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The Flora of Banda Oriental. 
By W.. E...SARPORD,.-U..5:, N- 
After a passage of sixty-six days from New York, the ‘‘ Van- 
dalia”’ came to anchor in the roadstead of Montevideo, about two 
miles from the city. 
From our anchorage we could see a compact mass of flat- 
roofed houses rising gradually from the water’s edge and crowned 
by a large cathedral with two spires and a dome of glazed tiles. 
To the west of the city was a little harbor crowded with ships of 
all nationalities, beyond which rose the ‘‘ mount,” or cerro, which 
gives to the city its name. To the eastward we could see a broad 
expanse of pasture land, dotted with herds of cattle and sheep, 
and in the distance a number of trees darkly outlined against the 
horizon. All of these, I afterwards found, were introduced 
species: Eucalypti and Acacias from Australia, tall, slender 
‘‘Lombardy” poplars, and weeping willows. Very few of the 
trees indigenous to the region are suitable for shade trees. They 
are mostly of small size, and their leaves are of such a nature as 
to offer but little protection from the sun, narrow and coriaceous, 
and thus admirably adapted to resist the violent winds which 
blow almost continually over the unprotected plains. 
It was a great pleasure to get on shore after having been con- 
fined so long on board ship. Spring had just begun. The 
broad, flat country around Montevideo was covered by a rich 
carpet of tender grass spangled with flowers. The pretty quintas 
were surrounded by bouquets of blooming quince and cherry 
and apple trees, contrasting strangely with the dark, glossy- 
leaved limes and oranges and the feathery palm trees by their 
side. For Montevideo, although in a latitude corresponding 
nearly to the southern boundary of Tennessee, has a very mild 
climate. In the summer time the temperature seldom reaches 
above ninety degrees ¥ahrenheit, and in winter frost is of rare 
occurrence ; so that Fuchsias, Heliotropes and beautiful Cape 
Jasmines grow to an enormous size. 
To those who have read Darwin’s Journal, the Banda Ori- 
-ental, or, as it is now called, the Republica Oriental, must have - 
almost classic interest. I was eager to wander over the campo of 
whose flora Darwin gives us but a tantalizing glimpse when he 
