Chapter I: Introduction

At the time (1864) when this Monograph was commenced, the successful application of the system of cool treatment to Orchids accustomed to a moderate temperature in their native haunts gave a fresh impulse to the cultivation of that charming tribe of plants. By its means, what might almost be regarded as a new Orchid-world, teeming with interest and beauty, was suddenly brought within our reach. A fresh field was opened to the enterprise of collectors, the spirits of cultivators revived, and the hopes of botanists mounted high. Foremost among the spoils that we sought to secure, stood the various members of the genus ODONTOGLOSSUM, which from the days of Humboldt[1] and Lexarza, was known to abound in species pre-eminent for the loveliness and delicacy of their flowers but which had hitherto mocked the utmost efforts of our most skilful growers. For although (thanks to the labours of Warczewitz and Lobb) the Horticultural Society and Messrs. Veitch had more than once received large consignments of Orchids--among which were many _Odontoglossa_--from the mountain ranges of New Grenada and Peru, they had invariably succumbed under the stifling atmosphere to which, in common with the denizens of India, Guiana, or Madagascar, they were remorselessly consigned. Here and there, indeed, an accidental success was achieved in a greenhouse, but the hint was turned to no account, and as a rule--notwithstanding the repeated warnings and remonstrances of Mr. Skinner, Warczewitz, and others--for thirty years we persisted in the incredible folly of growing "cool" Orchids in "hot" stoves; so deeply rooted in the minds of horticulturists was the original prejudice! But it yielded at last, and no sooner had a few houses--constructed and managed on the cool-culture system--made it clear that the Orchids of temperate regions were prepared to submit to the skill of the cultivator, than a general raid was made upon the more accessible countries in which they were known to abound--more especially certain districts in Mexico and New Grenada. To the latter country, collectors were simultaneously sent off by the Horticultural Society, who despatched Mr. Weir; by Mr. Linden, of Brussels; and by Messrs. Low, of the Clapton Nursery; and all these rival envoys, much to their own mortification and chagrin, found themselves sailing for the same destination in the same steamer on the same errand!

It was now that the idea occurred to me of devoting a work of adequate dimensions to the illustration of the particular genus, which from the dried specimens in our herbaria, the plates in _Pescatorea_, the figures of Humboldt, and the descriptions of travellers was evidently destined to hold the first place among all the numerous company of cool Orchids; and thus began the present Monograph. I had expected that after the work of importation had fairly commenced, not only would the species described by Lindley and Reichenbach be easily obtained, but that along with these a multitude of others entirely new to science would likewise be received. In this respect, however, the results have scarcely come up to expectations; a circumstance that is partly to be accounted for by the difficulty attendant on their importation,[2] but which is owing, I grieve to say, in a far greater degree to the untimely deaths of those zealous collectors, Bowman and Pearse, who, when in the very heart of the cool Orchid regions of Ecuador and Peru, succumbed under the pressure of their arduous labours. In Mexico, from which much novelty was expected, little has been added to the number of _Odontoglossa_ previously known, and the same may be said of Costa Rica, notwithstanding the vigorous exertions of Mr. Endries. But in these countries it is evident that the genus is not so fully developed as in the mountain ranges of New Grenada, Quito, and Peru. From the latter country little indeed has yet been received, although the eastern slopes of its Andean chain are probably richer in species of unknown or unimported Orchids than any other portion of the globe. But we must await further improvements in the navigation of the affluents of the mighty Amazon, before we can hope to receive any large instalment of these much-coveted treasures.

A combination of the various causes referred to above, by limiting the choice of materials, has seriously delayed the publication of this work, which I had hoped would by this time have reckoned at least a dozen parts. But as there seems to be no immediate prospect of these hindrances to more rapid progress being taken out of the way, and as the sands of my life are fast running out, I have thought it best in the interests of my subscribers, to make the present number the last. The six parts now published will, however, form a volume of convenient size, and one which may, as I trust, serve to show how rich New Grenada is in the members of this glorious genus. What wealth of _Odontoglossa_ Peru may possess, I must leave some future botanist to unfold. He will have a pleasant task, and will probably have doubled the roll of the genus as now known, before his work is done.

