48 



JOUKNAL OF HOBTICULTUKE AND COTTAGE GAEDENEE. 



[ July 17, 1866. 



of the hot, dried-np Pyramids, and the hard-working Nile, 

 which is always being made to act contrary to its inclinations ; 

 now banked out, now let loose, now irrigating Cotton fields and 

 gardens according to fixed measure, and now worried by steam 

 engines into all sorts of uncomfortable positions. After all the 

 bustle and heat of agriculture and nature, methinks horticul- 

 tural taste was best shown in the Pasha's garden, by the quiet 

 repose of those shady walks, where the eye was not distracted 

 by brilliancy of colouring, nor the mind by the extraordinary 

 character of the shrubs. 



Although wild flowers in Egypt may be few, there yet re- 

 main its fruits, and of these I find there are Mulberries, 

 Apricots, Peaches, and Plums, Grapes, Figs, Prickly Pears, 

 Pomegranates, Dates, Lemons, and Oranges, with, later in the 

 year, Bananas. Egypt has its Olives and its Vines. Its fields 

 produce Wheat, Barley, Beans, Vetches, Clover, Flax, Indian 

 Corn, Cotton, Sugar Cane, Bice, Tobacco ; while Water Melons, 

 Cucumbers, and Lettuces, grow side by side with the Leeks, 

 the Onions, and the Garlic, for which the thirsting Israelites 

 longed in that great and terrible wilderness, where their very 

 " souls felt dried away " within them. — Filix-fcehina. 



A DAY IN THE DOMAIN, AUCKLAND. NEW 

 ZEALAND. 



BY MBS. C. 31. ROSE. 



A lovely morning in early summer, the sky blue and cloud- 

 less, and the pleasant sunlight just tinging each wave with 

 gold as they ripple gently on the bosom of the broad placid 

 bay. 



Well provided with kits and baskets containing the needful 

 provision for our party, and trying in vain to restrain the 

 dancing footsteps of the children within the bounds of de- 

 corum, as we pass along the busier streets, we set forth upon 

 our pleasant excursion. Presently we have gained the Grafton 

 Boad, and here the children break bounds altogether, and pro- 

 gress as pleases them best for the remainder of the distance. 

 After duly admiring the delicious bit of sea view, which opens 

 to the leftacross Mechanics' Bay, we enter the shrubberies of 

 the Domain, and join a large number of pedestrians, all mak- 

 ing the best of their way to the scene of enjoyment, and with 

 the same object of pleasure in view. Up the winding paths, 

 through a sea of green foliage on all sides, catching a glimpse 

 occasionally of lovely flowering shrubs, some of which would 

 be treasures in any English greenhouse. You hear the mur- 

 muring of the stream far below j-ou on the right, and can 

 hardly fail to admire the lovely specimens of Fern and other 

 trees which overshadow it. Still onward glides the pleasant 

 track, now through green glades chequered with summer sun- 

 shine, and again through cool dells overhung with tall trees, 

 whose interlacing boughs make a welcome shade from the now 

 fast increasing heat. Soon you hear the sound of voices and 

 merry laughter, and in a few minutes you stand in the shadows 

 of that grove of trees so well known to the inhabitants of Auck- 

 land as the gathering place for the summer sports of their 

 juvenile population. 



Surely this is the most suitable place in the world for a 

 su mm er day's out-door amusement. Binocent and healthy re- 

 creation seems the rule in all directions, and taking possession 

 of one of the many benches which seem fixed under the trees 

 for the special use of the elders of the party, wo give ourselves 

 up to the complete enjoyment of the scene before us. A dozen 

 or two of strong swings, which seem extensively patronised, are 

 in active operation around ns, and close to each a group of 

 girls, each eagerly awaiting her turn at the much-loved ex- 

 ercise. Young faces decked with smiles everywhere meet the 

 eye, each seeming to be thoroughly imbued with the true spirit 

 of enjoyment. 



La the open space outside sports of every description appear 

 to be going on, and thither, after resting for awhile, our party 

 bend their steps. 



On the left, we perceive a group of young people dancing to 

 the music of an accordion, whilst, scattered over the grass in 

 every direction, various parties are busily pursuing games of 

 football, French and English, and the immemorial " kiss in the 

 ring." Good humour everywhere prevails, and the occasional 

 tumbles and mishaps apparently only add to the general fund 

 of amusement. 



