324 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
January 18 , 1896. 
Hardening §| iscellany. 
LUCULIA GRATISSIMA. 
A young but vigorous specimen of the above is at 
the time of writing illustrating to visitors to the 
greenhouse at Kew the manifold good qualities of 
which this superb greenhouse subject is possessed. 
The flowers are rather fleshy in texture, very sweet 
scented, and of a delicate rose colour. They are 
produced in large, terminal, and many-flowered 
cymes, that present a most imposing appearance. In 
fact no grander object can be found for the conserva¬ 
tory than one of these plants bearing several of these 
huge inflorescences. It succeeds very well under 
anything like ordinary care in a compost of equal 
parts of fibrous loam and peat with silver sand. 
Propagation may be effected either by seeds or by 
cuttings composed of the young shoots taken about 
the beginning of June. These latter must be given a 
slight bottom heat and kept closely covered with a 
bell-glass, otherwise some disappointment will be 
sustained in their refusing to root. In any case they 
are difficult subjects to deal with. Imported seeds 
germinate readily enough if sown in light porous soil 
in a gentle heat. Although seedlings grow away 
well enough, however, several years usually elapse 
before they will condescend to flower. 
CUNNINGHAM S BEECH. 
Those who are only acquainted with our native 
Beech would hardly recognise Fagus Cunninghamii 
as a Beech at all; it is so different in outward 
appearance, and somewhat different botanically 
from F. sylvatica. The leaves are very small, 
deltoid, leathery evergreen, and unequally toothed. 
They may, in fact, be compared to those of Azara 
microphylla as seen at the present time. A beautiful 
and shapely tree of it, about 30 ft. high, may be seen 
in the Arboretum at Bicton, East Devon. Even at 
this dull season of the year it stands out very promi¬ 
nently amongst the deciduous trees, including the 
other kinds of Beeches, common and uncommon in 
that fine collection. The small size of the leaves 
might permit us to compare the tree to a Box, but 
the dark green hue of the same forbids us to make 
that comparison. The tree was introduced in 1843 
from Van Dieman’s Land, and possibly also from 
New Zealand, as recorded in books. It is stated to 
be half hardy ; but it may certainly be regarded as 
perfectly hardy in Devon, judging from the health 
of the fine tree which stood out all last winter 
apparently entirely unharmed. Loudon states that 
the wood is valuable and close grained, but for 
what purpose it may be used he does not say. As 
an ornamental tree, however, its utility cannot be 
gainsaid—in those districts, at least, where it will 
thrive as it has done at Bicton. 
EIliEY DEAJlE. 
By Evelyn C. Griffiths. 
[All rights reserved.) 
CHAPTER VI.— Concluded. 
The Proposal. 
Dr. Curum was pacing up and down impatiently, 
mopping his face and looking the reverse of amiable. 
" Oh, there you are at last ! I really began to 
think you would never come. You have kept me 
waiting a long time—a very long time ; and my time 
is valuable you know—very valuable. But sit down, 
my dear, sit down. You are looking better; got 
quite a colour I declare. But to come to business. 
Lady Bewdley tells me that she will not require you 
after the end of next month. Now I do not suppose 
you have anything else in view ; so I think we might 
come to terms.” 
“ In what way, Doctor ? ” asked Eiley. 
“Give me time, my dear; give me time,” cried 
the Doctor. " You was not in such a hurry just now 
when I was waiting for you. Well, the fact is I am 
not quite so young as I was, and I get laid up 
occasionally with bronchitis. I have a working 
housekeeper who attends to me, but she is so dread¬ 
fully rough—dreadfully rough ! If I want a plaster 
she either puts it on quite cold, or so hot it burns 
the skin off me. Then she will persist in making- 
in making my gruel with Onions—things I detest— 
simply detest! She is so very careless too—very ; 
one night she gave me my beef tea in a feeding cup 
and I was nearly choked with a great blackbeetle 
which came out of the spout. Another time I sent 
my hot-water bottle down to be re-warmed; she put 
it on the heated stove and when she went some little 
time later to fetch it there was nothing but the brass 
screw left ! Fancy that, my dear ! ” 
“In what way can I be of use?” interrupted 
Eiley, getting rather tired of listening to the Doctor’s 
list of grievances. 
