230 
Double flowers are showy, and all very well as varieties; 
but when the original is single, it should never be so entirely 
lost sight of, as is now generally the case. I always marvel 
how any one can prefer seeing the cup-like corolla of the 
Snowdrop or Dafibdil, crammed with a multitude of petals 
crushed and squeezed out of all form and beauty, with the 
central ai'rangement of the flower, the stamens, anther, &c., 
wholly hidden from sight.* 
The elegant, veined flowers of the Hibiscus ai-e among 
our Autumn darlings; and the China-asters look cheerfully 
out from their many-leaved calyces. The Sweet Peas still 
adorn the trellis with their winged blossoms, and the gay 
Golden-rod bears aloft its rich yellow crown. The pink and 
lilac Michaelmas Daisies, though favourite guests, are sad 
ones, fr'om the presage they bring of the departure of all 
their fair companion-flowers. But a mere enumeration of 
these garden inmates has little interest — we will proceed to 
look more closely at the subject of the Autumn illustrations. 
“ The year growing ancient — 
Nor yet on Summer’s death, nor on the birth 
Of trembling Winter, the fairest flowers o’ the season 
Are our Carnations.’’— 
So says our Shakspeare’s lovely Perdita, when, “ playing 
as she had seen them do in Whitsun pastorals,” she dis¬ 
tributes her token flowers to Polixenes and Camillo: and 
• Since -writing the above, I have heard of a double Pansy!—Are these refined 
barbarians, the “ fashionable” florists, to have no bounds set to their enormities ? 
