:3j1 horticultural touu. 



at ( Here a respectable-looking female was now employ- 

 ed in fixing dried specimens of plants to sheets of white 

 paper, after they had been arranged for that purpose by 

 Professor Desfontaines. The room marked D is appro- 

 priated to the keeping of the specimens of dried plants. 

 They are contained in close presses, and so accurately and 

 conveniently arranged, that the specimens composing any par- 

 ticular genus can be produced for examination the moment 

 they are called for. The apartment E contains specimens 

 of the wood of very many species of trees, — we believe of al- 

 most all that are figured in the quarto volume published 

 by Mr Sepp of Amsterdam and edited by Dr Houttuyn, 

 and of many unknown to these laborious Dutchmen. The 

 samples are in general smoothed with the plane, the bet- 

 ter to display the grain, and the extreme beauty of some 

 kinds. A vase, nicely formed out of the stem of a date- 

 palm, is a curious object : it is about a foot and a half in 

 diameter, and somewhat more in height. The large apart- 

 ment F, extending the whole breadth of the building, con- 

 tains the seeds and seedvessels of plants, with specimens 

 of vegetable products in general. In the same room seve- 

 ral commodious presses and drawers are appropriated to 

 the reception of the seeds saved in the garden from the 

 more rare or tender plants, particularly those of only an- 

 nual duration. We may add, that the great attention 

 paid to this part of the business of the garden, the saving 

 of seeds, and keeping them in the nicest order, received 

 our unqualified approbation. A glazed frame, containing 

 numerous skeletons of leaves and of flowers, had a very 

 pretty and unusual effect. Fronds of the great umbrella 

 palm of Ceylon, Corypha umbraculifcra, decorate the ceil- 

 ings of two of the rooms. 



