The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1889-09-11
THE GREAT SHOW.
AN EXQUISITE BOTANICAL DIS
PLAY AT PARIS.
Rare Plants. Shrubs, Fruit and
IA Flowers From Every Cline
y Efforts to Popularize the Bra
r. zilien Mate as Beverage.

Including the various pavilions and vii
4 lagos of the natives of the French colonies
and protectorates, have been. made cool
and pleasant by planting shrubs and
plants indigenous to the different coun-
tries, and they also possess many rows of
| fine outrageous trees. Around the Meth
erland Indian section are vigorous to-
bacco plants in blossom, musas, capsicums,
and cacti. Palms and orange trees are in
yigor, and here and there are seen shrubs
of pinus strobus and excelSa, which are
not quite appropriate.
From the botanic gardens of Havana
Ind Algeria have been brought good
specimens of the sugar cane, dwarf palm,
sabal Havaneuse, plantains, and different
bamboos. Although cork trees could not
be transplanted, yet fine sections of the
trunks are erected, showing the formation
of the inner layers of bark.
Tropical Fruits. Seldom, perhaps, has
been collected together so large variety
of tropical fruits as at the Paris Exposi
lion in the various kiosks and stalls on
the Place des Invalides and the Quai
|d'Orsay. At the Colonial Exhibition In
London there was fair display made,
butrthe northern and southern coasts Of
The Mediterranean are within nearer
distance than our colonies, and hence
Algeria, 1Lnis, Egypt, Spain, Italy, and
other countries have been able to send
large and continuous supplies. The guam
tity of oranges sent from Valencia has
been considerable, and they sold readily
at halfpenny to I'd. each. according to
size and quality. Pineapples, punches of
bananas, sections of sugar cane, water
and sther melons, pomeloes or shaddocks
from Florida Called "grape fruit'), ap-
pies from Victoria and Tasmania, selling
at Id. and 3D.. litchis and longans, dates,
figs, cocoanuts 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
as pecan, hickory, sapucia, butternuts,
pine cones, ,pistacia, ground nuts, chufas
Icyperus), carob pods, etc., make up a
goodly 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
navel, Australian Indian River, Tahiti
Seeding, Hayti late, dried apricots, nee
tarines, peaches unpeeled, plums pitted,
pears evaporated, excellent raisins, pre-.
served fruits and jams innumerable.
\ Sahron.-Tfe cultivation and prepara-
tion of saffron in Spain are well exem-
pIfed by one or two exhibitors in the
Spanish pavilion on the banks of the
Seine at the Quai d'Orsay.' One exhib-
itor, N. Hermanos, shows samples from
Albacete, which is one of the chief cen
tres of production, but the best and
most instructive exhibit is that of DANA
SO Afgaraz Valencia, who has a very COM
plete and instructive stand, commencing
at the bottom with corms of the crocus
Batinus, in, earth; then over this, on a
shelf, are dozen glass globes, six filled
with the product Of 1883 and six with
those of the previous year. They are
classified as follows into Aragon, Sierra,
|Rio, Bajo, Mediano, Superior, Selecto.
Four oil paintings represent 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 and
utensils, sieves, etc., for cultivating and
drying the saffron are shown, also the
different forms of packages in which it is
shipped to America, Germany and France.
Various statistical tables exhibit in a
graphic manner the rise and fall of prices
and the export and stock of saffron
during a period of nineteen years and a
half from October Is, 1869, to April 80,
1889. The trade in saffron is very old
one in Valencia, and the production is
more than double that of France and
other countries combined. Although
used to small extent in pharmacy and as
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 the
Melbourne Botanic Gardens, shows
large and most interesting collection of
carpological specimens in glazed cases,
numbering about 800 divisions, includ-
ing the seeds and seed vessels of the
various species of eucalyptus, acacia,
arancaria, casuarina, banksia, hakea,
grevillia, melaleuca, calistemon, ango-
phora and other genera. It is collec-
: ton which ought to be secured for Kew
or some other botanic museum, as it is
difficult to form such another.
/. Mate.-Very many of the South
American Republics show specimens of
this product, known locally as yerba
mate, or Paraguayan tea, the product OF
the torrifca leaves and stalks of different
species of lex. 1t is exhibited in pack
cts, and in original serons or bales of
green hide. This is the dietetic bever-
age of about 20, 900, 900 people in South
America, and its popularity is shown by
the exhibits in the various pavilions of
the Argentine Republic, Paraguay, Uru-
quay, Brazil, Chill, Bolivia, etc.
I Strong efforts are being made to
open trade with it in Europe, especially
in France, where shops advertise and
recommend it. Whether this will succeed
remains to be seen, looking at the in
creased production of tea and the enor-
NOUS increase in its sale in Europe.