LETTER XIV. 



THE HARE-BELL TRIBE — THE LOBELIA TRIBE — THE 

 HONEYSUCKLE TRIBE THE COFFEE TRIBE. 



(Plate XIV.) 



From the Olives of Italy, with their dingy foliage, 

 and imperishable wood, let us turn to our own innocent 

 native Hare-hells, whose modest beauty amply recom- 

 penses us for the absence of the gaudy, scented, and 

 often venomous flowers of more southern climates. 

 In this plant we find the representative of an exten- 

 sive natural order, the species of which are scattered 

 over all Europe and the cooler parts of Asia and 

 America, dwelling in dells and dingles, by the banks 

 of rivers, in shady groves, on the sides of mountains, 

 and even on the summit of the lower Alps, w^here the 

 last lingering traces of vegetation struggle with an 

 atmosphere that neither plant nor animal can well 

 endure. 



We know the Hare-hell tribe only in its humblest 

 state, bedecked with no other ornament than a few 

 blue or purple nodding flowers ; but in foreign 

 countries, it acquires a far more striking appearance. 

 On the mountains of Switzerland, there are species 

 with corollas of pale yellow, spotted with black ; on 



