402 I Assembly 



February, 20 1849. 



R. L. Pell, in the Chair. Hlnrv Meigs, Secretary, 



Mr. Meigs. — Read a translation from the French of an account 

 of the Thoica ofBirman. Mons. Poiteau of the Central Society of 

 Horticulture states that in 1832 he saw a China colored drawing of 

 a flower of extraordinary beauty, unknown to botanists generally. 

 But it appears that Dr. Wallich director of the Botanic garden of 

 Calcutta, knew of the existence of some of the plants in Birman at 

 a ruined Kioura (a kind of monastery) two miles from the river 

 Salem on the right bank, and 27 miles from Martaban in the pro- 

 vince of Martriban. The largest of these plants was about forty 

 feet high, six feet around at three feet above the ground. The 

 young branches and leaves which are washed with purple are pen- 

 dent — flower stems about three feet long, having on them fifty or 

 sixty large flowers of a red vermilion color, red foot stalks, no per- 

 fume, presenting the most magnificent flowering shrub in the world. 

 Dr. Wallich named it the Amherstia after Lady Amherst. The 

 Duke of Devonshire has one of them. Dr. Wallich has not seen its 

 fruit ripe. An imperfect one was a sabre shaped pod of a red-violet 

 color, about a foot long containing five or six imperfect seeds. 



From the Reyiew Horticolc. Paris Sep. 1848. 

 THE CEDAR OF LEBANON. 



At Vrigny on''the edge of the forest of Orleans, Duhamcl planted 

 in 1745, a circle of trees in the centre of which he placed a cedar 

 of Lebanon, which is remarkable for its form and size. At about l8 

 feet from the ground the branches commence, and continue diminish- 

 ing in extent to the top, so that in form this cedar resembles a pine- 

 apple. At the height of six feet from the ground, the trunk is about 

 fifteen feet in ci-rcumference. It is said that Mount Lebanon is now 

 despoiled of all its cedars, so that probably this one at Vrigny is the 

 only distinguished «urvivor of the race. 



Chairman. — The regular subjects are in order, viz: The relative 

 interests of the Atlantic and Western States as to agricultural pro- 

 ductions, and the relative sizes of farms to population. 



Judge Van Wyck. — This question involves 'natters more interest- 

 ing to posterity than to us, still it is a very important one. The 



