Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-03-19
| QUEST FOR SPRING IN GOTHAM.

t. the tail OF a comet mounting the
western sky.
Another vernal delight of Thomas Cir
Gle was that wide-spreading little tree
with it's branches (heavily laden with
whitey-pink blossoms) pointing ratnel
downward, at the northern end. IL was
as good as being hit fun in the race
by jacqueminot rose thrown by glr'
at a flower fiesta to come OF SUDDEN
upon that tree at the time OF It's oios-
sorning That tree, one thought, USED 70
sing little aeolian song upon the theme
of the Punishment of winter and Boreas.
No matter how often I would swing o!
that beautiful little. tree always 1ounu
it somehow surprising; as surprising as
when, swimming in the sea bit oeyons'
the breaker line one day last summer
1 glanced overhead and saw little
white butterfly bravely flying over tns
tumbling waters. and, nothing aao NO.
which he found himself fiuttering,
seemed bent upon flying straight 10 the
Canary Islands.
sTH HEN, those pansies In Lafayette
Square. They, too, were very early
upon the vernal scene. So early were
they at times. in truth, that I've seen
them dauntlessly raising their happy
motley heads with the remains or the
final snow lying all around them. II
was a lesson i'm optimism to see them
thus smuggling determinedly amid the
bleakness. doing more braveiy than any
animate thing of analogous briliancy. Toe
you would not expect, say, Drign! htl.e
lizard of the tropics to keep up napPy
color If thrust upon a block of arctic Ice
The beautiful greenth tgreenth Is no
word, but it should be- OF the grass on
the eastern side of the Capitol, grass All
dotted by now. no doubt. with vivid dan.
delions, is a thing that perenna.y PUPS
into the mind of the exiled Washing
tonian at this season. Pretty soon. 100,
as the cars creep up on the southern sue
of the Capitol, the happy washington
folk will catch sight of the DIG, hIh.
glowing snowballs. I suppose they are
still called snowballs-those great round.
ish masses Of pure white blossoms. Anu
everywhere In Washington. II NOT now
then pretty soon, the saunterer OF tue
rider comes upon the glorious mauye
of them finds their meaning In his nos
trfls and straightway lapses into dreams
dreams fond and foolish mayhap; but
dreams that are worth while for all tnat.
THE LEAKAGE of the Washington trees
] always was a study to me. The first
faint green of the trees was as good 70
see as getting a fine. CHEEKY letter, per-
haps with money in 1t. Then the thrust
ing forth Of the leaves, and the day-py-
day changing of the tint, which. IN the
mass altered each day the whole color
brageousness was thing that, on sunny
days. one could almost perceive While
leaning against a gate.
Then after the leaves were bit out,
along would come three or four raw.
rainy days, and then 1t would actually
Saeru aS If the leaves had taken the VS.
itation of ugly, discouraging weather 70
heart and were sulking over 1t; certainly
it appeared that they refused to grow, 70
thrust themselves any farther forth. tili
the skies were washed clean again. Ihen,
upon a brilliant morning when all OF the
low-hanging clouds had been banished.
the leaves, chirking up again after the
chill SPELL could almost be heard uncoii-
ing; and presently, after three or TOUR
days of such mellow ordnance, benolo
there would be the full leaf, and every
vista on every street was of vivid, living,
encompassing emerald!
At such times, when the. leaves were
very new and In the very ardor OF their
greenness, one would take the car that
goes out East Capitol street, for the sake
Of passing through the track-sentinelfnG
vista of trees, with the straight view
through the hyaline air to the intenser-
seeming green of Lincoln Park. Such car
encircling vistas, too. were to be enjoyed
on New York avenue and on pennsylvania
avenue southeast.
Is it near time for dogwood blossoms?
One has memories of days spent a-gatll-
ering ,degwood blossoms around the up
per Potomac on both sides. Spring
around the upper. Potomac! Often l won
der if all washingtonians quite appre-
ciate the almost startling beauty OF the
upper Potomac, not only In spring. but
at all seasons of the year. Really, there
is no stream anywhere In the world much