THE ORCHID REVIEW. 235 
Chamberlain, Mr. Measures, and Messrs. Sander, Bull, Low, &c., were all 
represented. But we noticed only the Hon. Walter Rothschild, Major 
Mason, and the great Belgian amateur, M. Madoux, of the former class, in 
personal attendance. Mr. Protheroe made no speech in opening the sale, 
as was expected. He handed a dried specimen of the flower from his 
rostrum; it was in appearance a fine example of the ordinary Cattleya 
Mossiz without a trace of blue, but this needs no explanation. It was 
stated in the catalogue that the flower keeps its ‘ celestial blue” only five 
days, ‘afterwards changing to a light rose colour (that of a La France 
rose) and lasting three weeks in perfection.’ Mr. Protheroe went on to read 
an assurance of bona fides from the collector: ‘I guarantee conscientiously, 
on my word of honour, that these plants have never been seen by any 
European Orchid collector.’ And then, without more words, this 
quintessence of floral beauty was put up—that is, a hundred bundles of dry 
sticks, some with leaves still attached, which, as the sanguine do not doubt, 
will bear a bloom of heavenly hue and giant size before the year is over. 
But the sanguine did not predominate, or they had not enough money. 
Ten guineas was the highest price paid—two guineas or so the lowest— 
prodigious sums, as the inexperienced might think, for a bundle of dry 
sticks and a leaf or two, but far indeed below the value which one would 
have assigned to the merest fragment of a blue Cattleya.” 
Now I think that after this anyone who expected to get a blue Cattleya 
must have been very credulous. A dried flower like ordinary Cattleya 
Mossi, without a trace of blue, was handed round, the collector reported 
that after five days it changed to light rose, and he guaranteed conscien- 
tiously on his word of honour that these plants had ‘never been seen by 
any European Orchid collector.” I should think that both nie Ace 
and amateurs will fight shy of “ blue Cattleyas ™ in future, until they see 
them in flower, even if backed up by the unanimous and categorical reports 
of prospecting Scotch miners. The name sounds too much hke that of 
the “ scarlet Phalenopsis,” and the Cymbidium of that ilk. - gukcs 
+ 
FERTILISATION OF CATASETUM. 
Havine a plant of a terrestrial species of Catasetum recently in He in 
Which the inflorescence consisted of three large lipped es sie rs a 
@ strong scape eighteen inches long, I was interested in watching t e . . 
of procedure followed by the two or three species of bees which constantly sf 
after day visited it, one or more of them being almost permanently presen 
