II ON TUB ROSE. 



cisterns, for the decoration of their courts and gardens. The 

 flower resembles a tulip, and is either yellow, white, violet, crim- 

 son, or streaked with various colours ; its smell is very pleasing, 

 and the fruit which produces a kernel, being accounted a great 

 restorative and strengthener, is given in China as a medicine, after 

 severe fits of illness ; the leaves are large, of a circular form, and 

 brilliant green colour ; they float upon the surface of the water, 

 they have a great many other aquatic plants and flowers. They 

 also raise in them strawberries, cherries, figs, bananas, li-chis, 

 grapes, apricots, and peaches, which cover the wood-work of 

 their glass frames, and serve for ornament as well as use. 



The fruit of the Li-chi resembles the berry of the arbutus, in 

 every thing but size ; its being as large as a pigeon's egg, and full 

 of a juicy pulp, that in flavor, far surpasses any other fruit what- 

 ever. 



Their scenes of spring likewise abound with evergreens, inter- 

 spersed with lilacs of all sorts, laburnums, limes, laraixes, double 

 blossomed thorn, almond and peach trees, with sweet brier, early 

 roses and honey- suckles. The ground, and verges of the thickets 

 and shrubberies, are adorned with wild hyacinths, wall-flowers, 

 daffodils, violets, prirnroses,polianthus, crocus, daisies, snowdrops, 

 and various species of the iris ; with such other flowers as appear 

 in the months of March and April, and as these scenes are also 

 scanty in their natural productions, they intersperse among their 

 plantations, menageries of all sorts of tame and ferocious animals, 

 and birds of prey : aviaries and groves, with proper contrivances 

 for breeding domestic fowls; decorated dairies, and buildings for 

 the exercise of wrestling, boxing, quail-fighting, and other games 

 known in China. They also contrive in the woods large open 

 recesses for military sports ; as riding, vaulting, fencing, shooting 

 with the bow, and ranninsr. 



(To be continued.) 



ARTICLE VI. 



REMARKS ON THE ROSE. 

 (Continued from Vol. VI. page 28 ".) 



The double yellow rose, sulphurea, was unknown to us in 1597; 

 but the single yellow brier was then common, as we find by Ger- 

 ard. 



