44 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GAEDEXER. 



( Janauy IC, 1*30. 



nho.it tlie sume in hei^'l.t. I herewith enclose a rortion of the 

 f..liago lor your in^pccli.m. Tlie plnuta from whicl;^ they were 

 liikoii arc RrowiiiR in a teniiienitiire of about b-, or <0 .—Isaac 

 Hli.i., Gnnh-iier, The Pr./.v. 



[Tho specimen leaves were verj- decp-colourca, and fine.— 

 Eds.] 



OLE.VNIXnS FROM KOCK AND lIKI.n 

 TUWAKDS 1;0:MK.— No. 1". 



F.vcn dnv wo lenininea in Florence sliowcd us more and 

 more of tlie wondrous chanRe that hnd l.ilU-n upon that city 

 ..f liowers. On everj- side life and activity had taken tlie place 

 of dullness and repose. And such strange life too ! I stood 

 and wondered how faculties that had rein.iiiied so long unused 

 omiM all at once have burst forth into such active iday. I was 

 like a vcrv child Razing into the shop-windows. reading the 

 titles of books, pamphlets, and newsp»pers— haUpenny nevys- 

 papers— perhaps a trifle too scurrilous, a trifle too free w'lth 

 the names of king, ministers, and people ; and I must confess 

 to mv hair somelimes standing a little on end at only the titles 

 f.f th".> publications. The great reaction seems to have been 

 too much for the heads of the good people of Florence ; they 

 are like thirstr men. r.naccustomed to strong drink, jilacecl 

 before an overflowing tankard, they think more of fiuenchiuR 

 their thirst than of after-conseipieuces. l comforted myself 

 with thinking that after awhile these mongs would right 

 themselves. , ^ • i 



Anolher strange feature was the churches. On many sides 

 I heard mui-mirrs of the persecutions to which the cliurch was 

 subjected, long faces were pulled, and the direst proi,heCies 

 uttered as to what would be the future result. The future was 

 J,?vond mv ken ; but the present, as far as the Church of Rome 

 went, seeiiied highly satisfactory. I saw, indeed, fewer monks 

 and priests, but more services ; less show perhaps, but more 

 reality. I fonnd churches filled with praying people that 

 once were comparatively empty, and judging by what I saw 

 mv impression was that the Church had received freedom 

 rather than persecution. Of course there was, what some 

 people would call, the reverse side of the shield. I thought so 

 when I drove to what once had been the Farmaceutica of 

 •St. M. Novella, where the dear old white-robed monks had used 

 to distil the most fragrant essences from delicious flowers, and 

 make " pastiglie di profumi " of wonderful potency : but alas 1 

 the few mouks that had been left had no time to distil aught 

 but sad forebodings to their ancient house and to do the real 

 work of the convent ; so we had to return without pastils or 

 •scent if I except the flavour of garlic, which seems to pervade 

 everv' monk and monasterj- as inseparably as the smell of peat 

 pervades an Irish beggar through years of mendicancy m 



England. , , , , „ 



Again, when I went to see the matchless frescos of 1-ra 

 An.'elico in the convent of S. Marco, and found soldiers ex- 

 pecleil there. I thought it was the reverse of the shield wnth a 

 vengeance I and it brought to my memory that it was not the 

 first time soldiers would invade the convent of Savanarola 

 and Fra Burtolomeo. There are no paintings m Florence 

 that I more love to look upon than those of Fra AngeUco ; it 

 seems as if the reflection of the inner life of the good " frate " 

 shone brightly and purely on every feature of the blessed angels 

 he loved so much to depict. , ,, i ■ 



One of the favourite drives from Florence is to the Cartlmsian 

 Monastery of La Cei-tosa in Val d' Emo, from whence the monks 

 distribute food and medicine to the poor for many miles round. 

 There are manv beautiful wild flowers growing around the 

 convent, and amongst them a large ragged-looking Pieouy of 

 a pinkish lilac colom-, which was flowering in great profusion. 

 I believe it to have been the Ta-onia peregrina. I have never 

 seen it growing wild in any other locality. 



In the fields near Bellosquardo, shining brightly amidst the 

 fresh green corn, I gathered (piautities of Gladiolus communis, 

 the crilour being quite as good, though the sjiikes of bloom were 

 not s ) large as when under cultivation in En;laud. The fields 

 ol Italy are so richlv decked with flowers in all the wild luxu- 

 riance of Nature untouched by art, that I grew to love them 

 better than the untidv gardens, suffering from the spasmodic 

 exertions of gardeners who thwart Nature without introducing 



From the beautifid fields I passed into the garden of the 

 Villa lullosquardo, and there I saw Orange trees, full of fruit 

 and bloom, in large tubs filled with the very richest compost, 



its ugliness 80 unconcealed that one turned awnv dis-K^^tea 

 from the golden fruit and full rich blossom. Beneath the waUs 

 of this villa there is a magnificent view <.f Florence- we went 

 there to watch the setting sun. All around us were ■'>'lReB of 

 Roses-the common China and the Yellow Banksian. the latter 

 trailing its buiT blossoms over walls and trees, from which 

 it depended in innumerable festoons reaching almost to the 

 ground, where the deep blue Corn-flower (Centa.iren cyanus) 

