Click on the image, then enlarge. Move left to right, and imagine yourself in the middle. Three years ago, this was a big thicket. Why is there a rotting Datsun in the garden? But not long after Burroughs bought this property in , he decided he wanted to drive again. He was in his late 60s then, with a pronounced shoulder hump. The cramped Datsuns of the time, then a no-frills economy car, suited his posture. The license was obtained, the car purchased, and Burroughs drove around Lawrence.
His friends say he could barely see above the steering wheel. After a respectful while, a year or so, a Meeting of the Handlers was convened. It was agreed that William was a frightening driver.
Burroughs was approached and, being a wise old cat, he surrendered the keys. The Datsun was drained out, pushed into the back yard and, legend has it, the keys thrown into the creek bordering the property, now Burroughs Creek, nearly 30 years ago.
This pathway was carved out in , originally two feet wide. A coppiced Catalpa is on the left, turning chartreuse before retiring for winter. Photo: Ian Spomer. Many of the saplings you see in the above two pictures will be removed this month.
In , the alley above was barely three feet wide. Over trees have been cleared since then, mostly elm, walnut, hackberry and silver maple. The wild blackberries on the left—tart, tiny fruit that the birds always get first—are tedious to remove, as is the honeysuckle. But every gardener knows that endurance is insurance.
