The Opelousas courier., 1889-10-26
THE GREAT SHOW.
AN EXQUISITE BOTANICAL DIS
PLAY AT PARIS.
Rare Plants, Shrubs, Fruit ana
Flowers From Every Chime
Efforts to Popularize the Bra
lillian Mate rs a Beverage.

including the various pavillons and VII
lagos of the natives of the French colonies
and protectorates, have been made cool
md pleasant by plantin 60 shrubs and
plants indigenous to the different coun-
tries, and they also possess many rows OF
enc outrageous trees. Around the Meth
srland Indian section are vigorous to-
bacco plants in blossom, musas, capslcums,
md cacti. Palms and orange trees are in,
pigor, and here and there are seen shrubs
Of pinus strobus and e~xcelsa, which are
sot quite appropriate.
From the botanic gardens of Havana
Ind Algeria have been brought good
ipecimens of the sugar cane, dwarf palm,
sabal Havaneuse, plantains, and different
5amboos. Although cork trees could not
be transplanted, yet fine sections of the
trunks are erected, showing the formation
IF the inner layers of bark.
Tropical Fruits.-Seldom, perhaps, has
been collected together SO large a variety
IF tropical fruits as at the Paris EXPOSE
lion in the various kiosks and stalls on
The Place DIES Invalides and the Quai
a'Orsay. At the Colonial Exhibition in
London there was q fair display made,
but the northern and southern coasts OF
The Mediterranean are within a nearer,
distance than our colonies, and hence.
Algeria, Tunis, Egypt, Spain, Italy, and
| sther countries have been able to send.
large and continuous supplies. The guam
lily of oranges sent from Valencia has.
been considerable, and they sold readily:
1t i halfpenny to I'd. each, according to,
ize and quality, Pineapples, punches of
bananas, sections of sugar cane, water
md other melons, pomeloes or shaddocks,
from Florida called ''grape fruit'), APP,
Plies from Victoria and Tasmania, selling
1t Id. and I'd. litchis and longans, dates,
Rgs, c~ocoanuts and Brazil nuts in their
capsules (these are plentiful here, al
| though difficult to obtain in that form in,
England, and various other nuts, such?
IS pecan, hickory, sapucia, butternuts,
pine cones, pistacia, ground nuts, chufasi'
hynerus), carob pods, ETC., make up a
koodly choice for visitors. In the United
States sections there are the following
varieties Of oranges shown: Maltese,
blood, Maltese oval, paper rind St.
Michael, Washington navel, Australian.
aavel, Australian Indian River, Tahiti.
seedltng, Hayti late, dried ~apricots, nee.
::~arines, peaches unpeeled, plums pitted,
pears evaporated, excellent ~raisins, pre-
served fruits and jams innumerable.
Saffron.-The cultivation and prepare
hon of saffron in Spain are well exem-
plifed by one or two exhibitors in the
Spanish pavilion on the banks Of the
Seine at the Quai d'Orsay. One e1hib-
ltor, N. Hermanos, shows samples from
| Albacete, which is one of the chief GEN.
tres Of production, but the best and
most instructive exhibit is that of DANA
70 Algaraz Valencia, who has a very COM
Dlete and instructive stand, commencing
1t the bottom with corms of the crocus
,atinus, in earth; then owe this, on a
shelf, are a dozen glass globes, six filled
with the product of 1888 and six with
those of the previous year. They are
classified as follows into Aragon, Sierra,
Rio, Bajo, Mediano, Superior, selecto.
Sour oil paintings represent a field OF
[ saffron and the collection of the flowers.
The return of the peasants from the field,
the picking the stigmas, the tripod
orange-colored tops of the central organ
Of the flowers, the remainder being use
less, the driving of the saffron by heat
and lastly, the general market where the
sales are made. The various tools ant
utensils, ~sieves, etc., for cultivating ant
drying the saffron are shown, also the
different forms of packages in which 4 i
shipped to America, Germany and France.
Various statistical tables exhibit in
graphic manner the rise and fall of price!
and the export and stock of saffron
during a period of nineteen years and
half from October Is, 1869, to April 80
1889. The trade in saffron is a very OLE
one in Valencia, and the production i
more than double that of France AM
other countries combined. ALTHOUGH
used to small extent in pharmacy and a
q dyestuff, its chief employment is as
condiment and for coloring liquors, but
ter and cheese.
Australian Seed Vessel.-In the Vic
toria sections of the Exhibition Mr.. W
r. Guilfoyle, F. L. s., Director of tn
Melbourne Botanic Gardens, shows
large and most interesting collection G
carpological specimens in glazed cases
numbering about 800 divisions, includ
ing the seeds and seed vessels Of tn
various species of eucalyptus, acacia
arancaria, casuarina, banksia, hakea
grevillia, melaleuca, callistemon, ange
phora and other genera. 1t is a collec
ton which ought to be secured for Ke'
or nornn nkhar hnfnnin ,n11co,lm no IL i