28 THE HYBRID PROVENCE ROSE. 



column or pillar, which, when covered with its 

 snowy and large flowers, may perhaps, without 

 affectation, be called a pillar of purity. 



Comte Plater is a unique rose, with large and 

 very double flowers, finely shaped, of a delicate 

 cream, tinted with fawn-colour, whicli is placed 

 in this family, but perhaps has quite as many 

 claims, like Kose Devigne and some others, to be 

 grouped with the hybrid China roses. Like 

 botanists, rose cultivators are often posed by the 

 freaks of Nature, who seems to delight in breaking 

 into every artificial system, and to pay no more 

 respect to the classification of the botanist than to 

 that of the more humble florist. 



Within the last twenty years how many plants 

 have been named and unnamed, classed and re- 

 classed — Professor A. placing it here, and Dr. B. 

 placing it there! I can almost imagine Dame 

 Nature laughing in her sleeve when our philoso- 

 phers are thus puzzled. Well, so it is in a measure 

 with roses ; a variety has often an equal claim 

 to two classes. First impressions have perhaps 

 placed it in one class, and there rival amateurs 

 should let it remain ; for the classification of 

 roses is necessary, although in many cases im- 

 perfect, owing to the unbounded fertility of 

 nature; rose-culture is rendered by it more in- 

 teresting and attractive. 



Hybrid Provence roses are very robust and 

 hardy, useful to the rose amateur, as serving to 