During the progress of this Monograph a curious incident has occurred, which may deserve a brief notice. When the publication was commenced, the introduction of two particular plants--more perhaps than of any others known to orchidists--was earnestly desired by growers, these two being the _Odontoglossum crispum_ of Lindley, and the _Cuitlauzina pendula_ of Lexarza. The finding, or rather the re-finding of the former--so magnificent were the specimens in the Lindleyan Herbarium--was declared to be worth a king's ransom; while for the latter--described as a native of Oaxaca--more than one collector had scoured that province in vain. _Strange to say, they were already in our grasp_: the _O. crispum_ being none other than my _O. Alexandræ_, while--as explained under Plate VIII.--the _Cuitlauzina_ proves to be identical with the long previously introduced _Odontoglossum citrosmum_ of Lindley. Whether all the botanical pressure that can be brought to bear upon our cultivators may suffice to convert _O. Alexandræ_ into _O. crispum_, or change _O. citrosmum_ into _O. pendulum_, is an extremely doubtful question, so strong is the hold that the erroneous names have already secured on the public mind. In the parallel case of _Wellingtonia_, that popular Conifer--though now almost universally admitted to be a _Sequoia_--remains _Wellingtonia_ still, and seems likely to do so for all time to come.

The range of the genus _Odontoglossum_, as may be gathered from the descriptions attached to the various Plates, is of a peculiar character, being at once restricted and extensive. It is restricted, for it never leaves the Andes, and it is extensive, for it is found in all parts of that vast mountain-chain, from the confines of Florida to the frontiers of Chili. As yet no species has ever been met with at a lower elevation than 2500 feet above the sea-level, nor, with the exception of _O. hastilabium_, has any _Odontoglossum_ been known to descend so low;--the most usual altitude being 5-6000 feet, though a higher point is often reached. Like the humming-birds which frequent the same mountains, and vie with them in beauty, nearly all the _Odontoglossa_ are exceedingly local, and in this way two of the most beautiful species, _e.g._, _O. vexillarium_ and _O. Roezlii_, eluded discovery for many years, even in a region supposed to be well explored by collectors.

As to the botanical limits of the genus, I must needs confess that they are exceedingly difficult to fix. It is as true now as when Professor Lindley first made the observation to me, that "The more we build up the partition walls between _Odontoglossum_, _Oncidium_, &c., the more the species break them down." Certainly no one at first sight would suppose _Odontoglossum cariniferum_ was anything but an _Oncidium_, nor _Oncidium macranthum_ other than an _Odontoglossum_. Indeed, I must own to a suspicion that ultimately both these genera, together with _Miltonia_, _Mesospinidium_, _Aspasia_, and possibly one or two others, may come to be regarded merely as _sub_-genera, But this difficult question is safest left in Professor Reichenbach's far abler hands. At the same time, it is not to be denied that there is such a peculiar look about the _Odontoglossa_, that even a non-scientific observer has seldom any difficulty in at once referring most of the species to their true position.

