August 3. 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
315 
seed, or tlie branch of a tree, placed or introduced in these 
gardens, acquires in eight days a development which cannot 
be obtained in as many months in the open air.’ According 
to an inscription discovered at Rome, Domitian possessed in 
his palace on the Palatine a hothouse, whose exotic plants 
were cultivated. Columella also, the head of Roman rural 
and agricultural authors, says—‘ Rome possesses, within 
the precints of her walls, fragrant trees, of precious per¬ 
fumes, such as grow in the open air of India and Arabia. 
These gardens are embellished with the myrtle and' the 
crocus in flower—there you see the balm-tree of India, and 
the cinnamon-tree covered with leaves, as well as the tree of 
frankincense. Italy, this fertile land, yields willingly to 
the wants of her cultivators, and has learnt to contain the 
fruits of the whole universe.’ In another passage, Colu¬ 
mella mentions portable (movable) glass-houses. It was 
for Tiberius that cucumbers were to be grown fere tuto anno 
(nearly all the year), which was done in frames lilled with 
warm dung, which were mounted on wheels for bringing 
them close to some wall, shone upon by the sun. M. D. de 
la Malle cites another passage of Martial’s containing the 
reproach of a person to his friend, for having lodged him 
worse than his fruit-trees, ‘ which children of Silicia, for 
excluding them from winter and cold winds, arc protected 
by glass in sheet from the blasts of Boreas, which do not 
admit but air and sun.’ Seneca goes still further, saying— 
‘ Do those not live contrary to nature who require a rose in 
winter, and who, by the excitement of hot-water and an 
appropriate modification of heat, force from the equinox of 
winter the lily-bloom of spring?’ This passage, in fine, is 
conclusive for proving that the Romans used sleam as one 
of the heating agents for those Adonis gardens, which, con¬ 
sidering their many warm-bath establishments, must have 
been an expedient obtruding itself on their attention.”— 
The Builder. 
[We have no doubt at all that the Romans cultivated 
plants, and forced them into production at unusual seasons, 
using for their protection sheets of Talc, but we floubt 
whether they employed glass. It is quite clear, from the 
3rd chapter of the 11th Book of Columella, that Cucumbers, 
and, probably, Melons, were produced throughout the year, 
to satisfy the palate of the Emperor Tiberius. They were [ 
grown in baskets, and moved into and out of a house ac- j 
cording as the time of day, or of the seasons, required; i 
“ notwithstanding,” adds Columella, “ they ought to be ; 
covered specularibus, that in cold weather also, when the 
days are clear, they may be safely brought forth into the i 
sunshine.” Wc know of no good authority entitling us to 
translate “specularibus” otherwise than “with specularises." 
Now, specular is, both Pliny and Seneca say, was a trans¬ 
parent stone, which was cleaved into films, and used to 
admit light, whilst it excluded the wind. Pliny says, that it 
was first found in Spain ; and Seneca states that it was not 
in use before his time. We are aware that Sir Joseph 
Banks thought that the Romans used glass for forcing 
purposes; and that Martial, in his 08th Epigram, alludes 
to a vinery so constructed. Some time since we submitted 
the Epigram to a good classic scholar, and this is his reply: 
“ I place the Latin and English side by side, from which 
comparison I think that any unbiassed mind will conic to 
the conclusion that Sir Joseph Banks, to make the Romans 
force i/rapes , himself forces Latin. I shrewdly suspect that 
he would translate that line ‘ Quid non ingenia voluit 
natura licero.’ What licence may not ingenuity take, (to 
make words mean whatever best suits our own convenience). 
