144 



THE CONIFEROUS PLANTS OF ITALY. 



Italian gardens than Conifers in those of the north of Europe, if 

 the English gardens are excepted, where, from the mildness of 

 the winter, the beautiful Cedar is able to flourish, and where tiuch 

 a high value is placed on pineta composed of Conifers from all 

 countries. 



Many traditions exist which intimate that Italy, and especially 

 the Apennines, were more wooded and consequently richer in 

 Conifers than at the present day ; but as I shall speak elsewhere 

 of this subject, I shall confine myself to the following observa- 

 tions. At Rome, according to Cornelius Nepos, the houses 

 were covered with wood, till the war broke out with Pyrrhus,* 

 consequently for nearly five centuries ; according to Dionysius 

 of Halicarnassus, the boards prepared at Sila were sufficient for 

 the whole of Italy, were used for building houses and ships, and 

 the Romans obtained a considerable income by establisliing the 

 preparation of the pitch of Brutium.f 



During the middle ages the Yew was very much destroyed in 

 consequence of the great commerce made by the Venetians of 

 its wood ; for, before the discovery of powder, the Yew was in 

 high esteem for making bows. J In former times the Yew was 

 much more common to the north of the Alps than at present, as 

 we may see from wiiat Caisar says on this subject with respect to 

 Germany and Gaul.§ 



XXI. — Contributions to a History of the Relation between 

 Climate and Vegetatio?i in various parts of the Globe. 



No, 5. — The Vegetation of the Province of Ceard, in Brazil. 

 By George Gardner, F.L.S., Director of the Royal Botanic 

 Gardens, Ceylon. 



From Pernambuco I went by sea to Aracaty, a small town in 

 the province of Ceara, about three degrees an(l a half to the north 

 of Pernambuco, with the intention of making an inland journey 

 from thence to the Rio Tocantin, and by it descend to the 

 Amazons. The country around Aracaty is still flatter than it is 

 at Pernambuco, and consequently does not atford much that is 

 interesting t(f the botanist. With the exception of one small hill 



* Pliny, xvi. 1 .5 — " Scandula contectam fuisse Eomam ad Pyrrhi usque 

 bellum annis 470, Cornelius Nepos autor est." 



f Dion. Halicarn. xx. 15, 16. 



X For this reason the exportation of yew-wood was prohibited in Scot- 

 land. 



§ CcEsar, de Bello Gall. vi. 31 — " Cativolus taxo, cujus magna in Gallia 

 Germaniaque copia est, se examinavit.'' 



