264 
made and are maintained by the Park department of the city of 
Boston. (It may here be mentioned that in maintaining these 
roads, in providing police protection, and in holding the property 
for ever free of taxes, Boston does something towards the support 
of the most beautiful of its open spaces). On each side of the 
The Arboretum is surrounded by a low wall of stone which makes 
an effective boundary, but is not at present high enough to exclude 
trespassers—as itis hoped eventually to make it. This wall is 
covered with a variety of climbing plants, amongst which the species 
of Clematis, Vitis and Celastrus are most conspicuous. These 
plants, which are pruned back annually in spring, had, by the time 
of my visit, about hidden the walls in a beautiful tangle. 
THE COLLECTIONS. 
It would, of course, be impossible to give any detailed mention of 
the collections of trees and shrubs. In a general way they are 
extremely rich in North-east American and North Asiatic species, 
but comparatively weak in European and West North American, 
whilst the floras of New Zealand and South America are scarcely, 
if at all, represented. 
the various white.oaks which do not thrive at all with us, and 
especially the beautiful plumose branching and shapely form of the 
sugar maple, rarely or never seen in perfection here. 
The climate of Boston, judging by its vegetation, bears about the 
same relation to the British Isles as that of Central Europe. The 
summers are much brigh i 
In consequence, deciduous trees and shrubs flower with much 
greater certamty and freedom than they do in Britain, they bear 
fruit more plentifully, and the colouring of the decaying foliage in 
autumn is richer than i 1 : 
The climatic conditions of Boston are evident 
Sargent from J apan 20 y 
Jera, and Q., grosseserra 