One other matter remains to which I must very briefly advert. Mr. Darwin's fascinating work on the "Fertilization" of Orchids has led many persons to suppose that this beautiful tribe lends an exceptional amount of support to the theory with which that ingenious writer's name is so prominently associated, but there could scarcely be a greater mistake. Not only is the theory in question utterly rejected by Professor Reichenbach, the _facile princeps_ of living orchidists, but the greater our knowledge of the order, the less countenance does it seem to yield to the Darwinian view. We have now become perfectly well acquainted with all the genera--we might almost say with all the species--that belong to particular countries, but it is in these that the limits of variation between the different forms are most distinctly defined; in these, too, the great principle of unity in diversity is most conspicuous--the genera holding aloof from each other, and even the species keeping themselves distinct, although the Orchid mark is unmistakeably stamped upon all alike. Mr. Gould has remarked, in his great work on the "_Trochilidæ_," that the Darwinian theory derives no support from _them_, and the same may be safely affirmed of Orchids, which--we are now speaking of America--are the humming-birds' constant associates. Neither, while we contemplate the marvellous and inexhaustible variety of form by which the order is distinguished above all its fellows, can any plead that this result is due to its ancient lineage, nor yet to the vast periods through which endless transformations are assumed to have been continually taking place, because Orchids--according to geologic reckoning--are but a thing of yesterday, and have never been found in a fossil state. Yet their constant companions the Ferns, trace back their pedigree to the earliest vegetation of the primeval world! To the believer, however, the problem is not hard to solve. Ferns and other flowerless plants came early in the Divine programme, because the coal, into which they were to be ultimately converted, had need to be long accumulating for the future comfort and civilization of our race; while the genesis of Orchids was postponed until the time drew near when Man, who was to be soothed by the gentle influence of their beauty, or charmed by the marvellous variety of their structure, was about to appear upon the scene. There are multitudes who could bear witness how amply, in their own experience, this gracious purpose has been fulfilled; while the writer--in whose breast a love of Orchids prevailed from his youth up--can only exclaim with the Psalmist, "Thou, Oh Lord, hast made me glad through Thy works, and I will rejoice in giving thanks for the operation of Thy hand."

J. B.

KNYPERSLEY HALL, _April 24th, 1874_.

LIST OF PLATES.

1. O. nebulosum.
2. O. Uro-Skinneri.
3. O. phalænopsis.
4. O. Insleayii.
5. O. Pescatorei.
6. O. pendulum.
7. O. hastilabium.
8. O. grande.
9. O. nævium.
10. O. cariniferum.
11. O. Lindleyanum.
12. O. gloriosum.
13. (Fig. 1.) O. Warnerianum.
13. (Fig. 2.) O. stellatum.
14. O. Alexandræ.
15. O. Reichenheimii.
16. O. læve.
17. O. luteo-purpureum.
18. O. Bictonense.
19. O. Alexandræ.
20. O. maculatum.
21. O. Hallii.
22. O. roseum.
23. O. triumphans.
24. O. Krameri.
25. O. cordatum.
26. O. angustatum.
27. O. coronarium.
28. O. blandum.
29. O. vexillarium.
30. O. Roezlii.

ALPHABETICAL Index

OF

SPECIES FIGURED IN THIS WORK,

WITH SYNONYMS MARKED IN ITALICS.

O. angustatum Plate 26
_O. ramosissimum, Lindl._
O. Bictonense " 18
_Cyrtochilum Bictoniense, Bateman._
O. blandum " 20
O. cariniferum " 10
O. cordatum " 25
O. coronarium " 27
O. crispum Plate 14, " 19
_O. Alexandræ, Bateman._
_O. Bluntii, Rchb. fil._
O. gloriosum " 12
O. grande " 8
O. Hallii " 21
O. hastilabium " 7
O. Insleayii " 4
O. læve " 16
O. Lindleyanum " 11
O. luteo-purpureum " 17
_O. hystrix, Bateman._
_O. radiatum, Rehb. fil._
O. maculatum " 20
O. nævium " 9
O. nebulosum " 1
O. pendulum " 6
_O. citrosmum, Lindl._
_Cuitlauzina pendula, La Llave._
O. Pescatorei " 5
O. phalænopsis " 3
O. Reichenheimii " 15
O. Roezlii " 30
O. roseum " 22
O. stellatum " 13
O. triumphans " 23
O. Uro-Skinneri " 2
O. vexillarium " 29
O. Warnerianum " 13

Plate I

PLATE I.

ODONTOGLOSSUM NEBULOSUM, _Lindley_.

CLOUDED ODONTOGLOSSUM.

O. (LEUCOGLOSSUM, _Lindl._) pseudobulbis ovatis compressis 2-3-phyllis,
foliis oblongis acutis basi conduplicatis pedunculo radicali erecto
(apice) nutante 3-7-floro brevioribus, bracteis scariosis amplexicaulibus
ovario duplo brevioribus, sepalis petalisque latioribus membranaceis
oblongis undulatis apiculis recurvis, labelli ungue cucullato carnoso,
lamellis duabus erectis dentibusque totidem anticis, limbo ovato acuto
dentato subpubescente, columnâ apterâ elongatâ. (_Lindl. quibusdam
mutatis_.)

