HORiaCULTURALJOURNAL. 101 
Adiantum assimile, • Asplenium ebenum, 
" cuneatum, " attenuatum, 
" pedatum, " fontanum, 
" pubescens, " viviparunij 
" reniforme, Aspidium trapezoides, 
" varium, " trifoliatum, 
Grymnogramina rufa, " pectinatum, 
" chrysopbylla, Pteris longifolia, 
" calomelanos, " rotundifolia, 
" sulphurea, " serrulata, 
" tomentosa, " ternifolia, and, 
with such mosses as Lycopodium denticulatum, braziliense and densum, to 
creep over the surface, will, when once planted and begin to grow, form, I 
am sure, the most attractive piece of furniture in the room ; while the 
invalid, who may be prevented from leaving the house to look upon the all- 
good and all-wise Creator's works, may here admire some of the handsomest 
tribe of all the vegetable kingdom, and the only tribe with which I am 
acquainted that will prosper in close confinement for a lengthened period. 
As a proof of how the Ferns will live and grow under close confinement, 
allow me to state a case in point — not that proof from me, of the prac- 
ticability of the thing, is required, for it has been proved times without end. 
Some years ago, as I was about to leave the shores of Britain for those of 
New Zealand, some botanists, desirous of proving whether or not it would 
be possible to carry some of the most delicate of the Fern tribe, under close 
confinement, through all the various degrees of temperature between us and 
the antipodes, placed six varieties in a large bottle, such as are used for 
holding pickles ; the roots of each plant were tied in a little damp moss, and 
the mouth of the bottle securely fastened with a piece of bladder, and then 
committed to my care ; in this way the inmates remained during my pass- 
age, a period of five months, and were set at libert}'- on those distant shores 
apparently as healthy as when they started. The bottle was a greater 
object of attraction to my fellow-passengers than my cases of plants were, 
and many were the inquiries after the state of the "poor bottle." I ought 
to mention, that it hung in my cabin in cold weather ; at other times, 
on deck. 
I hope you will pardon me for "running my yarn" to such a length; 
if it shall be the means of adding pleasure to any of your readers, especially 
to the sick and infirm, the object of their humble servant has been attained. 
Alexander Burnett, 
Crermantown. 
