species sometimes imported as N. oxypetalus, and which has solitary flowers not much larger than a flower of the common white Jasmine, the shallow cup being of a rich orange yellow colour.

The Daffodil of Shakespeare is the wild Daffodil (Narcissus Pseudo-Narcissus) that is found in abundance in many parts of England. This is the true English Daffodil, and there is only one other species that is truly native-the N. biflorus, chiefly found in Devonshire. But long before Shakespeare's time a vast number had been introduced from different parts of Europe, so that Gerard was able to describe twenty-four different species, and had "them all and every of them in our London gardens in great aboundance."

Only a few years later (1629), John Parkinson published his folio "Paradisus Terrestris," in which nearly a hundred kinds of Narcissus are figured or described. This book is a real treasure to all lovers of hardy flowers, and more especially to those who, like Parkinson himself, make a favourite of the Daffodil.

In later times Haworth and the late Dean Herbert alike did much to popularise the various species and varieties of Narcissus in English Gardens, and now-a-days we may leave our favourite flower in the hands of the gentle cultivator, feeling fully assured of its beauty being treasured; in a word, the artist and the gardener must now continue what the historians and the poets have so well begun.

"The delight of the varieties both of formes, colours, and properties of . . . . . flowers hath ever beene powerfull over dull, unnurtured, rusticke, and savage people, led only by Nature's instinct; how much more powerfull is it, or should be, in the minds of generous persons? for it may well be said he is not humane, that is not allured with this object it is not only pleasant, but profitable, by comforting the mind, spirits,

and senses with an harmless delight."

A May Day Joyl.
May-Day

(A.D. 1610.)

Writ by one Ralph Cunnynghame in Letters to his cousin, Sir Robert Stapleton, in London.-(Harper's Magazine for May.)

"YES

WESTERMORN I was abroad while the dewe still laye upon the grasse, for it was sweete and bright. I knowe not what it is that bringeth at such tymes of spring a fullness of joye to the heart, but so it is, and certes was with me especiallie on this sweet daye, for alle thinges were budding tenderlie, and the whole worlde seemed full of pure delighte. And soe I walked through the meadowes, and alle the grounde beneathe my feet was carpeted with the daintie beauties of manie flowers, and over my heade the larke his songe fell like a sweet shower of praise from the golden skye, so that, what with alle the dearefullness of spring, my hearte did fairlie ake with keen blissfullnesse."

"WITH DAFFODILS BEDIGHT."

"And soe at last I came to a certaine spott I wotted of where alle around the bankes of a tiny lakelet stood a whole hoste of Daffodillies growne talle and statelie and fayre; neither coulde there haue been lesse than thousandes of them, so that the whole earthe coadjacent seemed strewn thick with bright yellow flakes of golde; and whenever a smalle wynde came they bowed in greate rowes lyke a sea of golden starrs. I know not why it was, Amadis, but certes my hearte was so flooded with a bliss and strong love longinge that big teares of tender joye did fill mine eyes, and soe I lay me downe upon a greene banke of Grasse and sweete herbes, and gazed at those fayre blossoms with gentle joyance. Thus lying, suddenlie I saw the sweetest mayde that e'er mine eyes behelde come walkynge through this platt of flowers, and meantyme, moving not, I laye and gazed like one enchanted, and scarce dare breathe lest I should frighte the fayre vision, and dissolve alle into nothingnesse."

THE FLOWER GATHERER.

“And oh, Amadis, never saw I so sweete a mayde in all my life before, nor likewise one with eyes so brighte, and countenance so gentle and yett withal soe arch; and I saw that her arms were alle overladen with Daffodillies, like a greate cluster of beauteous starrs; and soe she walked amid the flowers that reached nigh to her knees, and came, and was gone, leaving me lying as tho' entranced with what I had beholden. And alle the rest of the daye ever and anon woulde come greate waves of happinesse that flooded my hearte full even in the midst of grosser thoughtes whene'er somewhat touched the chord that awakened the memorie music of that scene. Trulie, my friende, tho' towne is merrie I do love the countrie, its joyous beauties of meadowe and meade, and coulde dwelle blissefullie here for ever. Again to-daye I went with tender hopes to the same platt of Daffodillies, and there remained a long tyme, but my mayde of the flowers came not againe."

Lecture on the Narcissus.

INTRODUCTION.

