FEBRUARY. 5l 
own dear fatherly opinion. But our own, you know, are always 
paragons—never were such children—and how anybody can find fault 
with them is, no doubt, very surprising to us; but alas! so it is; some 
of them may be very pretty, but then we have as good; and others, 
though from their names we might conclude them to be super-excellent, 
yet, like too many of the Lavinias, Clarissas, &c., belie their grand 
nomenclature. Well, we thought Azucena, Ben Bolt, Fidelio, Etoile 
du Nord, and perhaps Il Trovatore, worth retention, but no others— 
rather sweeping, we fear. But, as I have said, we were quite 
steeled against all gentle influences, and were regular Bluebeards in our 
murdering propensities. Azucena is a new colour; Ben Bolt, soft in 
tint, and not at all like the jolly tar from whom it is named; Fidelio is 
of that undefinable colour which means anything, amaranth; while 
Etoile du Noir is a bright scarlet; IL Trovatore, with all due respect 
to the raiser and describer of it, is not a beat on Géant des 
Batailles, for it is one of those long straggling growers which run away 
from the centre as fast as they can, leaving it all bare, and then about 
two feet off up comes the bloom ; individually, both pip and truss are 
fine, but this bad habit will effectually exclude it from good society. 
Zampa is good in colour, but I fear the truss is not sufficiently large for 
these days. Amongst the new ones from our lively neighbours over the 
water, who would do much better in trying to raise flowers than cannon- 
balls or steam rams, or any such nasty things, the following will be, we 
think, worth growing :—F aust, a large truss, soft rose colour; Madame 
Denis Blain, rose, with maroon eye; Leon Manset and Madame 
Nardi, large Brilliant de Vaise style of flower. Besides these, there is 
Lady Cotton Sheppard, a bright rosy purple with white eye; Isabella, 
crimson, with dark eye; and Striata perfecta, which will drive old 
Sarah out of the field, I think. We should have then to retain, if our 
judgment be correct, and we by no means say that it is so:— 
Comte de Morella, deep crimson, lemon | Fidelio, crimson 
eye Etoile du Nord, crimson scarlet 
Eleanor, rosy crimson, white eye Faust, rose 
Lord Clyde, deep scarlet Madame Denis Blai,n rose, crimson eye 
Lord Elgin, nearly black Leon Manset, rose (?) 
Gem, dark purple Madame Nardi, rosy crimson 
Conspicua, deep crimson, lemon eye Lady Cotton Sheppard, rosy purple, 
Mrs. Maclean, carmine white eye 
Mrs. Blyth, light rose, yellow eye Isabella, crimson, dark eye 
Azucena, fine dark lavender Striata perfecta, white and lavender, 
Ben Bolt, rose striped 
~*Let us again repeat, that this list is submitted simply as the matured 
opinion of those who have taken pains to arrive at a true decision, and 
no other motive but a desire to grow the best, as far as we knew, 
entered into our minds. It is now submitted, in the hope that it may 
prove useful to those who wish to add to their collections. It is a good 
time to do so now, and propagation may go on rapidly where the means 
exist for so doing : may our frames have a thriving family ! is 
— Deal, Jan. 25. 
