Evening star., 1932-03-07

This ought to be, and probably will
be. a lilac year.
Not for several seasons have the lilac
bushes done what they should do.
Perhaps this Spring they may.
These oldtime shrubs, still the
favorites of thousands, have lived so
long with human beings that they have
taken on some of the peculiarly human
features.
One of these is whimsicality.
The lilac blooms to suit itself. some
times well and sometimes not so we'll
Some Springs an entire city full of
them will burst into bloom at once
making a new landscape for the eve
and a new air for the nose.
The charm of the lilac may be di-
vided into three equal parts. that of
the eye, the nose and the mind.
Few bushes are any prettier in
growth. with their heart-Shaped leaves
of deep green and their colored bios
SONS.
None has a more distinctive fra
GRANGE.
Few shrubs have more intimate mem
tai connections with humanity. For
many scores of years, now. they have
been associated with the homesteads
of the people.
1t is said that there was no New
England house built without at least
few lilacs planted around the door
way.
During the course of the years these
bushes grew taller and wider. so that
today, even on deserted farms. they
are veritable trees. in Spring shedding
the benediction of their lovelineSs. both
in form and fragrance, over the coun-
trySide.
But that is not all
Here is Cne old ld-fashioned bush which
is not old-fashioned at all, in one
sense One never hears sneering
remark made about it, as one may
about the humble snowberry or the
coralberry. These homely bushes. de-
sirable as they are, nevertheless have
been so largely planted that some per-
sons pretend to find them diStasteful
We have never heard a person speak
disrespectfully of the lilac. Even the
old common form still remains a
favorite throughout the world. although
the various French hybrids have come
into large popularity.
The latter grow more readily, per-
hapS and flower somewhat more pro-
fusely. but often lack the distinctive
lilac odor which clings to the so-called
common lilac
The fresh fragrance Is one which has
never been bottled successfully. accord
ing to the verdict of our noStrilS As
to the qualifications of these to Judge,
We may say that pioneer ancestors
claimed to be able to smell bear in
the Western woods. Whether this is
to be credited or not is a matter for
the reader to decide Certainly it is
true that many people have unusually
keen olifactory organs, which can ap-
prise them of odors, both good and bad,
far in advance of persons with less
capable senses. Often the latter like
to call the former "finicky," not being
able to credit others with keener senses
than themselves.
There is nothing surer. however than
that in the matter of the keenness Of
the senses there is really tremendous
variation among human beings Not
only are they born different, but vari-
GUS habits tend to destroy the powers
Of sight, smell. taste, etc. 1t will be
noticed that men who smoke a great
deal invariably use more salt pepper
and other condiments, and require more
sugar in their coffee than do nom
smokers, everything else being equal.
1t is impossible, therefore, for the
person with vitiated smelling powers
to realize just how the man with bet
ter nose can detect the difference be-
tween the lilac odor on the bush and