The San Francisco call., 1896-05-09
Artists, Authors, Newspaper
and Magazine Writers in
the Ranks.
PRACTICALLY A LECTURE CLUB
Mr.. ]. C. Harvey Entertains the Ladies
With Sketch of His Ideal
Tropical Garden.

LOS ANGELES, CAL, May s.-The Fri
day Club, an organization of ladies, with
the largest membership of any similar as
sociation on the Pacific Coast, held regu-
lar meeting at its hall on South Broad
way this forenoon. This organization con-
tains many of the most prominent and
intellectual women of Southern California.
Many of them are noted for works Of char
ity in the community. Among the mem
bers may be found artists, authors, news
paper and magazine writers. A large pro-
portion are suffragists.
To CALL correspondent, who was pres
ent on this occasion, many of the ladies
expressed the heartiest approval of the
papers "new departure" This associa-
ton of splendid women is practically a
lecture club. Several gentlemen and ladies
of National reputation have lectured be-
fore the body on a wide range of topics.
These addresses or essays are followed by
promiscuous discussion and plying of
questions to the speaker. There are few
if any dummies" in the organization,
and while many of these ladies are house
wives they believe in mixing braihs with
their everyday duties.
The officers are: President emeritus,
Mrs. c. NJ. Severance; president, Mrs. J. A.
Osgood; vice presidents, Mrs. W. A. Spald-
ing, Mrs. B. G.. Whiting; secretary, Mrs.
G. II. Wadleigh; treasurer, Mrs. G. NJ.
North.
The subject this morning was "a Trop-
ical Garden in Southern California and a
Few Notes on Orchids" by ]. G. Harvey.
Mr.. Harvey is president of the Los An
geles Botanical Society and is especially
interested in the experimental garden this
society has established in Elysian Park in
this city. Mr.. Harvey has given the col
lection of orchids presented him by John
D. Rockefeller to East Side Park, his de-
sire to benefit and beautify the city being
as great as his love for flowers.
The speaker commenced his paper with
a little sketch on the threshold of the
equatorial region and touched with graphic
lights the magnificent beauty of its Vege-
tation, the color of the beautiful forests,
the massive dome-like structure of the
trees, the Independent growth of para
sites, ferns and numberless aerial plants.
and the prodigious influence of warmth
and moisture were all shown in high re-
lief. Gorgeous bird-winged butterflies,
such as the ornlthopetera and bapilos, reach
their maximum size and beauty here.
OF orchids, Mr.. Harvey exhibited num-
berless plates of these curious and beautiful
plants found in Asia, Africa, Peru, Brazil,
Mexico, the West Indies, Madagascar aud
the adjacent islands. The speaker touched
on the extreme beauty of the orchids, the
aerial and terrestrial, the former found in
hot regions on the banks of streams, and
constantly bathed by spray. and the latter
IN temperate regions. He further delinea-
ted the capricious nature of the orchid, its
curious structure and habits. This splen-
did race of plants owes much of its beauty
to the fact that nature abhors selffertiliza-
tion, and in this class of plants at least,
has provided marvellous contrlvances by
which the pollen is protected from the
vicissitudes attending other flowers, and
ultimately disseminated by the aid o.
certain insects.
Mr. Harvey then turned to the tropical
garden, and outlined the beauty that could
be produced by the laying out of the same
The ideal garden should not be less thar
200 feet front and 200 feet deep. The resi-
dence should be built on one side with {
wide sweep of sward fn front.
The essay and aftertalk were very de
Hghtful and greatly enjoyed by the club
the ideal garden portrayed by Mr.. Harvey
being greatly appreciated by the many
lovers of flowers