60 IN A GLOUCESTERSHIRE GARDEN 



this of the tulipo-mania, which, though still often 

 quoted as an instance of the extravagance of florists 

 in their favourite flowers, is known to have been 

 simply a gigantic swindle, in which the plants had 

 really very little part — a Stock Exchange gambling, 

 Avhich it required the high hand of the law to stop. 

 But it was not stopped before it had produced quite 

 a literature of its own; and a long list of books on 

 the subject will be found in Beckman's Histm'y of 

 Inventions, who gives also an excellent account of 

 the great swindle. 



The tulips of the florist are all varieties of the 

 Eastern T. Gesneriana, a plant which varies from seed 

 and roots almost more than any plant known, so that 

 the same plant cannot be depended on to produce the 

 same flowers for more than two or three years. 

 But besides the florist's tulip there are nearly a 

 hundred true species coming from the south and 

 east of Eui^ope, thence through Southern Asia to 

 India, China, and Japan; but none are found in 

 America and Australia. Of these, many are very 

 beautiful flowers, and, unlike the great florist's tulip, 

 are low and small. They mostly come from Central 

 Asia, and many of them are of quite recent intro- 

 duction; and among them I should especially re- 

 commend Kol;paJcowshyana, Ostrowshjana, pulchella, saxa- 



