NAT. ORDER. — NYMPHIACE^. 
drawn sitting" on its larg"e leaves. Loureiro relates that it abounds in 
muddy marshes in India and China, and is cultivated in larg-e, hand- 
some pots in the g'ardens and houses of the Mandarins. The Chinese 
have always held this plant in such high value, that at length they re- 
garded it as sacred. The seeds are somewhat of the size and form 
of an acorn, and of a taste more delicate than that of almonds. The 
ponds in India and China are literally covered with the plant, and ex- 
hibit a very showy appearance when it is in flower, and the flowers 
are no less fragrant than handsome. It is the Pythagorean bean of the 
ancients, and has been regarded from the most remote periods as an 
emblem of fertihty. 
Pmpagation and Culture. The species of this beautiful aquatic 
genus should be grown in cisterns, tubs, or large pots, in a rich, loamy 
soil ; they require a strong heat in order to make them flower in per- 
fection. The cistern, pot, or tub should be kept full of water all the 
time the plants are growing, but may be allowed to dry when the 
flowering season is over. The plants may be increased by dividing 
the roots, but are obtained more readily from seeds, which vegetate 
freely. None but the present species have ever flowered in this coun- 
try. They all require to be kept in a very warm situation in a stove. 
Professor ^Lindley, speaking of this plant, says, " that it is a native 
of the temperate and tropical regions, of the northern hemisphere, both 
in the Old and New World ; but is found in the greatest abundance in 
the East Indies, and that they were formerly very common in the 
southern part of Egypt, but are now extinct in that country according 
to ttte account given by Delile." All writers who have mentioned this 
plant, speak of it being extensively used as an article of food in China, 
and considered as a luxury even by the nobility. 
