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HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE -GOSSIP. 



those of the silk-moth, Bombyx cyntlna, and that 

 they were feeding on Ailanthus glandulosa, called 

 by the Chinese the "tree of heaven." It somewhat 

 resembles the ash, but more so the sumac. This 

 tree is said to have been freely planted in the parks 

 and gardens of Paris. I bred B. cynthia several 

 years ago ; the larvai would eat the large leaves 

 of young shoots of the laburnum, but only when a 

 supply of Ailanthus was not at hand. I believe 

 there are many examples of this tree in the London 

 parks and squares, and some particularly fine spe- 

 cimens in St. James's Park. — George Gascoyiie. 



BOTANY. 



The Colours of Ploavers.— The one thing 

 artists can never perfectly get is transparency, and 

 this difficulty is almost insurmountable in the illus- 

 trations for a journal like the Floral Magazine. It 

 is as impossible to represent the opal-like light seen 

 passing through the petals of some white lilies as it 

 would be to paint the rays of light playing about a 

 diamond, or the blaze of fire from the sun itself. 

 The best and purest scarlet colour used by artists, 

 if placed by the side of the petals of a field poppy or 

 geranium, immediately looks like a piece of clay. 

 The same with crimsons : our best crimson lakes, 

 when placed near the petals of some geraniacere, at 

 once put on a liver-like appearance. Scarlets, in 

 nature, are transparent, and such a thing as a trans- 

 parent scarlet pigment is unknown. Now, if we 

 glaze over one of our artificial scarlets with a wash 

 of pure purple, the painting immediately looks like 

 mud; but what is more common in some scarlet 

 Orchids (as in Masdevallla Veilchli) than to see a 

 vivid scarlet, shot with brilliant purple ? On an 

 examination of the epidermal cells with a micro- 

 scope, some of the mystery is explained, but any 

 attempt at imitation inevitably ends in failure. The 

 same remarks apply with equal truth to all other 

 tints— be they purple, blue, green, yellow, or orange. 

 It is in the experience of every artist that, on look- 

 ing at some flower possessing brilliant coloration, 

 the tint he at first took for scarlet soon appears to 

 him as scarlet-orange; when, on returning to the 

 plant, it is crimson-scarlet, or a crimson possibly 

 shot with some magenta hue. In every light 

 flowers display new tints, new effects of light and 

 shade, and new beauties, which the artist is indeed 

 fortunate if he can at all catch. Yellows, as found 

 in some Oncidiums, are very pure and lovely, and 

 our chromes come nearest; but chromes are per- 

 fectly opaque, whilst the yellows in the Orchids are 

 as perfectly transparent. It is common for artists 

 to fail in their tints of green, not because of their 

 non-appreciation of the colour, but because no 

 artificial greens can be found or compounded to 

 properly match nature. Some light-coloured roses 



are especially difficult; the petals do not appear of 

 the same tint when detached from the flowers, and 

 in matching the hue for imitation, the petals first 

 appear rose, with a blush of transparent scarlet ; 

 then a suggestion of salmon-colour shows itself, or 

 a glimmering of rosy-purple, which in theory seems 

 impossible, but in nature is a reality. These tints, 

 without doubt, all exist in the fiower itself, but no 

 artist, except the Great Designer of all flowers, can 

 perfectly reproduce them, — //'. G. S., in Floral 

 Magazi7ie. 



Seaside Shrubs. — In his contribution headed 

 " Seaside Shrubs," " T. B. W.," a correspondent of 

 yours for last month, mentioned the Atriplex Ilali- 

 mus. Allow me to state that this Orache is used for 

 hedges in St. Brelade's Bay, Jersey, to a consider- 

 able extent, and seems to answer very well. As 

 " T. B. W." said, it appears to thrive best in a 

 sandy soil ; and I believe it to have been imported 

 by a gentleman from Spain. St. Brelade's Bay is, 

 to be sure, a very sheltered spot, but the shrub 

 was recommended to me by a gentleman as suitable 

 to be planted on a very elevated embankment to 

 protect the lower portion of my garden from the 

 westerly winds, where I have succeeded in growing 

 scarcely anything else beside the alder, and it pro- 

 mises to do well. I have also noticed that it 

 is being introduced into other parts of the island 

 for forming thick low hedges between fields.— 

 A. Morley, Jersey. 



Kemarkable Trees.— We are glad to notice 

 that the subject recently discussed in our columns 

 is being worked out elsewhere. Mr. George C. 

 Atkinson has commenced a catalogue of the re- 

 markable trees of Northumberland and Durham in 

 the last number of the Natural History Trans- 

 actions of Northumberland and Durham. This is 

 a work that ought to be done for every county, and 

 provincial Natural History Societies and Pield 

 Clubs might add it to their programme of work to 

 be done. 



To PREVENT Mould in Fern-cases.— If 

 " P. J. S." slightly sprinkles the ferns several times 

 a week with lukewarm water, the mould will soon 

 disappear. — W. II. 



Seaside Shrubs. — There is an Atriplex {A. 

 Ilalimus F) gwvf'mg in hedges at St. Leonards, a 

 pretty shrub, with whitish frosted-looking foliage, 

 which seems to flourish well on the " Hastings sand- 

 stone " of the Wealdcn formation ; and I may as 

 well mention a small wild shrub, the Sea Southern- 

 wood, or Bluish Mugwort (Artemisia ccerulesceiii), 

 which I do not see described in oi'dinary botanical 

 books : in one oidy, an old one, have I ever seen any 

 notice of it, and to that was added, " it is saia to be 

 extinct." Some years ago, I saw abundance of it, 

 growing close to the sea, between Newhaven and 



