THE NIGHT BLOOMING WATER-LILIES I35 



it speaks of apples, peaches, pineapples — • 

 what might be called a "symphony" of 

 scents. We look and see that the pale petals 

 are showing through four crevices in Victoria's 

 bud. As evening advances the great creamy 

 blossom opens fully, and the odour becomes 

 almost oppressive. Next morning, about 

 nine o'clock, the flower closes. The second 

 evening it opens an hour or two earlier than 

 before. It has lost all its scent, but has 

 assumed a pink colour. On the second 

 morning it looks half wilted, and during the 

 day it descends slowly into the water. The 

 Victoria blooms almost continuously after 

 it once gets started. But it requires a long 

 season and a good deal of heat. 



Nearly allied to Victoria is the Gorgon 

 plant {Euryale ferox), of Indo-China. It 

 has small flowers whose royal blue petals 

 make a briUiant contrast with the red inner 

 surface of the sepals. The flowers, however, 

 are not often seen, and sometimes do not open 

 at all. The leaves are circular, two or three 

 feet across, without any upturned border. 



