for two or three days,
and Edith was settled in the great easy arm-chair with dolls and toys
and picture-books in a pile that seemed as if it would not stop growing
until every article belonging to herself and Clara had been gathered
there. "We can go on with our trees," said Miss Harson, "even if we do
not see them just yet; and this evening I should like to tell you
something about the poplar, a large tree with alternate leaves which is
often found in dusty towns, where it seems to flourish as well as in its
favorite situation by a running stream. An old English writer calls the
poplars 'hospitable trees, for anything thrives under their shade.' They
are not handsomely-shaped trees, but the foliage is thick and pretty. In
the latter part of this month--April--the trees are so covered with
their olive-green catkins that large portions of the forests seem to be
colored by them."

[Illustration: IN THE EASY CHAIR]

"Are there any poplars at Elmridge?" asked Malcolm.

"Not nearer than the woods," was the reply, "where we must go and look
for them when Edith's foot is quite well again, though there are a good
many in the city. The poplar is often planted by the roadside because it
grows so rapidly and makes a good shade. The _Abele_, or silver poplar,
is an especial favorite for this purpose.

"The balm of Gilead, or Canada poplar, is the largest of the species,
and really a handsome tree, often growing to the height of fifty or
sixty feet, with a trunk of proportionate size. It has large leaves of a
bright, glossy green, which grow loosely on long branches, A peculiarity
of this tree is that before the leaves begin to expand the buds are
covered with a yellow, glutinous balsam that diffuses a penetrating but
very agreeable odor unlike any other. The balsam is gathered as a
healing anodyne, and for many ailments it is a favorite remedy in
domestic medicine. All the poplars produce more or less of this
substance.

"The river poplaris found on the banks of rivers and brooks and in wet
places, and is a noble and graceful tree. The trunk is light gray in
color, and the young trees have a smooth, leather-like bark. The broad
leaves, of a very rich green, grow on stems nearly as long as
themselves, and the flowering aments are of a light-red color. The
leaf-stalks and young branches are also brightly tinted. Another of
these trees has a very singular name: it is called the necklace poplar."

[Illustration: LOMBARDY POPLAR