THE HOT-HOUSES. 207 



The thermometer in this hot-house is kept at 

 65°, and several of the plants remain in it during 

 the summer for fear of injury from the night-air. 

 Certain liliacece and cacti, which require to be 

 kept extremely dry, are placed upon the stoves. 

 At the extremity is a small room, similar to 

 that at the entrance, where the painter of the 

 Museum delineates the plants without exposing 

 them to the air. 



This repository is visited with peculiar interest 

 by botanists, on account of the new plants that 

 every year spring from seeds collected near the 

 equator. A great number of those sent from 

 India by M. Leschenault, and from the Brazils by 

 M. de St. Hilaire, germinated last year ; and seve- 

 ral of those brought home by MM. Freycinet and 

 Delalande have already succeeded. These plants 

 are not mentioned in the printed catalogue, as 

 the species can be determined only by the flower, 

 but they are regularly numbered and registered, 

 with the date and other circumstances of their 

 reception, 



From November to April the hot-houses are 

 filled, and in February and March they present 

 the greatest variety of plants in bloom. Towards 

 the end of May almost all the pots are taken out; 

 one individual of each species is carried to the 

 botanic garden, and the rest are ranged in the 



