338 DIRECTIONS FOR COLLECTING, ETC. 



of gum mastic have been dissolved, by shaking in a 



warm place — two-thirds of a small phial is the 



proper proportion, and this will make the specimen 



retain a fresh appearance." 



It will be seen from the foregoing- directions that 



a collection of sea-weeds may be formed with very 



little trouble. Unlike flowers, whose beauty entirely 



disappears when dried, sea-weeds retain their varied 



and tender hues unaltered for a length of time. Many 



of the finer species, from the extreme thinness and 



delicacy of their substance, present an evenness of 



surface and a glossy appearance which often lead 



persons viewing them for the first time to suppose 



they are paintings — 



" But who can paint 

 Like Nature ? Can imagination boast, 

 Amidst its gay creation, hues hke hers ? 

 Or can it mix them with that matchless skill, 



And lose them in each other, as appears 

 « » « « 



In each attractive plant that sucks and swells 

 The juicy tide, a twining mass of tubes ? " 



