THE GARDEN OF ACCLIMATIZATION. 33 



neat cross between tlie domestic and wild varieties, wHcli 

 proved useless for tlie carriage, and kicked it and the harness 

 into " smithereens'^ when yoked, in consequence of the viruSj 

 or what an Irishman would call the " divilment" of the exotic 

 parent predominating. I was not insensible to the claims of a 

 Russian dog, with a coat like a superannuated door-mat ; I 

 laughed at a duck which had a velvet-looking head remark- 

 ably like a hunting-cap, and nearly as big, but with a body 

 no larger than a debilitated blackbird ; and was amazed to see 

 a Chinese dog having no hair except on the top of his head ; 

 but we must let all such curiosities pass, and confine our- 

 selves exclusively to vegetable life, now as always of great 

 importance, since Man first regaled himself upon fruits and 

 green-meat. 



Doubtless one of the first things that sagacious creature 

 pitched upon was the grape — at least, the best varieties of 

 grapes and the best varieties of men are supposed to have 

 originated in much the same 

 place. To-day the vineis more 

 important than ever, and the 

 garden here has a magnifi- 

 cent collection of 2000 varie- 

 ties ! This collection is the 

 famous one formed in the 

 gardens of the Luxembourg, 

 and fortunately saved from 

 destruction by M. Drouyn 

 de Lhuys, acting upon the 

 urgent request of a friend of 

 horticulture. The vines were 

 actually about to be thrown 

 away when the recent muti- 

 lation of the Luxembourg 

 garden took place. So by 

 authority they were ordered 



Fig. 14, 



Streamlet in tlie Jardin d'Acclimatation. 



to the gardens in the Bois de 

 Boulogne, where, let us hope, they will be well looked after, 

 as it would be a great pity if a collection embracing, as far 

 as could be gathered, nearly all the varieties cultivated in 



