THE FERN PARADISE. 



as though smitten by a plague of locusts. The 

 desire to have some green remembrancer of the 

 country side gives the key-note to Mr. Heath's 

 book. Ho\v may the flowerless and treeless 

 monotony of the city be remedied ? Is it possible 

 to alter the present condition of things, and to 

 clothe our streets with shade and verdure, and to 

 make our desert places blossom like the rose ? 

 This problem is now attracting the attention of 

 many earnest observers, and has been repeatedly 

 referred to in these pages. Mr. Heath's work is 

 a distinct contribution to the solution of this ques- 

 tion. Whether regarded from an aesthetic or from 

 a philanthropic point of view, the question is one 

 of exceeding interest.' As to the practicability 

 of utilizing Ferns for purposes of ornamentation, 

 the writer in The British Architect accepts the 

 conclusions of the Author of this volume, agree- 

 ing that we have at hand in Ferns ' a very cheap 

 and effective instrument for both internal and ex- 

 ternal decoration,' and one that 'is capable of 

 being far more extensively used than is at present 

 the case ;' and expressing further the belief that at 

 least one result of the Author's ' Plea' for Fern- 



