August 11, 1687. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER 
119 
one of the latter being of extraordinary size, and could scarcely be sur¬ 
passed for its symmetrical proportions. It is difficult to estimate the 
ase of such trees, but it is supposed to be contemporaneous with several 
others in the immediate neighbourhood—namely, about 200 years old. 
J have seen some of the grandest Cedars in Britain, including tho.sa at 
Warwick Castle, but do not remember seeing so evenly developed a 
specimen as this. Beyond is the kitchen garden and orchard, which, 
like the other portion, is kept in excellent condition by the gardener, 
Mr. Fitzwater, who takes considerable pride in the interesting garden 
under his charge. At the end of that the “ wilderness ” is reached, and 
another grotto, where there has been a passage beneath a second road to 
what may be termed a third garden, now separated. 
The most beautiful portion of the garden is that entered from the 
first grotto, and it was a happy idea on the part of Mrs. Labouchere re¬ 
cently to initiate an outdoor performance of Shakespeare’s “ Midsummer 
.Night’s Dream ” in such a situation. The first production provided for 
a large company of friends gave so much satisfaction that a second was 
held on Saturday evening (August 6th), the proceeds of which are to be 
given to the Charing Cross Hospital. Many gardeners are enthusiastic 
Shakespearian readers, and I know at least one who, besides being clever 
in his profession, has attained some fame in public Shakespearian re¬ 
stead of substituting such an unlikely flower as the Cockscomb.— 
L. Castle. 
FURNISHING VASES WHEN THE FLOWERS ARE FEW. 
Persons who possess small gardens (and who having probably 
nursed every plant atfectionately, cannot bear to think of depriving it 
of its beauty, even to remove that gayness to the drawing-room vases), 
may be glad to hear how to gather flowers with the smallest waste, and 
how to arrange them to make the greatest show. 
The rules for this are very simple, though a design for it is 
impossible, as so much depends on the arranger's taste and lightness of 
touch in placing the flowers ; so that even if I could accurately describe 
the effect of a well-arranged vase, it would become stiff from the mere 
restraint of copying. 
My best advice in a case like this would be to take in the first place 
abundance of green if the nosegay is to be of solid style. In that case 
it does not much matter what the green may be—Myrtle, Pelargonium, 
Privet, Box or Laurustinus, Carrot leaves, and even in winter the curly 
Kale leaves. Asparagus, too, in summer is excessively pretty, and looks 
like a plant of a Heath ; and from the woods and hedgerows, if one is in 
Fio 15.—POPE’S VILLA, TWICKENHAM. 
citals.^ All such could perhaps form some idea of “ The Midsummer 
Night’s Dream ” performed in a picturesque tree-embowered garden on 
a warm clear summer’s night by a selection of talented ladies and gen¬ 
tlemen.. Well might an able critic say, “ This is how Shakespeare would 
have wished it to be seen.” A grand old Beech tree was chosen as the 
central portion of the stage, and beneath its widely spreading branches 
the chief scenes were enacted, while stretching away on each side were 
the forest gladeS through which the respective personages approached 
and departed. Amongst the branches of the Beech were suspended two 
electric lamps, which shed a soft light upon the lawn, the leaves acting 
as natural reflectors, and cleverly arranged, so that a powerful glare was 
not anywhere perceptible. The turf was banked in places with Ferns 
and flowers in profusion, adding greatly to the beauty of the spectacle 
which has been described as “a succession of pictures, a fanciful 
panorama of poetic conceits, in a word a delightful dream which none 
present will ever forget.” The principal parts were taken by Miss 
Fortescue (Hermia), Miss Kate Vaughan (Titania), Miss Dorothy Dene 
(Helena), Ladv Archibald Campbell (Oberon), and Miss Norreys 
(Puck); Mr. Claude Ponsonby (Lysander). Mr. Luxmore Marshall 
■(Demetrius), and Mr. George Augustus Sala (Bottom the Weaver). 
There has been much dispute about the various flowers referred to 
by Shakespeare, but “the little western flower” mentioned by Oberon, 
and in which passage the poet is supposed to have paid a special compli¬ 
ment to Queen Elizabeth, has generally been regarded as the Hearts¬ 
ease, which could have been easily obtained on the occasion named, in- ' 
the country, innumerable green things can easily be brought in, of 
which amongst the prettiest are green moss tresses. 
Having an abundant foundation of green—the green itself being 
arranged as carefully for the effects of light and dark as though it were 
the bouquet ; making it, however, not in the broken lights, but well 
massed together ; the next thing to be done is to see what flowers the 
garden can afford us. As a general rule all flowers of thin texture, and 
most especially so those which combine with it a rather pale and delicate 
colour, or which close up quickly, are not only sources of annoyance to 
the garden-bed, but of no avail whatever to the drawing-room vase. 
They are tempting to gather, because they look at first so pretty in 
one's hand, seen alone and closely, and because one fancies they will not 
be very badly missed considering they are small. But very much 
mistaken are both of these ideas. They are missed a good’ deal if 
gathered in any quantity, since generally they grow low, and are filling 
up some corner, and certainly they do not improve the bouquet ; for 
being thin and wanting in vividness of colour, if they do not shut up at 
once or tumble off the stalk they often are more apt to do harm 
than good. 
The larger flowers, of course, must be gathered with grave consider^*' 
tion, and they must be gathered by someone who has the vase in view 
and guesses generally at how she wants to fill it. Let us suppose, for 
instance, a garden to contain, as many gardens do, scarlet, pink, and 
white bedding-out Pelargoniums, Verbenas, Carnations, China Asters, 
Roses, and Calceolarias. Petunias we will not speak of, as they seldom 
