People's Parks. 75 



devotees to what is called Darwinism find abundant 

 material for study, comparison, and contrast. 



Almost in the words which Mr. Bain has used in 

 suggesting the growing in baskets, or otherwise, on 

 trees here through great portions of the year, some 

 lovely Dendrobiums, and other Orchids, Mr. Mudd 

 made like suggestions. And he showed me some of 

 his collecting, which he doubts not would well bear 

 such treatment, albeit some folk might deem it dese- 

 cration. 



PEOPLE'S PARKS AND GARDENS. 

 What are popularly called People's Parks and Peo- 

 ple's Gardens seem daily to acquire increasing import- 

 ance. One of the first places of the kind we read of, 

 though very different from what we now enjoy, was the 

 gift above-mentioned by Theophrastus, of his garden 

 at Athens to his pupils. Modern improvements of the 

 parks of London and Paris, and many others, show 

 plainly that statesmen and leaders of the public 

 mind now consider such places for public enjoyment 

 and recreation very important in the present state of 

 society. Some of these, such as Pare Monceau at 

 Paris, from its moderate size and plantings of shrubs 

 and flowers, may appear to be more of gardens than 

 of pares ; but most public parks now have some por- 

 tion specially devoted to culture of the smaller kinds 

 of ornamental shrubs and flowering plants, which 

 places may well be called People's Gardens. Of this 

 we have a promising specimen in our Phoenix Park, 



