hot air.
And what a picture when at last we
reach the fields, and, turning off the
sandy road, come suddenly upon them
sight once seen, never forgotten.
Under the bright sunlight they lie,
field after field, one blazing mass of
lavender, kissed into deepest violet;
now gray, as the sun hides for mo-
ment behind the cloud. The scent, de-
licious from afar, is almost overpower-
ing, and. for once in our lives, we think
it almost disagreeable. While we stand
looking the color deepens, and, soft
ened by the sky and sun, the trees lool,
their brightest green in contrast to the
mass of purple, the sandy road stretch
ing away in the distance is perfect in
its harmony with the trees ana fields.
The men are busy cutting, packing.
and carting, and soon we watch them,
and learn the why and wherefore of
their work.
Lavender stalks are, as we all know.
very stiff, and hard to break; to cut
them, therefore, the men have small
sickles: in the right hand these are
held, while with the left the stalks are
bent for the cutting, and with a strong
stroke of the sickle severed from the
plant, and thrown upon the ground
Meanwhile, other men gather the cut
lavender into huge bundles, and put it
in sacks, which are carted away to the
distilleries and different places, from
which it issues as lavendar water, Law
endar soap, and many other delicacies
1t is also sent to our towns and sold
there in the streets at three pence and
six pence for quite small punches. At
Hitchin as much as one can carry may
be bought for half a crown.
We hear so much of old lavender
bushes in country gardens, priced for
their antiquity by the owners. that
learnt with surprise that, for market
purposes, plants are considered useless
after the third year. The first year
sees them small, and bearing little, if
any, flower; the second they are in
their prime, and should be mass of
blossom; and the third year they begin
to go off, and cuttings from them are
taken for replanting, and the old
plants taken up as useless.
Lavender should be thoroughly
dried before it is put into bags. such as
our great grandmothers loved to stow
among the linen. And if the scent is
to be preserved for any length of time
it should, after drying. be put in
box and left until the flowers shake off
crisp and dry, leaving the stalks
separate. Then if put in bags or
made into the many delicate little
fancy articles, it will keep its sweetness
for many a long day. Fans, sacks and
diminutive torpedoes are among the
prettiest ways of making up lavender;
for the former either white or laven-
der-colored muslin, or, better still,
chiffon is used for the fan, and the
sticks with the same-colored ribbon
threaded among them for the fan
handle; for this, lavender on the stalks,
not separate, is better, the heads form
ing the fan inside the chiffon. Sacks
are more simple, being merely bag
tied at the neck with ribbon. For
what. for lack of better name, call
torpedoes, the flower heads are placed
inside case made of stalks with ribbon
threaded in and out of them, and the
perfume passes through it. Lavender,
whether in bags or fancy articles, re-
quires to be shaken pretty frequently
or the scent will probably be faint;
good shake brings it back sweet as ever
Lavender stalks, when properly dried,
are most agreeable. l always keep
mine to burn to scent the rooms in
winter time. when there are no flowers.
They burn slowly, and if laid upon
metal tray will shoulder on for a long
time; a few stalks make quite suffi-
Gent scent for an ordinary room. In
Sick-rooms they are boon, for the
smell is so much cleaner and more
natural than the pastilles and other
things which only offend the patients
nose. and only clear the atmosphere
for comparatively short tirne.-Lon-
don News.
Noisy Constantinople.