HAVING been years ago (1868) a student in the then extensive and beautiful gardens

at Chiswick, it gives me all the more pleasure to read a short paper here to-day. My subject is the Narcissus, or "Flower of March," the Daffodil that " comes before the swallow dares." Tennyson seems undecided whether to make the Daffodil belong to blustering March or to showery April. We all remember his "Roaring Moon of Daffodils," but in a still prettier passage he sings of

"A rosy blonde, and in a college gown,
That clad her like an April Daffodilly."

Around us here to-day is, without a doubt, by far the finest collection of Narcissus blossoms ever brought together in one place—a veritable “field of the cloth of gold," even more brilliant than that one in particular which old chroniclers have described so well; and the result of this gathering is a focussing, as it were, of all the golden beauty which Daffodil cups may contain. Speaking of Daffodil colour reminds me that this is by no means an ordinary flower show. No prizes are offered to-day unless, indeed, it be that " crown of wild Olive” which the Greeks prized more than gold. We have here to-day an exhibition of flowers which have come to us for very love, and not for the sake of money prizes—an exhibition which proves that devotion to Flora as a queen among us is as yet a living truth, and that among or around the hearts of all true gardeners there is woven 66 a thread of twisted gold."

HISTORY.

It is generally believed that the earliest, or at least one of the earliest, species of this genus to attract the attention of the wise men and poets of Greece first, and of Italy afterwards, was our garden favourite of to-day, Narcissus poeticus; hence, no doubt, its popular name of the Poet's Narcissus. Both Narcissus poeticus and Narcissus Tazetta (Little Cupped Italian or Polyanthus Narcissus) are mentioned by Dioscorides. Virgil also alludes to an "empurpled Narcissus," and although the exact plant is doubtful, yet it is by many believed that it was some form of N. poeticus which he had in view. Of far more moment to ourselves now is the great central fact that the Narcissi of our own gardens are as lovely here to-day as they were when the poets of Greece and Italy first sang their praises. Nearly all early writers agree in treating this flower as an emblem of that beautiful youth whose name it bears. He is said to have slighted the nymph Echo in favour of his own shadow, and Nemesis changed him into this blossom as a punishment for his self-esteem. It is a deep-laid myth, and a pretty one as often told to us by

Delivered before the Royal Horticultural Society at South Kensington, April 1, 1884, by Mr. F. W. Burbidge, F.L.S., Curator, Trinity College Botanic Gardens, Dublin, and formerly of the Royal Gardens and Herbarium, Kew.

the poets, and in one of the best of English translations we are informed that the attendant nymphs were interested

"And looking for his corse, they only found

A rising stalk with yellow blossoms crowned."

According to Shakespeare, Proserpina let fall the Daffodil flowers she had been gathering when seized by Pluto, but as Prof. Mahaffy informed me some time ago, the earliest accounts of this myth tell us a little too much, the flowers being therein spoken of as black Narcissus, hence we must believe, or at least suppose, that some other flower was originally intended. It may have been some Fritillary which had pleased Proserpina, since even at so late a date as 1629 we find John Parkinson in his "Paradisus " alluding to Fritillarias as Chequered Daffodils. No doubt, like Lily, Rose, and Violet, the names Daffodil and Narcissus had a much wider meaning and application in olden times than we give them to-day. For example, Canon Ellacombe, in his “Plant Lore of Shakespeare" (p. 57), tells us that the Rose of Sharon was the large yellow Narcissus common in Palestine and the East generally, of which Mahomet said, "He that has two cakes of bread, let him sell one of them for some flowers of the Narcissus, for bread is food for the body, but Narcissus is the food of the soul." The name Daffodil is said by some scholars to be "simply the old English word 'affodyle,' which signifies that which cometh early." Dr. Prior, however, no mean authority, looks upon it as a corruption of the Latin Asphodelus, and thus it may be identical with the Asphodel. He further tells us that the name Daffodil "was subsequently confused with that of another flower, the so-called Sapharoun," or Saffron Lily. By alliteration the Sapharoun Lily, on becoming blended with Affodilly, became, by a sort of mutual compromise, Daffadowndilly, in which form it is used by Spenser in the lines, "Thy sommer proude with Daffodillies dight," and "Strowe the green round with Daffadowndillies." Daffodil and Asphodel have, however, long been distinct enough in popular parlance; but there was at one time a danger of confounding them, since Markham, in his "English House Wife" (1637), says, "You must be careful that you take not Daffodil for affodil." Among the many local or country names for the Daffodil, the most common now-a-days are Lent Bellflower, Lenten Rose, Lent Lily, Trumpet, Trumpet flower, and Chalice flower. Culpepper calls it Lide Lily, because it flowereth in March, which month in some counties is called "Lide "—" Lide" itself, like Lent, being an equivalent for the spring season. Popular names have fit uses, but unless very carefully applied they are apt to lead us astray sometimes, and so we must always remember that the popular name Daffodil in all its forms, excepting the Hooped Petticoat or Rush-leaved Daffodil, which is different, is applied only to the varieties of that very variable native plant, Narcissus Pseudo-narcissus, the wild Daffodil of our meadows and Northern Europe, or the False or Spurious Daffodil of Parkinson, who so called, it doubtless to distinguish it from the other flat-leaved or true Narcissi, of which Narcissus poeticus and Narcissus Tazetta may be taken as good types.