But our appetites warn us that the dinner-hour is near, and 

 a table-cloth spread on the grass under the trees does duty for 



a more ostentatious board, and is soon covered with eatables of 

 various descriptions, which are doubly enjoyed in company 

 with the fresh air and the happy scene around us. How the 

 young people seem to relish the racing to and fro to the spring 

 for the water, which is our only beverage ! But, by-and-by, 

 they are off to their sports again, and we proceed to put in prac- 

 tice a plan we have formed for taking a quiet stroll through the 

 grounds, finishing with an inspection of the flower garden, not 

 forgetting to notice the stately swans, whose aquatic home is 

 just outside the entrance. 



What an inestimable privilege the unrestricted enjoyment of 

 these grounds must be to the inhabitants of Auckland, and it 

 is a matter of surprise that they are not more eagerly frequented 

 by those who love beautiful scenery and a profusion of flowers. 

 There are few European capitals where such a place so close to 

 the city would not be almost inconveniently crowded on most 

 fine days in summer. Those who possess floral tastes will 

 find them fully gratified here in the garden ; memory is busy 

 as your old English favourites meet your eye, visions of the 

 green lanes and quaint old gardens of your childish home seem 

 to rise before you, and a sigh is involuntarily given to that 

 blest time of innocence when Violets and Primroses were more 

 highly prized than the richest jewels, and wild Strawberries a 

 more eagerly sought-for prize than any which life since those 

 days has brought us. Plants which yon remember carefully 

 tending as the delicate pets of your conservatory, are here 

 hardy trees flourishing in the open air, their gorgeous tints 

 and foreign-looking foliage reminding us at every step of the 

 lovely climate and fruitful soil of this the land of our adoption. 

 And now once more we are wending our way slowly to the 

 summit of the hill, wishing to see how the lovely panorama 

 there visible looks in the golden light of the coming sunset. 



Before us lies Parnell, its white houses looking peaceful and 

 happy on its green hills sloping so gently to the water's edge ; 

 beyond that a broad expanse of the purple glittering sea, and 

 still further the outlines of blue hills blending with the sky in 

 the far distance. The spires of the different churches, the 

 residence of the bishop, and the many pretty villas peeping 

 from nests of green foliage, form a picture which will not easily 

 be forgotten, and truly rural and pleasant in its aspect, for tha 

 wooded expanse of the Domain here hides the busier streets 

 and suburbs of the city from view. To the right are the vil- 

 lages of Newmarket and Epsom, and the well-known outlines 

 of the hills beneath whose shadows they repose, whilst behind 

 us rises Mount Eden, grand in the savage beauty of its aspect 

 at this distance, and already growing dark with the purple 

 shades of the coming night. We choose a quiet path for our 

 homeward walk, not caring to have interrupted the pleasant 

 train of thought into which we had fallen, and we linger by 

 the way enjoying the beauty of the twilight which, though 

 brief, is lovely enough to remind us of that immortalised by 

 the poet as 



" The purple twilight dim " 

 through which 



11 The happy princess followed him." 



But the moon rises suddenly over the dark tree tops, flooding 

 the scene with a brilliancy of light unknown in colder latitudes, 

 and, softened by the distance, we can catch the sound of the 

 well-known air played by the band of music returning with a 

 numerous body of the holiday-makers to the city. We have 

 reached the brow of the last hill, and before us gleam the lights 

 from the familiar streets of Auckland, and we have one more 

 day of happiness to add to the brighter side of our life account. 



THE VINEYARDS OP GERMANY. 



A VISIT TO THE CELEBRATED HOCK VINEYARDS — THE GREAT WTKE 

 YEAR OF 18G5 — -PRICES AND QUALITY OF WINES, &C 



The Bhine Gau, so called, extends from a point opposite the 

 city of Mayence, on the east bank of the Khine, and extends 

 down to Budesheim. It is generally, however, understood to 

 begin at Biebrich, the summer residence of the Duke of Nassau, 

 which is only about a couple of miles below where the river 

 Maine enters the Bhine. Near this are the great Hock vine- 

 yards, where that unrivalled wine known by the name of Hock 

 is produced. These vineyards front on the river Maine, and 

 are only distant about a dozen miles^from the city of Frank- 

 fort. For a distance of two or three miles on the bank of the 

 river, there is a narrow belt of laud, in some places not more 

 than 40 rods, and in others not over 80 rods in width, covered 



