58 Fuller, Some South African Scenes and Flowers. [voLXXXli. 



represent each month as it comes. Naturally, in the spring 

 and early summer the flowers were most numerous, and some- 

 times it meant starting work at 6 a.m. and continuing at high 

 pressure as long as the specimens lasted fresh enough. 



Table Mountain is a wonderful field for naturalists, but on 

 my first visit to South Africa, in 1893, which lasted about 

 eighteen months, the flowers were much more plentiful than 

 when on my fourth visit, which was last year; in fact, the 

 Government has found it necessary to protect the Table 

 Mountain flora for some years to come — a proof that they were 

 being by degrees destroyed. The coloured people still sell the 

 wild-flowers in the streets on Saturdays and Wednesdays in 

 Cape Town, and take up their stand in Adderley-street for a 

 stretch of about two hundred yards : but they have to go some 

 distance to gather the flowers, now that there are restrictions 

 and so many varieties and localities preserved. 



There is no doubt that the Cape peninsula is a rich hunting- 

 ground for the botanist, for there are endless hills and moun- 

 tains wherever one travels, and each spot seems to possess its 

 own special varieties. Such as Caledon heaths arc found no- 

 where else, Riversdale heaths are again distinct, and so on. 

 Fransch Hoek has a variety of Serruria {florida) and Ericas 

 that grow on one special hill, and only the experienced 

 botanist has any hope of finding them. One ought to he very 

 grateful to the early Dutch settlers, who planted avenues of 

 oak trees in and around (ape Town, lor they are now quite 

 a feature of the town, and form welcome shade with their 

 beautiful spreading branches. Unfortunately, thi late (Ceil 

 Rhodes introduced the little grey squirrel from England into 

 his own grounds, and they have now become so numerous 

 around ("ape I'own that in the early Spring the avenues are 

 carpeted with the young green leaves nibbled off by the 

 squirrels. The forests <»! pine trees make a happy home foi 

 them when the oak trees are hare. The ( ape Forestry Depart- 

 ment is planting pine forests on the slopes oi rable Mountain, 

 which form dark patches when seen from a distance, bu1 there 

 ms to be rather a difference oi opinion as to the wisdom 

 of tin- extensive planting, as it is destroying so much ol the 

 undergrowth and natural beauty ol the grand old mountain. 



On my recent visit 1 was amazed t< see how very general 

 was the use ol the Coast Tea-tree, Leptospermutn lavigatum, 

 foi garden hedges, and how beautiful was the result, even up 

 to six and eighl feel high straight, square walls. An Aus- 

 tralian wattle I think the Golden Wattle, [cacia pyenantha, 

 though commonly Known in South Africa as Port Jackson 

 Willow and the Leptospermum I have just mentioned have 

 becom* so abundanl round about the ' ape Town Hats (having 