POPULAR NAMES OF THE SECTIONS.

All varieties of Narcissus Pseudo-narcissus, then, whether native or foreign, may be called Flat-leaved or Trumpet Daffodils.

All forms of Narcissus Bulbocodium (the Corbularias of some gardens) may be called Hooped Petticoat or Rush-leaved Daffodils.

The Poet's Narcissi are all those which have pure white perianth segments and a distinct red or purple rim to the shallow yellowish corona or crown.

Jonquil is another popular name, belonging by right to Narcissus Jonquilla, but it may be applied to any true Narcissus having narrow bright green or Rush-like leaves. Polyanthus Narcissi are, properly speaking, all forms of Narcissus Tazetta.

The Peerless Narcissi are all those of the N. incomparabilis type in the genus, and the Primrose Peerless is Narcissus biflorus.

Hence these popular names, which confuse us so much when loosely applied, if used rightly and carefully, serve to distinguish for us the different well-marked sections of this beautiful genus.

STRUCTURE OF THE NARCISSI.

Let us now turn to the structure and botany of the Narcissus as it is known to us to-day. The species of Narcissî (for even Daffodils are, strictly speaking, Narcissi, although only the large-trunked Narcissi are Daffodils) form a genus of bulbous plants belonging to the natural order or group Amaryllidaceæ, of which the Amaryllis is the type. But our Narcissi differ from Amaryllis proper in having a crown or corona, and thus they represent for us here in Europe not the Amaryllis itself, but the Eucharis and Hymenocallis of the New World. At the same time the structure and origin of the crown seem different. In Eucharis the corona is formed by the cohesion of the flattened filaments of the anthers, which themselves are joined to and protrude beyond the crown they form. In Narcissus, however, the corona appears to be a prolongation of the tubular portion of the flower. A Narcissus flower, when examined, is found to possess an inferior ovary situated at the base of a cylindrical or obconical tube. From varying localities along this tube spring six perianth divisions (in two series), and beyond these a cup or crown is prolonged, as shown above.

DAFFODILS versus NARCISSI.

Now we find among the Narcissi generally two well-marked and distinct variations in their flowers. In the Daffodils, for example, the six stamens are of equal length, and have the same point of insertion low down near the obconical tube, as here shown (Fig. 1). When a flower of the true or Poet's Narcissus is examined, however, we find some marked differences, as here shown (Fig. 2).

Fig. 1. Section of Daffodil showing stamens in one series.

Fig. 2. Section of a true Narcissus, showing
stamens in two series.

It will be observed that the tube is here very much longer and quite cylindrical, and when we make a section of the flower we find the six stamens are divided into two sets of three each, and that each set has its own locality or point of insertion-three near the mouth and the other three much further down, midway between crown and ovary. These structural variations are especially fitted for insect fertilisation; and, as we shall soon find, these two distinct forms are not unfrequently cross-fertilised in a wild state, and often in our gardens, or perhaps it may be in gardens their progeny has been more carefully preserved. Before I leave this part of my subject, I wish to point out that nearly all the variations in form of which a Narcissus flower is capable, are owing to the sliding, as it were, of the whorl of perianth segments along the tube of the flower. Thus we find that the length of the cup or crown and the length of the tube always, or nearly always, vary in inverse proportion, just as I have shown them to do in Figs. I and 2. It is well to get the essential differences of these two species well fixed in our minds, as we thus get a clear light in which to see the part each species has borne in the production of

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