JUNE. 233 



particularly described seventy - seven kinds in his 

 Sorttis, but then many of these include multifarious 

 varieties. 



The late Professor DON has given descriptions of 

 205 supposed distinct species of roses in his General 

 System of Gardening and Botany; he says, "Botanists 

 are not agreed as to the number of original species of 

 this genus, and, notwithstanding the labours of many 

 scientific men, the genus still remains a chaos, from 

 which it can never be extricated." He further re- 

 marks, that " Varieties are raised from seed on the 

 continent, where the seed ripens better than in this 

 country. New varieties are raised in Erance and 

 Italy annually. M. L. YILLAEESI, royal gardener at 

 Monza, has raised upwards of fifty varieties of R. 

 Indica, some of them are quite black, and many of 

 them highly odoriferous." The Centifolia group, in- 

 cluding the Damask, Province, and French roses, has 

 always been most esteemed ; this comprises the favou- 

 rite Moss Roses, dark, white, striped, and crested. 

 The yellow Eglantine Hose (JRosa luted], makes a 

 conspicuous show in gardens, as well as its fiery 

 variety sub-rulra, while the modest Sweet-briar is 

 familiar to every body from the grateful scent of its 



renowned names of old and new worlds' history, all the aristocrats and 

 republican heroes and heroines of past and present times Napoleon, 

 Prince Esterhazy, Tippo Saib, Semiramis, Duchess of Sutherland, Princess 

 Clementine, with occasionally such touches of sentiment from the French 

 rose-growers as Souvenir d'un Ami, or Nid d' Amour (nest of love), &c. 

 In this whirlpool of rank, fashion, and sentiment, the poor noviciate rose- 

 hunter is likely enough to be quite wrecked ; and instead of looking out 

 for a per feet rose, it is a thousand to one that he finds himself confused 

 amid the names of princes, princesses, and lovely duchesses, a vivid pic- 

 ture of whose charms rises to his imagination as he reads the brief words 

 ' pale flesh, wax-like, superb,' or ' large, perfect form, beautiful,' or ' pale 

 blush, very pretty,' so that it is ten to one that duchesses, not roses, are 

 all the while at the bottom of his imagination ! " 