The only sense which the Latin will bear, in my humble 
opinion, is as follows: — Qui whosoever vidit hath seen 
pomaria the orchards Regis Corcyrasi of the king of Cor- 
eyra, Me that man praferat would give the preference to 
rtis the garden hue domus of your house, Eatelle 0 Eatellus 
(qua where, understood), ne lest invida bruma the envious 
winter urat should nip with its frost3 (lit. burn) purpurcos 
racemos the purple bunches of grape, Et and gelidum 
feigns the chilling cold edat should destroy (lit. eat or 
consume) munera the gifts Bacchi of Bacchus ( i.e., the 
grape); vindemia the crop condita stored up vivit lives 
(or continues fresh) perspicud gemma with its transparent 
berry, et and felix luxuriant tegitur is covered up (i.e., pro¬ 
tected) : nec tamcn nor yet vva does the grape lalet lie 
hid (i.e., so covered up as not to be hid from the light and 
sun, I should think) : sic in like manner, bambycina, 
the silken gown linet will thinly cover feeminewn corpus 
the female fTame; sic or like as calculus the pebble nume¬ 
rator is multiplied in nitidd aqua in the bright transparent 
water. Quid what non voluit natura hath not nature willed 
licere to concede to (or put in the power of) ingenia in¬ 
genuity ? Slerilis hiems barren winter jubetur is com¬ 
manded ferre to bear (or give place to) Autumnum autumn. 
Such, then, is the plain sense of the words; but I add a 
few critical notes on the above, which will show yet more 
clearly the absurdity of twisting this passage into anything 
relating to the forcing of grapes. 
Line 3.— Bruma, which you will find by refening to 
Ainsworth, means mid winter, and not either its beginning 
or close as bordering upon spring or autumn, and the grapes 
are then represented as purpurcos, purple and ripe; therefore 
Martial is speaking of grapes not early and before their 
time, but as preserved after the usual season. 
Line 5.— Vindemia means literally a harvest or ingather- 
! ing of any crop or fruits. It is most usually applied in 
reference to them after they have been cut down or picked, 
as may be according to what is spoken of; but it certainly 
seems that Martial here uses it in respect to the grapes yet 
hanging on the vine. Perspicud means transparent, like 
glass, and denotes a quality inherent in the thing spoken of, 
and not separate from it; but has also a second signification 
applied to things as seen through glass; so that it might have 
been a kind of greenhouse ; but there is nothing to indicate 
that it was artificially heated. 
Line 7.— Linet, from lino, to smear over thinly with oil; 
therefore it would be applicable to anything which covered 
thinly, but not so as to hi<Je it from sight; though even this 
meaning is somewhat forced. 
Line 10.— Autumnum. This word, seems to me to give 
the death-blow to Sir Joseph B's. interpretation. Martial 
does not express his admiration at the ingenuity which 
caused the fruits of spring to flourish in winter, but simply 
that those of autumn should be preserved so much later than 
was natural to them. 
The glass (Talc?) of the Romans tvas not so clear and 
perfect as ours; probably, it gave a wavy appearance to 
things seen through it, or it might have magnified them, or 
if it was gritty or knotty would multiply the object; hence 
the simile in line 8.”] 
THE LE MAUN PEA.—CROPS AT MELROSE, N.B. 
“ I wrote to you some few weeks ago, mentioning a Tea— 
Le Maun. I now send you the particulars of it, together 
with a young pod. Whether the same will reach you in the 
state it leaves me, I cannot foresee; however, I send a 
slight sketch as well. 
“ Warner's Emperor Pea, mentioned in the early part of 
this year in The Cottage Gardexeb, has gained the 
first prize at Melrose shows, and has been much admired. 
It is a good and prolific Pea for Scotland. 
“ The Fruit (except Plums) is very bad, being completely 
destroyed by the caterpillar. Gooseberries and Currants 
have failed in places; with me they are unusually fine. 
Carrots have failed in many places, but I am exempt. 
“ I have Indian Corn and Peppers growing out-of-doors 
here, and both seem to do well. 
“ I followed out your advice with regard to the orchard, 
and have had a fine crop. 
“ I am about getting some sheep; what kind do you 
recommend? I wish to sell them off in the spring.— 
[Southdowns.]— W. Harding Warner." 
[The pods of this Pea arrived in good condition, and 
prove to be the old Grotto, or Oyster Pea. The pods you 
sent are as yet too young to exhibit the distinguishing 
character of the variety; but as they become older you will 
find them covered with a roughness like sand-paper. Where 
did you obtain it under the name of Le Maun ?] 
KEEPING WORMS FROM ENTERING TOTS. 
“F. W. S. believes that the following method of prevent¬ 
ing earthworms from finding their way into pots when 
plunged in the ground is not generally known, and, there¬ 
fore, thinks the Editor may deem it worthy of insertion in 
The Cottage Gaedener. 
