38G 
THE ALSTR(EMERIA, ITS VARIETIES AND CULTIVATION. 
and was especially devoted to the study of the 
economical sciences. It was the earnest desire 
of the father that bis sons should all be well 
versed in natural history, which he regarded 
as one of the essential bases of a complete 
education, especially with the view of being 
useful to mankind. 
Claude Alstroemer travelled in Spain, Italy, 
France, and other countries. In April, 1761, 
he landed at Cadiz, and was introduced to a 
lady who was fond of flowers, and in whose 
garden he found a magnificent unknown lilia- 
ceous plant, the seeds of which had been sent 
from Peru by the lady's husband a short time 
previous : its name had not been mentioned 
in the annals of the history of plants. Claude 
Alstroemer lost no time in sending a parcel of 
dried plants, by the Swedish consul, to his 
esteemed Professor, and among them was a 
specimen of this new lilaceous one. He did 
not omit to send at the same time some of the 
ripe seeds, which were sown at the garden at 
Upsal ; and from these, plants were obtained 
that produced beautiful flowers, which became 
generally called "Alstroemer's lily." In 1762 
Linnaeus used this name as the basis of a new 
genus, and thus the illustrious name of Al- 
stroemer has ever since been preserved in 
botanical science to designate an elegant family 
of Amaryllids. 
By thus consecrating the name of the indi- 
vidual who introduced this plant, Linnaeus 
showed the importance of the exact history of 
those objects which contribute to the enjoy- 
ment of man, and that we are culpable when 
we do not seek to preserve the memory of such 
laudable actions from oblivion. Linnaeus, in 
connexion with this subject, has cited De 
l'Escluse, who, with all the introductions of 
his time, did full justice to his contemporaries 
by connecting their names with the history 
of those plants which were introduced or cul- 
tivated by them, while this distributive justice 
had been but too much neglected by others. 
It is now a century since these just reflections 
were made at Upsal, but they are applicable 
at the present day ; and it is not without the 
hope of their being useful that we bring them 
forward for the consideration of our own con- 
temporaries. 
Claude Alstroemer introduced, described, 
figured, and propagated the Alstroemeria, and 
therefore Linnaeus named this genus in honour 
of him, and showed at the same time that the 
elder Feuillee, in his Flora of Peru, had de- 
scribed, under the name of Hemerocallis, 
three species of the same genus, to which the 
botanical reformer gave the respective names 
of Alstroemeria pelegrina, Ligtu, and Salsilla. 
There was one feature of interest attached 
to these Hemerocalli that the Jesuit Father 
had but ill floured and as ill described : it is 
in speaking of the, Alstroemeria pelegrina that 
Feuillee relates how much value the ancient 
monarchs of Peru attached to gardens and flow- 
ers. These sovereigns were horticulturists; 
they possessed" An thophylacies," as stated by 
Linnaeus, — that is, gardens of pleasure ; and 
flowers, as those of the Alstroemeria, were so 
prized or admired, that, once faded or lost, 
they believed they could only be imitated by 
images of gold and silver. Hence Feuillee 
assures us, that in these gardens, artificial 
flowers, made of these precious metals and 
imitating the most beautiful natural flowers, 
were attached to the trees. Thus he saw, in 
this fairy land, a field of Indian corn or maize, 
each plant of which was formed of silver, and 
the large spikes were of pure gold (!) In the 
midst of these wonders, worthy of the dreams 
of the East, the Alstroemeria pelegrina occu- 
pied the parterre of honour, — so beautiful it 
seemed to a people who nevertheless found 
the plant growing freely by the banks of the 
rivers or on the slopes of the hills. 
The Alstroemeria pelegrina was the first 
species of this beautiful genus that was known 
in Europe. According to Feuillee it grew, 
especially in Peru, on a mountain about a mile 
to the westward of Lima. Linnaeus observed, 
in connexion with this subject, that a know- 
ledge of the country of a plant, though va- 
luable as furnishing an important index, was 
not however sufficient to enable us properly 
to understand its particular kind of culture ; 
"for," said he, "the Tagetes and the nastur- 
tiums, the first being from Africa, and the 
other from Peru, grow well even in the gar- 
dens of Sweden, but are susceptible of the 
least frost ; while Solatium quercifolium and 
S. radicans, originally belonging to tropical 
countries, are not injured by cold if they are 
only slightly covered." 
Alstroemeria Salsilla was, according to 
Feuillee, who found mention made of it in 
connexion with the medicinal plants of Peru, 
employed by the natives of Chili for similar 
complaints to those for which other plants of 
like properties are employed at the present 
day. In Lindley's Flora Medica it is said to 
be diuretic and diaphoretic. As for A. pele- 
grina, the arguments of Linnaeus go to prove 
that that plant can have but few active pro- 
perties. He argues that, in her works, Nature 
expresses a profound sentiment of justice ; she 
does not lavish on one and the same object all 
virtues and qualities ; she gives to the nightin- 
gale an enchanting voice, but withholds from 
it the rich plumage of the parrot ; the latter 
has a splendid robe, but a disagreeable voice. 
Hence it may reasonably be inferred, that 
since the Alstroemeria is a model of beauty, 
it must be destitute of virtues. We do not 
know whether Linnaeus sustained such a 
