504 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



moved to Brissago itself, both islands were in the Middle Ages trans- 

 ferred to certain convents of the Order of the '*Umiliate," which, 

 being judged to have degenerated and to possess property and houses 

 altogether too rich and sumptuous, were in the sixteenth century 

 abolished by S. Charles Borromeo. 



Since then they have remained bare and uncultivated, having only 

 at intervals been taken up and then again abandoned until I saw and 

 fancied them in the year 1885. 



But my then still altogether juvenile fancy did not realize what I 

 was about to^ undertake, and those who happen to see the island 

 to-day could never imagine that this now delightful spot in the midst 

 of the most gorgeous and beautiful tropical vegetation was only a few 

 years ago a barren and inhospitable stretch of flat land, swept by the 

 winds and fully exposed to the inclemency of all weathers. 



But my task, in transforming all this, has been a rude one indeed, 

 as all has had to be done, from the roof over the old dismantled 

 nunnery, to the walks, which did not exist, and, desiring to go over 

 the place, one risked at every moment a stumble and fall into hollows 

 well hidden under masses of brambles, the stems of which with time 

 had become as hard and tough as iron ropes; not to mention the host 

 of vipers rushing in all directions whenever one dared to disturb their 

 long enjoyed peace. 



Yet with all these drawbacks and what my friends used to call 

 "my specially unfortunate fancy," the venture enticed me. I had 

 just recovered from a severe illness, and the complete change of sur- 

 roundings, the balmy air, the entire absence of dust, and the unusual 

 interest and delight, put me on my mettle to create myself a home on 

 these desert' rocks emerging from the water, and worked miracles 

 v/ith regard to my then still very doubtful health: I recovered it 

 swiftly, nor have I since had a relapse of the lung troubles from 

 which I w^as still suffering when I became possessed of these islands. 



The first steps, though, were the hardest, and obliged me to work 

 almost incessantly. 



To make the old walls of the nunnery on the large island 

 habitable, so as to be able to live on the spot in order to supervise 

 the works personally, I began by having a good strong roof put over 

 them, and provided the house with first-rate doors, windows, and blinds 

 to keep out the wind and glaring sun, which both played with the 

 place at will; the walls were whitewashed, as they have mostly 

 been kept since, and wooden floors were substituted for the stone ones 

 found in a half -broken condition. But none of the walls were touched, 

 as these, besides having a thickness of nearly three feet, were built 

 in the ancient style — that is to say, instead of being built of large 

 stones joined together with mortar, they are made of round pebbles 

 kept together with double the quantity of cement, thus forming a 

 concrete harder than the stones themselves, fearlessly facing any kind 

 of weather. At the same time I had the old harbour repaired and a 

 good way made leading up to the house. 



