xliv 



FLORA ODORATA 



take the growth of many dainty flowers for the polyposes of 

 scent-making ; we are, however, happily able to cultivate 

 Lavender, Peppermint, and a few other products of which the 

 consumption is very great, and in this connection, we cannot 

 close this chapter without calling attention to the debt of 

 gratitude the world at large owes to the enterprise and in- 

 genuity of the great commercial firms who manipulate and 

 distribute the essences of these sweet tributes of Xature : it 

 would seem there is scarcely a scented flower, whose fragrant 

 attractions cannot be reproduced by scientific processes, and 

 ofi'ered in a convenient form. Surely these dispensers of 

 such delicious sweetness can only be classed as benefactors to 

 mankind. Xo table in this category may be mentioned 

 Messrs. Piesse and Lubin, and Mons. Eugene Eimmel, the 

 eminent perfumers of London, and it would be somewhat 

 unfair to omit to refer to the large establishments that 

 distribute such enormous quantities of the seeds of many 

 fragrant plants ; we have seen immense breadths, when travel- 

 ling on some of the leading railways, that are magnificent 

 to behold when in full flower : in particular we have been 

 struck with some extensive flower farms on the Essex coast, 

 where hundreds of acres of delightfully scented flowers may 

 be seen during the Summer months waving their dainty heads 

 and perfuming the air with sweet fragance for miles round. 



' Thousands of flowers there are beaming. 

 The verdure smiling, and the hushed waves dreaming ; 

 Each flower is still a brighter hue assuming, 

 Each a fair league, the love-sick air perfuming.' 



Another important point in connection with our subject 

 into which it may be instructive to peep, is, that it is not 

 yet fully appreciated in England, although well known from 

 experience in the East, that perfumes, vegetable scents, and 



