1894.] ESSAYS. 15 



then offered as novelties, but this year we have seen just what they 

 are. These are the Dorothy Teuuaut, Her Majesty, Ignea, Lemon 

 Queen, Mrs. Eckford, and Waverly. The Mrs. Eckford leads the 

 list, and is a primrose yellow of splendid form. Her Majesty is a 

 beautiful rose, a shade softer than the Splendour and larger. Lemon 

 Queen hardly holds to its name because in 24 hours it has faded into 

 white, but it is larger. Dorothy Tennant is a fine mauve several 

 shades deeper than the Countess of Radnor. Waverly at first can 

 hardly be told from Captain of the Blues, but while the latter changes 

 into blue, the former holds its rosy, claret color. Ignea is a crimson 

 scarlet, a shade deeper than P'irefly. This may be said, that the last 

 two years' introductions prove that Mr. Eckford has mastered the 

 problem of improving the Sweet Pea. We want them as fast as he 

 can give them to us. At the same time, the demand for the entire 

 list will be confined to only a few seed-houses and here and there a 

 collector of varieties. Some of them everybody who wants fine 

 Sweet Peas ought to have. 



Laxtou, another English seedsman, offers five new varieties. They 

 are the Etna, Carmen Sylva, Madame Carnot, Princess May, and 

 Rising Sun. We also have about seven of the old varieties that have 

 come down from time immemorial, the Painted Lady being perhaps 

 the oldest. One of the old Curtiss magazines in your library traces 

 the origin of Painted Lady to Ceylon. About 1700 is the date of the 

 introduction of the Sweet Pea to botanical notice. Then besides the 

 Eckford and Laxton varieties, and the seven old varieties, there are 

 about a dozen varieties of real merit, the names of which are more or 

 less familiar to us. Then I think four American varieties deserve 

 recognition up to date, the Blanche Ferry, Emily Henderson, Ameri- 

 can Belle, and Splendid Lilac. I could give a list of other names in 

 our catalogues, but they will not pass muster. People ask me about 

 certain names that are found in the lists of Boston catalogues, not 

 recognized elsewhere. Some of these names now go in simply 

 because they are in their electroplates, and it is probably cheaper to 

 leave them in than cut them out. I keep trying every year to find 

 something of original value in them. People will say, name the best 

 dozen of all the varieties. I should say that of all the varieties I 

 have seen, the best dozen are, Blanche Ferry, Blushing Beauty, 

 Countess of Radnor, Dorothy Tennant, Firefly, Her Majesty, Lady 

 Penzance, Mrs. Eckford, Mrs. Sankey, Orange Prince, Stanley, and 

 Venus. And it would be a pity not to include Lady Beaconsfield and 

 20 others. I put in Mrs. Sankey for white because it has the improved 



