8 
made an equally striking impression on the beholder, and yet the flowers were 
produced on an unmatured growth, and had not attained their natural dimen¬ 
sions. We may affirm that those which will appear this year, will be sensibly 
larger than those represented on our plate. As to colour, we do not think it 
possible to surpass them in beauty. Throughout the whole Orchid-family there 
exist but few gems comparable to the labellum of this species, in which the 
purple combined with gold is modified into a crimson of the hue of Spanish 
wine, and the marblings and the veins are of an exquisite elegance. 
We may recall, moreover, the appréciation expressed by Mr. James O’Brien 
in an article in the Gardeners’ Chronicle : 
“ A portion of the six-flowered inflorescence and a drawing of the whole 
u of it has just been sent me, and I hâve no hésitation in saying that it is one 
“ of the handsomest which the favourite “ labiata ” section of Cattleya has yet 
“ given us. The sepals are three and a half inches long and three-quarters of 
“ an inch in width, white, tinged with primrose-yellow. Petals ovate, three and 
“ a half inches in length and two and a quarter inches in width, creamy 
“ white, their edges wavy and slightly notched. The lip, which is obscurely 
“ three-lobed, is a wonderful piece of colouring. The convolute side lobes, 
“ forming the tube which folds over the pure white column, are creamy-white 
“ on the edges, and yellow streaked with red beneath. The interior of the tube, 
“ and the upper part of the front lobe, are of the richest crimson, veined in a 
“ beautiful manner with golden yellow. The front lobe of the labellum, which 
“ is finely expanded, and edged with a pure white fringe, is crimson of various 
“ shades, from the rosy hue to the purple tint, ail worked in to form a richly 
“ coloured marbling. Taking the flower at a glance, the nearest thing I can liken 
“ it to is the Cattleya Imschootiana , for which Baron Schroder recently received 
“ a First-class Certificate at the Royal Horticultural Society; but this is different 
“ and superior in every respect. There is also something about the colouring 
“ of the lip which calls to mind a good form of C. maxima . In habit C. Rex is 
“ certainly distinct, the thin pseudo-bulbs being often a foot in length, and the 
“ single oblong leaf borne on them also about a foot long. ” 
C. Rex recalls somewhat C. maxima in the number of flowers produced on 
each raceme, a character which we also observe in the long-bulbed variety of 
this species. 
The plants hitherto imported are very few in number, but we hope very 
soon to be able to increase the stock, and that this grand novelty will be sent 
out during next April. 
As in the case of C. Warocqueana , we prefer to await the second time of 
flowering, after the complété establishment of the plant, before giving its descrip¬ 
tion and its botanical classification. We therefore withhold the diagnosis at the 
présent time, but we shall be pleased to give one as soon as the plant has 
attained its complété development. 
