252 BOTANICAL GAZETTE. [ October, 



course many things will mould in spite of the utmost care. 

 It must be remembered also that the houses are built of brick, 



one 



story in height, with brick floors, and entirely without 

 appliances for obtaining artificial heat, so that they are al- 

 ways damp. My. books, shoes, leather straps, paper and 

 presses, and even my wearing apparel, are generally more 

 or less moist when not exposed to the sun. Specimens dried 

 in the sun are sure to become damp and limp during 

 the night and in rainy and cloudy weather, which sometimes 

 lasts for several days*. Added to this is the natural tendency 

 of many plants to "drop to pieces in the process of curing. 

 The new-comer, good easy soul, naturally supposes that, with 

 such a hot sun, his specimens are sure to dry easily and 

 quickly. Experience will soon convince him to the contrary. 

 Take this shrubby Ipomoea, which is very common in the 

 lowlands around Asuncion. The flowers are as large and 

 showv as those of a morninii'-ylorv. Let the collector place 

 specimens in the best order between his driers, and change 

 them every hour if he chooses. In less than three days he will 

 have the pleasure of seeing flowers, leaves and buds, all dis- 

 articulated. I worked over scores of specimens of this plant. 

 1 tried every expedient that I could devise, took pains to get 

 young and fresh plants, split the stems in two, exposed them 

 to sun heat : but all in vain. I have never succeeded in pre- 

 serving over half a dozen specimens in which the leaves or 

 flowers adhered to the stem. Take this pretty little red- 

 flowered papaveraceous plant, and carefully arrange that 

 in your press. In three weeks it is just as juicy as ever, and, 

 still worse, there is nothing left of it but fragments. The 

 floral organs have fallen to pieces, petals, sepals, styles and 

 all, and only disjecta membra lie on the paper, leaving a bare 

 stem, and perhaps even that has become dismembered with 

 the rest. Here is a lovely Commelyna, which I wish 

 to send home to delight North American eyes. The corolla 

 is large, of a bright azure blue. I put that in press, and in 

 an hour's time look at it. In that 'short period the petals 

 have apparently been converted into a little pool of water . 

 Like the manufactured thing here which they call ice, a piece 

 of which dissolves while you are pouring vvater into the tum- 

 bler, so this charming flower has melted! All that is left 01 

 the petals when dried is a small, shrivelled, membranous 

 heap which hardly wears the aspect of a flower. The stem 

 and leaves, however, make up for the evanescence of the 

 corolla, for they will keep green and succulent for six weeks 

 under pressure. 



