FRUITS AND FLOWERS OF NORTHERN JAPAN. 53 



going to detain you so long as this number would imph*. I have 

 decided that I must have looked with prejudiced eyes ; and, while 

 I have brought them all and sliall be pleased to show and talk 

 about them if any are interested, and shall even append a list, I 

 have decided to speak formally of as few as possible and of those 

 as briefly as I can. 



In speaking of them I shall follow no definite rule of order. 

 From meraor\' simply, I have thrown those of similar characteris- 

 tics together ; and shall not, therefore, follow any exact systematic 

 arrangement. 



One of the most attractive of the very earl}' wild flowers of 

 Yesso is the Adonis Amurensis, a bright yellow flower which 

 might appropriately, in that country, be called the " eye of 

 spring," for it peeps up sometimes even in February on sunny 

 banks where the snow has melted away. Often hav3 I seen it 

 looking bravel}^ up in the midst of a sharp snow-storm, and so 

 hardy is it that such exposure scarcely seems to hurt it. It is a 

 special favorite with the Japanese, who, however, seldom plant it 

 in gardens ; but are satisfied with seeking out the earliest plants 

 and digging them while in bud for forwarding in old tin cans, 

 broken teapots, and the like. Regular markets as well as special 

 booths usually offer such roots for sale in large quantities, and 

 everyone who cannot dig for himself buys this which is the earliest 

 harbinger of spring for the masses. 



More delicately beautiful is the Glaucidium palmatum, a mid- 

 spring flower, with large and particularly beautiful almost trans- 

 lucent leaves and large delicate single pink flowers. This is the 

 favorite of cool, shady dells and rich, moist soil. A horticultural 

 friend of mine, writing a few ^-ears since, said that this very 

 beautiful flower had not then been introduced into Europe and 

 America. It would richly repay care, but would undoubtedly be 

 fastidious as to soil and surroundings. 



The gorgeous beauty of the autumn woods, the monkshood 

 {Aconitum Fisheri)^ standing often fully six feet high, with enorm- 

 ous masses of brilliant blue flowers, is another of the Ranunculaceae 

 which must not be forgotten. It is of peculiar interest, both from 

 its beauty and from the fact that the aborigines of Yesso extract 

 a poisonous principle, aconite, from its root, using it to poison 

 the tips of arrows which they employ in setting traps for bears. 