"I’m coming to that, my dear; I'm coming to 
that. Do not get impatient, please. Well, I have 
observed the way in which you attended to Lady 
Bewdley during her illness, and I quite approve of 
your style—quite. So I th-” 
"Excuse me, Doctor," interrupted Eiley again. 
" It is very kind of you, but I really cannot under¬ 
take to occupy the post of nurse again ; it is too 
trying to my health, and, as I told you upon a former 
occasion, I am an artist, not a nurse.” 
" Dear, dear, dear! ’ exclaimed the fat little man, 
mopping his head angrily. "How you do talk! 
You will not let me get in a word edgewise! I did 
not ask you to be a nurse, did I ? No. I am going 
to do you a great honour, my dear. I’m going to 
make you Mrs. Curum !—Mrs. Curum ! No, do not 
thank me, my dear,” seeing Eiley about to speak. 
“ Do not thank me. You will be able to do many 
little things in the shape of attending to my com¬ 
forts, keeping down the household expenses, and so 
on, to make up a little for the sacrifice I am making 
on your behalf. Of course, as you must see, I am 
distinctly throwing myself away in marrying you. 
In my position I could marry anyone—anyone ; 
even Lady Bewdley herself if I felt so disposed." 
“ I should be sorry to stand in the way of Lady 
Bewdley’s attaining such a lofty position,” said 
Eiley, sarcastically. 
" Of course, my dear, of course. But I should 
never marry her ladyship—never ! She is not my 
style ; too lackadaisical altogether. I saw she was 
very disappointed when I told her I intended marry¬ 
ing you. I felt sorry for her, poor thing, but I 
never paid her any marked attention, so it 
was foolish of her to fall in love with me—very 
foolish. Well, now, my dear, which day shall it be ? 
I think the fifteenth of next month will suit me ; 
that will be three weeks and three days from the 
present time. Yes, that will suit me exactly— 
exactly." 
Eiley's large brown eyes were fixed full upon the 
Doctor's fat, round, oily-looking face as he was 
speaking ; the expression in them would have been 
anything but encouraging to a man with the least 
perception. There was a mocking ring in her voice 
as she replied slowly—“ Really, Doctor, your offer is 
quite overpowering ! You honour me too much. I 
cannot possibly allow you to make so great a 
sacrifice of yourself on my behalf." 
She was about to rise from her chair when the 
Doctor prevented her. " Fiddlesticks, my dear, 
fiddlesticks! If I am contented to throw myself 
away that is my business. As I have already said, 
you must try to make up for it afterwards. So that 
is settled. I will make you Mrs. Curum on the 
fifteenth of next month.” 
“ You mistake, Doctor." Eiley rose as she spoke, 
looking very tall and graceful in the long silvery- 
gray gown she was wearing, as she looked coldly 
down upon the short, fat, perspiring little man in 
front of her. “ I thank you for your generous ofter, 
but it is utterly impossible for me to accept it.” 
" Not accept it ! not accept it!" exclaimed the 
little man, scarcely able to credit his ears. " Bless 
my soul, what is the world coming to ? Are you in 
your senses, miss ? Do you think you will get 
a better offer ?—because you won’t. I tell you, you 
won’t. This is the fruit of lowering myself. A 
wretched half-starved chit of a girl to say she will 
not marry me—me !—Dr. Curum ! Why, it is laugh¬ 
able—quite laughable ! What do you expect will 
become of you, miss, if you do not marry me ? Go 
and live in one room again, I suppose, making a 
beastly mess with a lot of filthy paints, and swindle 
some unfortunate woman by not paying your rent, 
like you did before. But you shall marry me ; do 
you hear? I’m Dr. Curum, and I’ll make you!—- 
I’ll-” 
" How dare you ! " cried Eiley, suddenly stepping 
towards him, her large eyes flashing so angrily that 
the little Doctor thought it advisable to get behind 
an armchair. " How dare you speak to me so, you 
wretched old man ! You insult me first by asking 
me to become your servant', for that is what it 
amounted to; and now y ou dare to speak of my 
poverty. Rather than marry you I would prefer— 
aye, a thousand times—to die of starvation in my 
one room amongst my paints! That is Eiley 
Deane, the penniless artist's answer to the famous 
Dr. Curum—a miserably despicable, cowardly, 
selfish, greasy old man! ” 
Our heroine had evidently lost control of her 
temper, for having ended this speech, which was 
certainly more forcible than ladylike, she swept 
from the room, banging the library door behind 
her. 
