248 
WANDERINGS IN CHINA. 
Chap. XV. 
where the different manda,rins' gardens and nurseries 
were situated. The mandarins were particularly inqui- 
sitive at this time about everything which related to the 
movements of the English, or other foreigners who were 
likely to establish themselves at their port ; and I soon 
perceived that, as we were able to keep up a conversation 
together in Chinese, my visits were very agreeable to 
them. The nurserymen, too, having found out that my 
money was as valuable to them as that which they received 
from their own countrymen, threw aside their shyness 
and were all anxiety to sell me any plants I wanted. 
The gardens of the mandarins were extremely gay, 
particularly during the early months of the year : and, 
what was of more importance to me, contained a num- 
ber of new plants of great beauty and interest. On 
entering one of the gardens on a fine morning in May 
I was struck with a mass of yellow flowers which com- 
pletely covered a distant part of the wall. The colour 
was not a common yellow, but had something of buff in 
it, which gave the flowers a striking and uncommon 
1 appearance. I immediately ran up to the place, and, to 
i my surprise and delight, found that it was a most beauti- 
ful new double yellow climbing rose. I have no doubt, 
] from what I afterwards learned, that this rose is from 
the more northern districts of the empire, and will prove 
/perfectly hardy in Europe. Another rose, which the 
^Chinese call the "five-coloured" wa^s also found in one of 
these gardens at this time. It belongs to the section com- 
monly called China roses in this coimtry, but grows in a 
i very strange and beautiful manner. Sometimes it pro- 
j duces self-coloured blooms — being either red or French 
