STORY OF CYPRIPEDIUM SPICERIANUM 



The annals of Cypripedium Spicerianum open in 1878, 

 when Mrs. Spicer, a lady residing at Wimbledon, asked 

 Messrs. Veitch to come and see a curious flower, very lovely, 

 as she thought, which had made its appearance in her green- 

 house. Messrs. Veitch came ; with no extravagant hopes 

 perhaps, for experience might well make them distrustful of 

 feminine enthusiasm. But in this instance it was more than 

 justified, and, in short, they carried off the marvel, leaving a 

 cheque for seventy guineas behind. I may remark that 

 Cypripeds are easy to cultivate. They are also quick to 

 increase. Messrs. Veitch hurried their specimen along, and 

 divided it as fast as was safe. To say that the morsels 

 fetched their weight in gold would be the reverse of exaggera- 

 tion- — mere bathos. 



Importers sat up. They were not without a hint to 

 direct their search in this case. The treasure had arrived 

 amongst a quantity of Cyp. insigne. Therefore it must be 

 a native of the Himalayan region — Assam, Darjeeling, or 

 Sikkim, no doubt. There are plenty of persons along that 

 frontier able and willing to hunt up a new plant. A good 

 many of them probably received commissions to find 

 Cypripedium Spicerianum. 



At St. Albans they were more deliberate. It is not 

 exactly usual for ladies residing at Wimbledon to receive 

 consignments of orchids. When such an event happens. 