“ Bless my soul! ” exclaimed the Doctor, coming 
from behind the chair. " What an extremely dis¬ 
agreeable young person. Greasy—greasy, indeed ! 
Well, I never ! But I’ll make her pay for it! I have 
not yet sent in my account for attending her during 
her illness. I'll double it now—I'll double it! I'll 
ask her for the money at once.” 
Opening the door quickly, he called after Eiley, 
who was crossing the hall, " Young woman, young 
woman ! ” In his hurry to overtake the object of his 
wrath he stepped upon the train of her gown, which 
tripped him up. The oak floor, beinghighly polished, 
the fat little Doctor spun round and round on his 
—waistcoat in his fruitless endeavours to arise ! 
Eiley passed on quickly up the stairs without 
taking any heed of the Doctor’s discomforture. But 
Carlo, lying at the feet of Lord Bewdley, who was 
in the billiard room smoking, seeing the strange 
phenomenon, sprang forward, and bounding round 
it, barked furiously. 
"Help! help !” screamed the Doctor, struggling 
to regain his feet. Being so stout he formed a sort of 
see-saw, his nose and toes taking it in turns to des¬ 
cend to earth. “Help ! take him away, take him 
away ! Help ! ” 
Lord Bewdley was too convulsed with laughter at 
the ridiculous figure cut by the Doctor for some 
minutes to be able to render him any assistance. 
Controlling himself at last, he called Carlo off and 
assisted the Doctor to rise. "Why, iQoctor,” he 
cried, with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. 
" This is the second time I find you lying at the feet 
of Miss Deane, with Carlo making violent objec¬ 
tion ” 
“ I beg, my lord—" panted the little man. " I beg 
that you will not mention that young person to me 
again. She has insulted me, my lord—insulted me — 
Dr. Curum ! I did her the honour of offering to 
make her Mrs. Curum, and she refused me, my 
lord. Can you believe it possible ?—refused me ! " 
" What reason did she assign ? ” asked Lord 
Bewdley. " Reason ? ” cried the Doctor furiously. 
"Reason? That is just where the insult lay, my 
lord. The hussy said I was greasy—greasy! Now,” 
he continued, putting his hand up to his bald head, 
“ I never put oil of any sort on my head ; it injures 
the hair, clogs the pores of the skin, and prevents it 
growing properly.” 
" That was very unkind, certainly,” Lord Bewdley 
said, almost choking with suppressed laughter ; 
“ but cheer up, Doctor. You must try again ; never 
take a lady’s first no. ' Faint heart'—you know the 
old saying.” 
“No, my lord, no,” replied the Doctor, drawing 
himself up. " I should not think of repeating my 
offer. That insulting young person has taken her 
choice, and she must abide by it. I shall have 
nothing more to say to her—nothing. It will be of 
no use for her to write asking my forgiveness, as I 
should not think of answering the letter. I shall 
send in my account and expect immediate payment. 
Will you kindly tell her that, my lord?—immediate 
payment! ’’ 
" Certainly,” replied Lord Bewdley. " Tell me 
the amount, Doctor, and I will see that you get it." 
" Twenty guineas,” answered the Doctor firmly. 
" Twenty guineas ; I will not take a penny less—not 
a penny. So it will be of no use for her to say she 
has not got it; she will have to find it. Greasy, 
indeed ! ” 
The Doctor having taken his leave, Lord Bewdley 
indulged in a hearty laugh of some duration, which 
seemed to please Carlo immensely. He then went 
to the library, wrote a cheque for twenty-one 
pounds, payable to Dr. Curum, placed it in an 
envelope with Miss Deane’s compliments, addressed 
it, and put it into the letter bag. “ Spiteful old 
beggar! She shall not be worried about that, poor 
girl” 
[To be continued). 