ODONTOGLOSSUM NEBULOSUM, _Lindl. Fol. Orch._

ODONTOGLOSSUM MAXILLARE, _Lemaire (nec Lindley), Illustration Horticole_
(1859), _t._ 200.

Habitat in Mexico, prope Oaxaca (_Karwinski_, _Galeotti_, etc.),
_circiter 5000 ft._

DESCRIPTION.

PSEUDOBULBS _2 to 3 inches long, smooth, ovate, somewhat compressed, 2-
or 3-leaved_. LEAVES _2 or 3 at the apex of the pseudobulbs, oblong,
acute, shorter than the_ SCAPE, _which, rising from the base of the
pseudobulbs, is bent down at its upper extremity by the weight of from 3
to 7 large and handsome_ FLOWERS. BRACTS _only half the length of the
ovary, embracing the flower-stem_. SEPALS _1½ inches long_. PETALS _much
wider than the sepals, and like them of an oblong form, waved at the
margin, and a little recurved at the end, which is sharply pointed; both
sepals and petals are of clear membranous white, clouded (as the name
implies) by a profusion of spots or blotches of a reddish-brown colour,
which extend to nearly half their length_. LIP _of the same texture and
colour as the sepals, only that the brown blotches are broader, and that
there is a patch of yellow on the claw; its upper portion is of an ovate
form, acute, with the margins very much torn; its fleshy dish is hooded,
or gathered into 2 erect plates, with a pair of teeth attached in front_.
COLUMN _very long, destitute of wings_.

It was at Munich, in the year 1835, that I first became acquainted with this fine _Odontoglossum_ having, through the kindness of Professor Von Martius, been allowed to examine the rich collection of dried specimens that Baron Karwinski had then recently brought home with him from Mexico. Two years afterwards living plants were sent to me from Oaxaca, which happening to arrive in the midst of that remarkably severe winter 1837-38, I naturally expected would have been destroyed on their way; so far, however, from this being the case, they appeared to have sustained little or no injury from the cold, and on being placed in a stove they soon began to push both roots and leaves. All went well so long as the temperature of the house did not exceed 70°, but when the winter had passed away and they had to face the intense heat at which the Orchid-houses of that period were ordinarily maintained, they then quickly lost their vigour and before a twelvemonth had passed were all gone, victims--like a multitude of other invaluable plants--to our then ignorance of the conditions under which alone the Orchids of _cool_ countries could be expected to thrive!

I am not aware that this plant ever flowered in this country until within the last year or two, certainly no figure of it has ever been published in any English botanical periodical; I have, however, found in a French work (the _Illustration Horticole_), under the name of _O. maxillare_, what is obviously the same as the plant represented in the Plate. I should myself have probably fallen into the same mistake as Professor Lemaire, had I not enjoyed the opportunity--which he unfortunately had not--of examining the original specimens in Dr. Lindley's herbarium, and from which that able botanist drew up his description (in the _Folia Orchidacea_) of the two species. _O. maxillare_, of which Dr. Lindley only examined a single flower--though he made a most careful drawing--is shown by a glance at the latter, to be a totally different thing; it has moreover, I fear, long since disappeared from our collections. In Dr. Lindley's description the flower-scape is said to be terminal, which in nature it never is, although from the way in which Karwinski's wild specimen was glued together, it certainly presents that appearance in the herbarium. The column moreover, and the base of the sepals and petals, are said to be pubescent, though nothing of the kind is visible to the naked eye when the flowers are fresh. With a powerful magnifying glass pubescence may certainly be seen.

_Odontoglossum nebulosum_ flowers at different seasons of the year, always sending up its scape at the same time as the young growth. It is of the easiest culture.[3] The figure was derived from a beautiful specimen that flowered last November in the collection of J. Day, Esq., of Tottenham, who grows this and many other _Odontoglossa_ in high perfection.