 was growing in pleasing contrast of colour 1J^'1".^„"| Jf> 

 Florence with lier graceful towers, her gent y-flow,ng Amo, 

 with the silvery gleaming Birch trees by its side, while stretch- 

 in" far away was a dreamlike distance of fair soft gre> hills, 

 with pleas.ant-looking villages dotted about the intervening 

 vallevs. To the right was the tower of Galileo; and as he 

 eve gazed upon it strange thoughts would come to the u nd 

 of the curiouslv one-sided nature of the Topes infallibihty 

 -'•so infaUible," as a Catholic in Rome sn>d to "le one 

 dav, '• in spiritual matters, so verj- fallible in all temporal 

 affairs.-' One could not but remember the strange scene m the 

 convent of Minerva in Rome, when Galileo, then seventy years 

 of age, was forced-some say by tortnre-to abjure on the 

 Gospels his belief in the Copemican doctrines. «>^'n? "0°} 

 his Lees, we read, that the old man turned to a friend, and 

 whispered, " K pur >,■ imm.-.," " It," the earth " moves for 

 aU that!" but as there was no little bird to whisper m the 

 ears of Fope and Inquisitors Butler-s famous epigram— 

 " He who consents neainst bis will 

 Is tit the same opinion still,'' 



I trust they were satisfied that the imposed oath had settled 

 the question and the earth's motion together. 



But I have wandered far away from BeUosquardo. and from 

 the low wall on which we sat watching and listening 1 re- 

 sentlv from a neighbouring villa came forth a pretty-looking 

 ladv.'work in hand, and by her side two little children, one 

 holding his father's hand. They, too, came and sat down the 

 pretty mother working and chatting away, whi e the children 

 plaved at bo-peep with their parents and the stranger. Then 

 {here came a party of monks in brown habit, rope girdle, and 

 sandals ; with eyes bent on the ground they passed quickly on, 

 sitting down at i little distance, when forthwith mingled with 

 the scent of Roses, came the abomination of garlic A\ ith the 

 monks came a small party of young lads m the black cassock 

 and felt hat of the seminary. Then arrived a party o Ame- 

 ricans with a Conner, Murray, and cigars. Striding the waU 

 as though it were a miUe's back, they P"ff«'J «'=^»r/" »« «' 

 defiance of the "smoking prohibited" that English laches 

 carry so plainly written on their faces. Happd.v tlie.v soon 

 " did " the view, huiTving on to another, while a trio of Italian 

 Rills took their place.'the sweet music of their tongue blen<hng 

 in perfect harmony with the scene. We were a strange party 

 attracted from such distant l'"''^^ t^S;'^%"\ *^", "^f^ °lj^" 

 setting sun, sinking down so peacefully behind the westeni 



""it was in Florence that I noticed for the first time the Cercis 

 siUquastrnm, or .Tudas Tree, its clusters of red bloom havmg 

 much the appearance of a red Acacia. Here, also I met with 

 Te Petunia'nvctaRiniflora, or Petunia Tree ; the Wossoms are 

 of the softest lilac, with a giey tinge, they hang in drooping 

 masses, and have a most delicious scent [?]. The tree is as large 

 as a moderate-sized Apple tree, and is most gracefu -looking. 

 Cheap as bouquets were in Rome, they were much c' 'eaper m 

 Florence, and much more beautiful ; for half a panl I coiUd 

 buvthe most lovelv Roses and LiUes. and, what is more 1 

 cmild choose my nosegay from a huge basket of ti™;^^ >■«">- 

 gathered, with the morning dew still resting upon them, and. 

 momve . I could have a long chat about them into the bargain 

 Some of the streets are quite converted into gardens, quantities 

 M Xubs and plants being arranged aga nstthe waU, and ra, ed 

 round. How 1 longed to put felonious hands through the barB 

 and gather for mvself ! There were Roses, ye low, white, and 

 p"nk leutzia gracilis, with its featherj- white blossoms ; 

 Coronila and a%undred other dainty flowers. I wondered 

 how they would have looked after a two-days sojourn in Regent 



^'oneof the most interesting sights of Florence is the royal 

 manufactory- for the "pietrecommesse," orllorentme mosaics 

 where the 'most finished pictm-es are wrought m precion^ 

 Lnes,and the workmanship is so delicate "f^ t'^^^^^'^j''^, 

 mosaics may be easUv taXen for paintings and the groups of 

 Lvers look so natural, one is half tempted to try i they have 

 any =cent. The marbles and stones of which the mosaics 

 are composed are coUected from every country under heaven, 



