41 



ditches will furnish them with many beautiful forms of a higher 

 vegetable life, opening up a new field of wonder and delight ; 

 leading them on, by a species of fascination, to seek more 

 and more to look into their structures, growth, and habits ; to 

 marvel with mute admiration at the wisdom of the Creator, 

 Who has lavished such infinite variety of form, colour, and 

 beauty on the myriad individuals of the invisible things of 

 His kingdom, though the question may arise in our minds, 

 whether the portion of His Divine intellect, which He has 

 been pleased to bestow on man, is not to be marvelled at still 

 more, enabling man, as it does, to construct an instrument 

 like the Microscope, without which the wonders of that 

 kingdom would have remained for ever invisible to us. 



The following paper on Local Botany was written last 

 year by Mrs. FitzGerald : 



It was the 19th of February. I was very tired of the cold 

 weather and lack of flowers, moreover, I thought I knew a 

 sunny spot, at tlie foot of the hills beyond Csesar's Camp, 

 where I might, perchance, find some early violets. It was 

 cold, snow lying in the ridges of the ploughed fields ; but the 

 sun shone, //laf was something, so I walked on bravely, daring 

 the cold and the hill, and as a reward for my courage, found 

 my violet bank, near Caesar's Camp, so sweetly full of flowers. 

 It was sheltered from the winds — no snow there. 1 flew at 

 rry flowers and soon had a bunch of great variety, for on this 

 same bank, dark blue, pure white, the dingy dark red, and the 

 lovely light mauve flourish altogether. I came to one espe- 

 cially fine bunch and prepared to gather them, but was startled 

 very considerably, at seeing a large adder coiled up asleep on 

 a branch of Sloe bush, which hung just above the coveted 

 treasures, a most luxurious reptile to choose such a spot to 

 repose in ; the noise I made startled it away, but I could 

 not venture on those particular flowers. I followed a little 

 brooklet on my return and found the little Adoxa moschaitellifia 

 in another sheltered corner, and two or three Primroses, and 

 very delighted I was with my morning's ramble. It was some 

 days later than this, that in another walk I found Snowdrops 

 (Galanthus nivalis). I had surmounted the same hill, fol- 