DISSECTIONS.--1. Lip, seen in front; 2. Ditto, seen sideways: _both magnified_.

Plate II

PLATE II.

ODONTOGLOSSUM URO-SKINNERI, _Lindl_.

MR. SKINNER'S ODONTOGLOSSUM.

O. (LEUCOGLOSSUM, _Lindl_.) pseudobulbis ovato-oblongis ancipitibus
compressis guttulatis 1-2-phyllis, foliis oblongis acuminatis scapo
multifloro simplici vel subpaniculato multo brevioribus, bracteis
membranaceis cymbiformibus acuminatis ovario 3-plo brevioribus, petalis
sepalisque subæqualibus late-ovatis acuminatis, labelli ungue bilamellato
limbo cordato maculato acuminato undulato, columnæ alis ovatis deflexis.

ODONTOGLOSSUM URO-SKINNERI, _Gardeners' Chronicle_, vol. 1859, pp. 708,
724.

Habitat in GUATEMALA, prope Santa Catarina de los Altos, 5-6000 _ft_.,
_Skinner_.

DESCRIPTION.

PSEUDOBULBS 3 _or_ 4 _inches long by nearly as many wide, much flattened,
and very sharp at the edges, always powdered with minute brown dots,
which do not appear until the second year_. LEAVES _oblong, broad, and
stiff, acuminate at their extremities, much shorter than the scape_.
SCAPE _generally simple, but sometimes slightly panicled, about a yard
high, and bearing from_ 10 _to_ 20 _agreeably scented_ FLOWERS. _Bracts_
_of a delicate texture, boat-shaped, scarcely more than one-third the
length of the ovary_. SEPALS _and_ PETALS _nearly equal, broadly ovate,
about an inch long, of a green colour, covered with rich
reddish-brown spots_. LIP _broad and spreading, heart-shaped, acuminate,
and turned inwards at the apex, its disk white, but covered with
round blue spots, which cease at the foot of the isthmus (claw),
where two upright and nearly parallel lamellæ (plates) are stationed_.
COLUMN _furnished with ovate, decurved, round-headed wings_.

This is a robust and stately plant, nearly allied to _O. Bictoniense_ to which at one time Dr. Lindley was disposed to refer it, but far larger and handsomer in all its parts. Its broad pseudobulbs which become covered in their second year with a multitude of small reddish dots, its wide sepals and petals, the spotting of its lip, and its general resemblance to _Zygopetalum Mackaii_ will, however, sufficiently distinguish it. Being found at a higher elevation than _O. Bictoniense_, it requires to be kept more cool, and as it affects dark and wet banks in its native wilds, it is better to place it in a north house where it can be more readily protected from the sun. Treated in this way it grows luxuriantly and flowers abundantly at Knypersley, whence the specimen figured in the Plate was derived. Its flowering season seems to vary, for while with me it is now (May) coming into bloom, about London November is the more usual month.

_O. Uro-Skinneri_ was the latest discovery of my indefatigable friend Mr. Skinner (after whom it was named by Dr. Lindley), and who, though now settled in England, is as much devoted to his favourite tribe as when, while resident in Guatemala, he was wont to delight the Orchidists of Europe by the multitude of new and beautiful plants that he was constantly dispatching across the main.

DISSECTION.--1. Side view of lip and column: _magnified_.

Plate III

PLATE III.

ODONTOGLOSSUM PHALÆNOPSIS, _Rchb. fil_.

MOTH-LIKE ODONTOGLOSSUM.

O. (LEUCOGLOSSUM, _Lindl_.) pseudobulbis ovatis obtuse ancipitibus
1-2-phyllis, foliis linearibus acutissimis racemis bi- vel trifloris
spithamæis longioribus, sepalis oblongo-ligulatis acutis, petalis
latioribus obovatis obtusis; labelli ampli pandurati emarginati
bilamelligeri disco velutino, columnæ alis abbreviatis membranaceis.

