24 THE WONDERS OF VEGETATION. 



the tropics both science and poetry have had their in- 

 fluence. 



"Vegetation displays the most majestic forms un- 

 der the fiery rays which flood down from the tropical 

 heavens," says Humboldt in his " Pictures of Nature." 

 In the land of palms, in place of the meagre lichens 

 and mosses of the North, we have the cymbidium 

 and the fragrant vanilla hanging from the trunks of the 

 cashew nut and gigantic fig-trees. The fresh verdure of 

 the dracontium and the deeply indented leaves of the 

 pothos contrast with the brilliant colors of the orchids. 

 The creeping bauhinia, the passion flower, the yel- 

 low banisterias, interlace the trees of the forest and 

 throw their trailers far into the air. Delicate flowers 

 spring from the roots of the theobroma and from the 

 rough bark of the crescentia and the gustavia. In 

 the midst of the luxuriant vegetation, among the con- 

 fusion of creeping plants, the Naturalist has often dif- 

 ficulty in determining to what stem the flowers and 

 leaves before him belong. A single tree interlaced 

 by the paullinia, the bignonia and the dendrobium, 

 forms a group of plants which, if separated, would suf- 

 fice to cover a considerable space of ground. 



" Tropical plants contain a great deal more sap, and 

 their leaves are much larger and more brilliant than 

 those of the North. The plants which minister to the 

 household wants of man, and render our vegetation so 

 uniform, do not form a feature in tropical vegetation, 

 which is consequently much more varied than ours. 

 Trees nearly twice the height of our oaks bear flowers 

 \vhich equal our lilies in size and in brilliancy. Upon 



