The herald., 1895-10-21

perverse thing .hrove apace; now, since
the lawn has been abandoned, and its
rations of water are reduced to some where
near the normal supply that suffced for
its youth it is taking on an air of gen.
eral debility. Far out on Fisueroa street
another desert spec es, a tall grayish
green opuntia, is taking kindIy to the
treatme nt accorden to acquatcs. 1t stands
very close to the doorway, and its for
niidable spines unfortunately mighs be
taken as meance to hospitality, for
hsnd-to-hand encounter with a bulldog
70 high aspirations, low forehe sd and
the victim of lost opportunities would
offer more inducements than a melee
with this particular plant.
It's presence there at least indicates that
the various sons, fathers and brothers OF
the household, when returning late at
night, never deviate an inch from the
straight and narrow path.
The group of cactus at the Arcade de-
pot presents strange anomaly. The de-
sign is in ST. riot keeping with good
taste. The environment of nothing but
high board fencing, the unbroken blaze
OF the sun, the speaking aridity of sur
rounding beds and walks of cinders. all
commend thesmelevs TO our ideas of the
fitness of things; yet the effect of the
moro pleasing. despi the luxurious
background OF evergreen trees and shrub
berry.
Realism must be kept well in hand in
landscape work as in other things.
With healthy, full-grown Bengal tiger
Ono with brow lrln!s around his tall
we associate the jungle, and the untrarn-
twenty, forty feet at a clip. Yet we APP
preciate eljoy him more in all the arti-
ficlal environm ent of a weil-built m enag-
erie cage.
Association made home on Alameda
street beautiful. 1t was a low built adobe.
heavily massed on one side with tall
branching tnnas. Serpentins Cereus had
been trained over the walls and veran las,
while groups of grotesque looking chino
cactus were displayed ct every available
nook in the garden. A 'ristra' of HAM
ing 'chiles" added the necessary bit of
color to reproduce an ideal but not too
realistic a picture OF old Mexico. 1t was
a misfortune to the town when this per-
feet bit of landscape art had TO make way
Tor the march of /. p femeat.
Cactus will nevtr become universally
popular here, tWlthslandig the wonder
full adaptability to our garden condi-
tions. The people who affect them are
more grotesque than the plants. lntima e
communion with them makes the COM
municant all lucrative, phonetic and grue-
somely jocular. They call themselves
"Kactus Xranks,' and exhibit more joy
over one hopelessly deformed. contorted
and irreclaimable specimen than over
ninety and nine plants that need no
apoiogist for their beauty. Some-most
OF the scandent cerei are beautiful in
bloom. The living, palpitating, rides.
cent fires that glow and sparkle in the
flowers of cereus speciossima and c..
ackermanni and their hybrids, are brill
liant beyond the powers of adjectives TO
portray.
brick wall on Broadway in early
summer is redeemed from the stigma of
commonplace by its tapestry of these
flowers. The plants themselves are not
ioveable, being angular and gawky, as
most recent graduates from walking
school. but are distinctly less hideous
than their near longenors with insignit-
cant blossoms. For the former, your true
votary of cactus has little or no use; he
admits them perfunctorily to his collec-
tiun hut his mental, moral and visual
obliquity is such that he condemns Their
because they are lacking in warts, knobs
excresences and sundry other loath-
some nppendages. The total 1epravity
which leads people to an interest and ap-
probation of cactus other than the flow
cry kinds provokes one to think that they
would find in the victim of Elephan tiasis
or in we'll sp2tted leper the apotheosis
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