194 Proceedings of the Horticultural Society* 



can appleSjthis difference between appearance and reality excited no 

 surprise, for it has long- been notorious, that the character of these 

 is that of American apples, even in their own soil, with the ex- 

 ception of the two above named, the Newtown pippin, the Pomme- 

 grise of Canada, and the Fall pippin. But even the latter are 

 but indifferently adapted to our climate, the Newtown pippin, in 

 particular, cankering", and exhibiting every mark of an irrecoverably 

 diseased habit, unless trained upon walls with a southern aspect. 



February lOth. 

 A paper by Mr. Lindley was read upon an Italian apple, called 

 the Malcarle, which has been celebrated by Italian writers as the 

 most beautiful, the most delicate, the most delicious, and the most 

 fragrant of apples. In this opinion the writer concurred, and re- 

 commended that pains should be taken to reconcile it to our climate 

 by giving it the assistance of a south wall. An account was also 

 laid before the Society of the genus Calochortus, by Mr. David 

 Douglas, who succeeded, during his travels in North-west America, 

 in adding two fine new species to that already imperfectly described 

 by Pursh. Of one of these which had flowered in the garden of the 

 Society at Chiswick, a coloured drawing was handed about, from 

 which it appeared to be a plant like a Ferraria, with brilliant pur- 

 ple flowers, adorned with tufts of hairs in the inside, and one of the 

 most lovely bulbous plants with which we are acquainted. Fruit 

 of the King date of Morocco was exhibited ; this was a very sweet 

 delicious kind of date, not much larger than a French plum, and, like 

 that fruit, covered with a delicate bloom. It was infinitely supe- 

 rior to the dates of the shops, which are chiefly imported from 

 Smyrna and Alexandria, and are to King dates what the crab-apples 

 of our hedges are to the golden pippins of our desserts. We also 

 observed a bottle of the fruit of Gaultheria Shallon, a North-west 

 American plant, recently obtained alive through the activity of Mr. 

 Douglas. It is likely to prove an acquisition of very great import- 

 ance to this country, as it possesses the unusual merits of being an 

 elegant low tree, an evergreen, a hardy plant, a good fruit, easily 

 propagated, and promising to form capital underwood in preserves 

 of game. 



