101 



§ofnuy. 



Ye field flowers ! the savdens eclipse you, 'tis true, 

 Yet, viikliii::s of Nature, I dote upon you, 



For ye waft me to summers of old. 

 When the earth teem'd around nie with faii7 delight, 

 And when daisies and buttercups s'adden'd my sight, 



Like treasures of silver and gold. 



Campbell. 



The study of Botai:y lias been peculiarly fa&ciuating to all ages and con- 

 ditions, and from many passnges in ancient history we learn that gardens 

 and plants have been the sttidy of wise men and princes It is declared 

 of Solomon, " that he spake of trees from the cedar of Lebanon to the 

 hyssop that springeth out of the wall," and our Lord taught one of his 

 brightest lessons when he exhorted the multitude to " consider the lilies of 

 the field how they grow they toil not neither do they spin, and yet 

 Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these"; thus showing 

 the excellence of the wild and beautiful lily of the Levant (the Amaryllis 

 lutea) over the glory of the wisest King of Israel. It is known that Pliny 

 wrote thirty-seven books on natural history and sixteen relate to plants. 

 Plutarch mentions that Artaxerxes and Lucullus had their large and 

 extensive gardens arranged and planted with all that art and nature could 

 combine. Flowers possessing fragrant qualities, particularly Roses, were 

 in great repute among the ancients. A Babylonian Queen whose native 

 country possessed all the charms of mountain scenery, was disappointed 

 with the flat appearance of her new dominions, which circumstance gave 

 rise to the splendid hanging gardens, laid out on raised terraces and upheld 

 by large pillars, these gardens with the great walls of Babylon were 

 esteemed as one of the seven wonders of the world. At the present day 

 the fine old parks which surround the abbeys and mansions of England are 

 special features in its scenery. It is worthy of notice that gardens have 

 been the scene of some remarkable scriptural events. The hajjpy abode 

 of our first parents was in the garden of Eden which place also witnessed 

 their dreadful temptation Christ's agony occurred in the garden of 

 Gethsemane, and his burial and resurrection took place in the garden of 

 Joseph of Arimathea. The great continental gardens of Europe serve to 

 illustrate the national taste for this branch of natural science and the 

 names of Linnaeus and Smith, are individual examples. The vegetable 

 kingdom affords numerous advantages to its students, its very beginnings 

 being easy, cheap, healthful and delightful, its pleasures are spread around 

 us at every step, and there is no part of the year when its study may not 

 be conducted with pleasure and profit. The summer pours out a continual 

 succession of flowers, and the wintry months clothe the wall-tops with 



