290 



among these aristocratic and exclusive trees, and keep the num- 

 ber h'mited to the "four hundred" is a problem difficult to solve. 



The date of. the introduction of the cedar of Lebanon into 

 England is not surely known, but Alton in the Hortus Kewensis 

 of 1838 places it in 1683, the date of the planting of the trees 

 in the Chelsea Botanic Gardens. These trees first produced 

 cones in 1766, and since that date, the tree has been largely- 

 planted on the great estates and in the stately parks and pleasure- 

 grounds throughout England. The English climate furnishes 

 conditions most favorable for its growth and to-day there are 

 thousands of noble specimens with wide-spreading branches that 

 add a grandeur and dignity to their environment that is too often 

 wanting in our American parks which seem young and frivolous 

 by comparison. 



At Warwick there are many beautiful examples of the cedar 

 of Lebanon. They lend their gracious dignity to the sturdy oaks 

 and Scotch firs about them, and even the peacocks roosting in 

 their branches lose their vain and silly airs and become trans- 

 formed birds. Within the castle, there is a great room known as 

 the Cedar Room. It is panelled from floor to roof with the rich 

 dark red wood of the cedars grown on the estate, and " hewn and 

 carved by men of Warwick during the last century," according 

 to the guide who shows one about. 



The cedar was introduced into France in 1734 when Bernard 

 de Jussieu brought from London two plants, so small, that to 

 preserve them more securely, he is said to have carried them in 

 his hat. Just why the simple fact that he carried them in his hat 

 should so have taken hold of the popular imagination is hard to 

 explain. The theme, however, has been repeated again and, 

 again and with ever widening sweeps and variations. Long since 

 the tale escaped from the realm of fact and soared into the high 

 thin air of fiction. Perhaps it reaches its culmination in the 

 second volume of " The Forest Trees of Great Britain " by Johns. 

 When we consider that the facts of the case are all presented in 

 the (ew words at the beginning of this paragraph, we are pre- 

 pared to enjoy the frolic that results when imagination is let 

 loose on botanical grounds. This is the touching tale of Jussieu 

 and his hat and the cedar of Lebanon as presented by Johns : 



