The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-03-15
M E N l, w O M EN
 A ND T HIN G s

| osAN V hAb o RNAANN-S it wasl Inet to think that such a hglorious day was sandwiched into the middle of March?
 I woke up early and the trees, bushes and vines were musical with the voice of birds. My little song sparrow was on the job, perched high on telephone pole, and, believe me, he was making good as vocalist.
 
 l got up and looked down on the fruit trees in my orchard, which was ablazs with color-peach, quinch and pear tree /vieink with one another as to which was the prettier. pink or white, and to tell the truth it was hard to de- eide, and l have not yet been able to decide between them in my own mind
 
 The seed planted some weeks back had been busy pushing out their heads and the garden was beginning to look like something as the green rows had the appearance of ribbons wound on the breast of mother earth to let all nature know that she was dressed in Sunday attire. I'll get an early mess of peas if old Jack. Frost and MT. Rabbit will give them a chance.
 After breakfast I went out on the front porch and filled my eyes with the beauty of the hills and dale. I do not ever remember the Country club grounds more beautiful. and they have Ia loveiiness which changes with the seasons. I am often put to it to dis cover whether I get more joy out oe them when Spring first puts on her mantle of green or later when she garbs herself in the glories of radiant autumn.
 looked cityward and everything around me was so countrylike and quiet that it was hard to realize that l was living on the edge of a great in- dustrial center. The atmosphere about me was clear as crystal, the sky above blue, but towards the west there was thin wreath of smoke, while the Jefferson County Bank building lifted it's head in the sun high above the dirt and dust of the streets at<its feet
 l strolled out into the yard to take stock of the growing flowers and found that the jonquils had almost finished blooming, a few hyacinths were still standing with their cluster of blooms, the violets were bravely lifting their scented heads to drink the draught of spring. but as yet none of my roses had found the courage to blossom, ai- though l have a white running one which usually takes a chance at the first warm breath of the season.
 The various plants were showing evi. dence that they were awakening, and some spirae and forsythia had bold the beauty of some Of the evergreens, for the new leaves had such a virginal freshness. I have quite a variety of them, but it has seemed to me that the botanists have done everything in their power to keep their names a secret from the average person by bestowing upon them such long Latin names. I have three magnificent oaks on my groundss and they are my pride. One of them stands in the front yard near my window and when the winds come over the mountains and down the valley it sways and losses and during the night frequently frightens me with fear of cyclones, as it doesn't take a very hard storm to set the branches and leaves in motion. I sometimes 1iEan it fn io whose growl is worse than his bite. If tree has a sense of humor I am sure it plays stunts to scare me.
 
 On the edge of my chicken yard have two as symmetrical specimens of oak as can be found anywhere, and just outside in the alley is a lonsome pine which towers above everything Some people do not like pines. I SUD- pose it is because they are so common in the south. but to me there are few things which give me the same sensa- tion as a grove of pines at sunset when the glow of the setting sun lights them up with his dying rays. No won der that an artist looking on such a picture got the idea of stained glass for cathedral windows.
 | My rock walls are covered with ivy and my pergolas with honeysuckle, running roses, kudzu vines and, best of all, wistaria, a genus of legumin- ous climbers named in honor of Casper l Wistar an American anatomist of Philadelphia, who attended the Uni versity of Pennsylvania in 17s2, subse- quently studied medicine at the Uni versity of Edinburgh, returning to the United States in 17s7. He opened his house once a week for meetings of students. travellers. scientists and citi- I zens. and these symposiums continued long after his death, and were known as the wistar parties.
 I thought this might be interesting information for those who love wis taria, for to me it is one of the most beautiful of all the climbers, and I have scattered it with profusion all about my premises. It grows easily and rapidly and if well placed will give big returns in the way of foliage and exuberant flowers. If I was wor : ried to give the palm of beauty when gazing upon the peach and pear trees, I was more puzzled as stood beneath the lavender and the white wistaria. Never being able to come to a conclu- sion I just propose to always have both kinds.
 l Care should be used where wistaria