ODONTOGLOSSUM PHALÆNOPSIS, _Rchb. fil. in Seemann Bonplandia_, ii. 278;
_Pescatorea, Linden et Rchb. fil_. ii. 44.

MILTONIA PULCHELLA, _Hort_.

Habitat in N. GRANADA, prope Aspasica, alt. 5-6000 ft., _Schlim_.

DESCRIPTION.

_Terrestrial_. PSEUDOBULBS _nearly two inches long, ovate, bearing one,
or more frequently two, narrow linear, very acute_ LEAVES, _less than a
foot long, and usually withered at the extremities_. RACEME _nodding,
shorter than the leaves, furnished with a few small acute_ BRACTS, _and
bearing two, or occasionally three, very large and handsome flowers,
which, the markings of the lip excepted, are of a uniform white_. SEPALS
_oblong, sharp-pointed, about an inch long_. PETALS _broader than the
sepals, obtuse_. LIP _fiddle-shaped, its front portion deeply emarginate,
spread out nearly flat, very broad, its side portions much smaller,
rounded, and with two continuous upright lamellæ on its velvety disk; the
lip has two large irregular pale-crimson blotches on its anterior
portion, with concentric lines of the same colour on its lower portion,
with a small patch of yellow on either side the isthmus_ (i.e. _point of
junction between the upper and lower divisions of the lip_). COLUMN
_short, with membranous wings much abbreviated_.

This most charming _Odontoglossum_ was discovered in the year 1850 by M. Schlim at that time engaged in exploring the higher regions of New Granada in the service of M. Linden to whose well-known horticultural establishment at Brussels he had the honour of introducing it. The species was seen in flower for the first time in the year 1856 when it appeared at some Horticultural Exhibitions both on the Continent and in London and, as may readily be conceived, attracted universal admiration. Since that time its lovely blossoms have been rarely produced, owing no doubt to its cultivation having been imperfectly understood. It has however, I believe, bloomed occasionally in the collection of the Lord Chancellor of Ireland, and more recently in that of E. McMorland, Esq., of Haverstock Hill, with whom it thrives amazingly, and to whose kindness I am indebted for the opportunity of figuring it. In its native country it is found in a mild climate growing on the ground, or upon rocks in moist and shady situations, and by simply imitating these conditions Mr. McMorland cultivates it with the most perfect success. His plants are kept in pots, with living moss on the surface, and their base resting in pans of water the evaporation from which cannot fail to be highly beneficial. The temperature of the house in which they are grown is that of an ordinary greenhouse, but the air is always humid, and water is freely given because, in consequence of the _open potting_, it can pass as freely away. The plants seem to grow and flower almost all the year round, though their proper and principal flowering-season is in May and June.

_O. phalænopsis_ is entirely distinct from any species of the genus yet in cultivation, but it is allied to a still finer plant detected by Warszewicz in Costa Rica, and called in honour of its discoverer _O. Warszewiczii_ by Professor Reichenbach.

DISSECTIONS.--1. Lip. seen sideways; and 2. Front view of lip: _both
magnified_.

Plate IV

PLATE IV.

ODONTOGLOSSUM INSLEAYI, _Lindl_.

INSLEAY'S ODONTOGLOSSUM.

O. (EUODONTOGLOSSUM, _Lindl_.) pseudobulbis ovatis compressis diphyllis,
foliis coriaceis oblongo-ensiformibus subundulatis apice recurvis racemo
5-10-floro erecto rigido brevioribus, sepalis petalisque oblongis
subæqualibus undulatis infimis connatis, labello angusto obovato retuso
basi auriculato, disci cristâ apice bilobâ dilatatâ utrinque in medio
dente refracto auctâ, columnæ alis incurvis cirrhatis. (_Lindl. Fol.
Orch._)

ONCIDIUM INSLEAYI, _Barker in Bot. Reg._ 1840, _Misc._ 21; _Bateman,
Orchid. Mex. et Guat. t. 21_; _Van Houtte, Flore des Serres,_ 1848, _t._
62.

