﻿262 
  Scientific 
  Intelligence. 
  

  

  In 
  passing, 
  it 
  may 
  be 
  noted 
  that 
  the 
  railway 
  journey 
  northeast 
  

   from 
  Adelaide 
  to 
  the 
  famous 
  silver 
  mines 
  at 
  Broken 
  Hill 
  in 
  New- 
  

   South 
  Wales 
  brings 
  before 
  the 
  tourist 
  capital 
  illustrations 
  of 
  true 
  

   Australian 
  deserts. 
  In 
  fact, 
  the 
  town 
  of 
  Broken 
  Hill 
  lies 
  within 
  

   sight 
  of 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  spots 
  where 
  the 
  great 
  explorer 
  Sturt 
  was 
  

   imprisoned 
  by 
  the 
  lack 
  of 
  water. 
  The 
  scanty 
  vegetation 
  fur- 
  

   nishes, 
  as 
  so 
  many 
  Australian 
  plants 
  elsewhere 
  do, 
  striking 
  

   instances 
  of 
  adaptation 
  to 
  a 
  dry 
  climate 
  ; 
  the 
  locality 
  is 
  so 
  

   readily 
  accessible 
  that 
  it 
  should 
  not 
  be 
  left 
  unvisited. 
  Mr. 
  

   Dixon 
  gave 
  many 
  facts 
  relative 
  to 
  the 
  utilization 
  of 
  deserts 
  and 
  

   of 
  desert 
  plants 
  in 
  that 
  region, 
  which 
  he 
  has 
  incorporated 
  in 
  an 
  

   instructive 
  article 
  published 
  in 
  the 
  Proceedings 
  of 
  the 
  Royal 
  

   Society 
  of 
  South 
  Australia 
  (vol. 
  viii). 
  

  

  I 
  had 
  also 
  the 
  benefit 
  of 
  Mr. 
  Dixon's 
  guidance, 
  the 
  following 
  

   day, 
  in 
  my 
  first 
  informal 
  visit 
  to 
  the 
  Botanic 
  Garden 
  of 
  Melbourne. 
  

  

  The 
  garden 
  is 
  about 
  a 
  mile 
  south 
  of 
  the 
  city 
  itself, 
  and 
  lies 
  on 
  

   the 
  narrow 
  river, 
  the 
  Yarra, 
  which 
  flows 
  through 
  Melbourne. 
  

   The 
  situation 
  is 
  good, 
  but 
  the 
  soil 
  in 
  some 
  parts 
  is 
  far 
  from 
  the 
  

   best. 
  The 
  Australian 
  flora 
  is 
  represented 
  by 
  fine 
  old 
  specimens, 
  

   if 
  one 
  can 
  call 
  anything 
  old 
  in 
  such 
  a 
  new 
  country, 
  and 
  by 
  young 
  

   plants 
  which 
  have 
  been 
  added 
  in 
  recent 
  years. 
  

  

  The 
  garden 
  abounds 
  in 
  effective 
  views 
  which 
  are 
  much 
  appre- 
  

   ciated 
  by 
  the 
  citizens. 
  As 
  in 
  all 
  new 
  countries, 
  for 
  instance, 
  our 
  

   own, 
  there 
  is 
  a 
  good 
  deal 
  of 
  pleasant 
  rivalry 
  between 
  the 
  larger 
  

   places 
  ; 
  in 
  the 
  botanical 
  gardens 
  of 
  Australia 
  there 
  is 
  found 
  a 
  

   convenient 
  object 
  for 
  comparison. 
  The 
  judicious 
  visitor 
  cannot 
  

   go 
  far 
  wrong 
  in 
  his 
  answers 
  to 
  anxious 
  inquiries 
  as 
  to 
  respective 
  

   excellences 
  of 
  the 
  gardens, 
  where 
  there 
  is 
  so 
  much 
  to 
  please 
  and 
  

   so 
  little 
  that 
  calls 
  for 
  unfavorable 
  criticism. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  Melbourne 
  Garden 
  the 
  most 
  attractive 
  groups 
  of 
  plants 
  

   are 
  (1) 
  the 
  Proteaceous, 
  composing 
  a 
  striking 
  mass 
  of 
  shrubs 
  and 
  

   small 
  trees 
  many 
  of 
  which 
  happened 
  to 
  be 
  in 
  flower: 
  (2) 
  the 
  

   Eucalypts, 
  by 
  no 
  means 
  all 
  of 
  them 
  equally 
  good 
  as 
  representa- 
  

   tives, 
  but 
  most 
  of 
  them 
  having 
  distinctive 
  characters 
  recogniza- 
  

   ble 
  as 
  a 
  whole; 
  (8) 
  the 
  Myrtacese, 
  and 
  the 
  Acacias. 
  

  

  The 
  best 
  photographs 
  of 
  the 
  Melbourne 
  garden 
  are 
  those 
  which 
  

   show 
  the 
  groups 
  in 
  question, 
  and 
  two 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  Governor's 
  

   residence 
  is 
  seen 
  in 
  the 
  distance. 
  The 
  Director 
  is 
  much 
  embar- 
  

   rassed 
  by 
  the 
  peculiar 
  condition 
  of 
  the 
  labor 
  question 
  in 
  Australia. 
  

   Somewhat 
  similar 
  difficulties 
  arise 
  wherever 
  the 
  one 
  in 
  charge 
  

   cannot 
  employ 
  or 
  dismiss 
  the 
  workmen 
  for 
  whose 
  good 
  work 
  he 
  

   is 
  held 
  responsible. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  W. 
  R. 
  Guilfoyle, 
  the 
  Director, 
  with 
  his 
  capable 
  assistants, 
  

   is 
  organizing 
  a 
  Museum 
  of 
  Economic 
  Botany, 
  and 
  bringing 
  

   together 
  other 
  appliances 
  for 
  the 
  illustration 
  of 
  botany. 
  

  

  Not 
  very 
  far 
  from 
  the 
  Garden 
  lives 
  Baron 
  Ferdinand 
  von 
  

   Mueller, 
  Government 
  Botanist. 
  He 
  is 
  surrounded 
  by 
  his 
  Herba- 
  

   rium 
  and 
  Library 
  to 
  which 
  he 
  has 
  devoted 
  his 
  life 
  and 
  fortune. 
  

   The 
  correspondence 
  which 
  he 
  carries 
  on 
  is 
  incredibly 
  voluminous, 
  

   and 
  it 
  is 
  understood 
  to 
  be 
  conducted 
  wholly 
  with 
  his 
  own 
  hand. 
  

  

  