the Manuscripts of the late Peter CoUlnson. 205 



Nicholas Carcw, at Bedington, near Croydon, in Surrey. " 

 (The title is lately extinct, anno 1763.) These orano-e-trees 

 were planted in dhe natural ground ; but ai>;ainst every win- 

 ter an artificial covering was raised tor their protection. I 

 have seen them some years ago in great perfection. But 

 tliis apparatus going to decay, without due consideration a 

 green-house of brick-work was built all round them, and 

 left on the top uncovered in the summer. F visited them a 

 year or two after, in their new h;ibitation, and to my areat 

 concern found some dying, and all declining; for, although 

 there were windows on the south side, they did not thrive 

 in their confinement ; but being kept damp with the raios, 

 and wanting a free, airy, full sun all the growing months of 

 summer, they iang-jished, and at last all died. 



A better fate has hitherto attended the other fine parcel 

 of orange-trees, &c., brought over at the same time by sir 

 Robert Mansell, at Margam ; late lord Mansell's, now Mr. 

 Talbot's, called Kingsey-caslle, in the road from Cowbridge 

 to'Swansey, in South VVales. My nephew counted eighty 

 trees of citrons, limes, burgamots, Seville and China oranoe- 

 trees, planted in great cases all ranged in a row before The 

 green- bouse. This is the finest sight of its kind in England, 

 He had the curiosity to measure some of them. A China 

 orange measured in the extent of its branches fourteen feet. 

 A Seville orange was fourteen feet high, the case included, 

 and the stem twenty-one inches round. A China orange 

 twenty-two inches and a half in ffirth. 



July lith, 1777. I visited the orangery at Margam in 

 the year I 766, in company with Mr. "Lewis Thomas, of 

 Eglews Nynngt in that neighbourhood, a very sensible and 

 attentive man, who told me that the orange- trees, &c. in 

 that garden were intended as a present from the king of 

 Spain to the king of Denmark; and that the vessel in 

 which they were shipped being taken in the Channel, the 

 trees were made a present of to sir R. Mansell. 



December 10th, 1765 A few days ago died my friend 

 Ml. Bennet, who was very curious and industrious in pro- 

 curing seeds and plants from abroad. He had a garden be- 

 hind the Shad well water- works near the spot where he lived, 

 and built several very handsome stoves at a great expense, 

 filbng them with fine exotics of all kinds; but the erecting 

 a fire engine to raise the water s;) hurt his |)Iants by the 

 smoke, that he removed to a large garden of two or three 

 acres, in the fields at the back of Whitechapd laystalls. 

 Here he built a large house for pines and other rare exotics, 

 which he 'left well stocked. In this garden he raised water 



melons 