Habitat in MEXICO, _Barker_; OAXACA, _Loddiges_; 5-6000 _ft._

DESCRIPTION.

PSEUDOBULBS _ovate, slightly furrowed, compressed, bearing 2 leathery,
sword-shaped, sharp-pointed_ LEAVES, _which are less than a foot long,
and like the rest of the plant of a glaucous hue_. SCAPE _upright, longer
than the leaves, bearing from 5 to 10 flowers, usually from 2 to 3 inches
in diameter, but sometimes considerably more_. BRACTS _few, about an inch
long, occurring at intervals somewhat longer than themselves, and fitting
tightly to the stem_. SEPALS _and_ PETALS _nearly equal, oblong, waved,
the two lateral ones attached at their base, of a pale yellowish-green
tint, crossed throughout their entire length by broad bands of
reddish-brown_. LIP _narrow, obovate, turned a little back, of a bright
yellow colour, bordered by a belt of red blotches; on its disk are a
group of tubercles, mounting two teeth on either side, and with cleft
callus in front_. COLUMN-WINGS _bent inwards, and resembling in form the
antennæ of an insect_.

This _Odontoglossum_ was originally introduced from Mexico by the late Mr. Barker, of Birmingham, after whose gardener it was named by Dr. Lindley. It flowered with Mr. Barker somewhere about the year 1840, when a figure was prepared for the 'Orchidaceæ of Mexico and Guatemala,' but I had not then the opportunity of examining the plant, nor indeed did I ever actually see it in flower until the autumn of last year (1863) when I happened to meet with the specimen from which the illustration is derived, growing and blooming vigorously in the collection of Dr. Cauty, of Liverpool. The species had, in fact, virtually disappeared from collections during an interregnum of twenty years, and its reappearance is entirely due to the adoption of the rational system of cool treatment now happily prevailing, and under which it may be cultivated with the greatest ease.

In habit _O. Insleayi_ is quite indistinguishable from _O. grande_; and although its flowers are far inferior in beauty to those of that glorious species, they bear a certain sort of resemblance to them in their colouring and general arrangement. The structure is however entirely different, for while _O. grande_ has no bristle-like appendages to its column, and therefore belongs to the section of the genus which has been called XANTHOGLOSSUM by Dr. Lindley, the processes in question are clearly present (see Dissections) in the case of _O. Insleayi_, thereby bringing it under the preceding section, to which the title of EUODONTOGLOSSUM has been given by the same authority. The time and mode of flowering are also different in the two plants, for while in _O. grande_ the flower-scapes appear almost simultaneously with the leaves, and are usually in perfection in July, those of _O. Insleayi_ are not produced until long after the pseudobulbs have been matured, nor do they expand their blossoms until late in the autumn.

As is the case with most of its congeners, there are many varieties of _O. Insleayi_, some of which are much less attractive in their colouring than the one represented in the Plate, while others have much larger flowers, as in the example given in the vignette which is copied from an old woodcut in the Journal of the Horticultural Society. Unfortunately this latter variety has, I greatly fear, been lost to the country, but collectors should endeavour to reintroduce it.

I have already referred to Dr. Cauty's success in the treatment of the subject of the present Plate, but his skill and care are equally conspicuous in the management of a miscellaneous collection of Orchids, which he contrives to grow under circumstances such as would have deterred most men from attempting to grow any plants at all. The house in which he lives is in the very centre of Liverpool, and has in its rear a small back court, such as is usually devoted to dustbins and coal-holes, but where Dr. Cauty has found space for three little Orchid-houses of different temperatures in which the Orchids of different climes are perfectly at home. I can really see no reason why in all large towns--in London more especially--Dr. Cauty's example should not be extensively followed, and the luxury of an Orchid-house be thus brought within the reach of many who now consider it quite beyond their grasp.

DISSECTIONS.--1. Lip, seen sideways; 2. Ditto, seen in front: _both magnified_.

Plate V

PLATE V.

ODONTOGLOSSUM PESCATOREI, _Lindley_.