Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-08-24

cousin Nelly Gusts that he loved her and
by the same token sweet Nelly said yes;
and only the rose knew the secret; but it
never told 1t, and so was impaired to it the
power to make loving hearts happy ever
after. If you know that one you love is
dimdent. or over modest, all you have to do
Is to get him in smelling distance of this
Nelly Custis rose. and he will pour out his
love at your feet without reservation, or
II you can't get him there, put some of it
under his pillow to dream over.
on over under the shadow Of the old
pear tree that Washington planted grows
another tall and rather stately rosebush,
with fragrant blossoms of sea-shell pink
This rose, which was sport in his own
garden, Washington named for his devoted
old mother. 1t is such lovely rose, snd
one can't help wishing that Washington
had gone little further and planted one
beside monument of his own rearing
above his old mothers grave on that
lonely spot by the Rappahannock river.
After Four Presidents.
Just inside the entrance to the garden are
four calyanthus or sweet shrub bushes,
the roots Of which were sent to Washing
ton by Thomas Jefferson. They were
great novelty In that day. When they
were enc hundred years old, John Angus
tine Washington named them after Adams,
JEFFERSON, Madison and Monroe, the four
was his uncle. They go by those names
row. Down at the end of the walk next to
the green houses are two Immense oak
leafed hydrangea bushes, which Lafayette
brought over in 1924 a memento of liy-
Ing love for his dear friend" and which
he craved permission to plant with his own
hands in that friends garden. These came
from the tomb Of Napoleon, who said to his
army In Egypt, when the news was
brought to him of the death of the first
President:
"washington, the friend of liberty, is
deadv
The Servants Quarters.
On the north side of the garden, instead
of wall. stands the low brick building
once the servants quarters, with the en-.
trance from the other side One awfully
bitter night in December. 1885, these quar-
ters and the conservatory adjoining, burn
ed to the ground. These quarters were full.
ly restored by the contributions Of the
school children Of Kansas in 1883, and they
look now just as they did when careful
Martha Washington used to stir things up
out In the servants quarters century ago
OF all the beautiful plants and flowers
gathered from every cline and hundreds
of rare ones presented to Washington, only
three were saved from destruction by the
1ames-a lemon tree. which was full of
fruit. century plant and a sage palm. The
lemon trees children grown sturdy and
strong above its roots, and the century
plant, brought from Porto Rico to Washing
ton by a friend in 179s, goes right on grow
ing stiff and defiant. never looking any
possibly could. and the sage palm has a
thrifty growth of children about it's hoary
old body 1t has story, too. 1t came over
in the ship that brought the tea into Bos-
ton harbor which brewed such a drastic
dose that it turned the stomach of the
British lion.
Old-FashfOned Flowers.
There are so many pretty flowers in the
garden, sweet, old-fashioned flowers like
touch-me-nots. sweet williams, four
ociocks, phlox, East Indian lilies, asters, for
get-me-nots, wall flowers, sun1owers, and
hollyhocks such as used to fill the quaint
old-fashioned vases on the marble mantels
in the mansion, when Lady Washingto n,"
in her best bib and tucker, entertained the
grandees Of two continents. And over
them, fitting about in the hot perfume-bur-
cened air. were butterflies of brilliant hue
and exquisite markings, slipping sweets
from every blossom.
By the tulip tree at the gateway stands a
rcck maple. Just across the green" stands
a magnolia grandifora. Mt. Vernon marks
the southern limit of the thrifty growth of
the one and the northern limit of the propa-
CATION Of the other. This magnolia Is the
last tree that Washington set out with his
own hands. and it has to be kept wrapped
with wire netting to keep sacrilegio1s van
dals from carving 1T off pfecemeal,