236 TRANSACTIONS OF TPIE 



our prison,'' for they ornament their habitations in the reoat 

 delicious style of comfort and even luxurious refinement. Our 

 ladies of Europe owe them for the parasol, that graceful gem, the 

 most coquetting article of all their dress. We borrowed from 

 the Chinese our garden kiosks which lend shade to our elegant 

 ladies. Unhappily for us, the Chinese are jealous as to their fur- 

 niture and the luxuries of their interior rooms. One must have 

 the obstinacy of a Briton to get into the interior of the good 

 houses of China. English travelers, who are more headstrong 

 than the Chinese, are shy, are unwilling to go around the world 

 without cribbing {clipper) some oriental invention to endow their 

 rainy island with. See this new garden, one of the last impor- 

 tations naturalized in England. The Island of Flowers. A piece 

 of water in a garden is one of its greatest joys — any one having 

 a basin can do it. They make their flower islands in such pieces 

 of water. If the basin is large enough they make a flower island 

 in it with a kiosk in the middle of it. A boat is moored to the 

 main — or there is a bridge of reeds or grotesque cacti — to pass 

 to the flower island. Some of these are large enough to contain 

 dining halls. A flower island is divided into as mar.y parts as 

 there are flowers to grow on it and to form agreable intermixed 

 colors. 1, Luca rosa Geranium, rose color. 2. Princess Royal 

 Vervaine, white. 3. Vervaine Heloise, deep lilac. 4. Vervaine 

 Perfection, white. 5. Vervaine Due d'Aumale, blue lilac. 

 6. Calceola Viscosissimam, yellow. 7. Vervaine Defiance of 

 Robinson, scarlet. 8. Vervaine Montblanc, white. 9. Vervaine 

 Emma, purple. 



They then border the island with water plants, such as 

 Menianthe or water clover, with white and rose flowers; Myosotis 

 palustris, blue flowers; Water lilies; Aponogeton dystachion; 

 Butomus umbellatus, the flowering reed, bunches of white and 

 rose flowers ; Le Nenuphar rouge, (red flower;) the thousand 

 leafed Plumeau, rose flowej'; Populage or Water Case, yellow; 

 White Nenuphar, and the common rushes and reeds of ponds. 



The islands present a most charming aspect with their beauti- 

 fully assorted flowers fr m May to November. 



Mr. Kimball observed that in reference to insects injurious to 

 plants, his experience w;is that they always prefer the best and 

 richest for their share The rose bug squadrons never deign to 

 touch the beautiful wreathed Michigan roses, because tliey are 

 without perfume, and probably to them insipid, but they are 

 voracious on our sweetest roses. So of all vegetable productions, 

 the rich and delicious are wisely selected by the cunning insect 



