New-York tribune., 1899-06-11
TEE PL1NT HJNTERS.
COLLECTORS FROM THE TIME OF THE ANCIENT
EGYPTIANS TO THE PRESENT DAY.

EGYPTIANS TO THE II;tSENT DAY.
From Amateur Gardening
on the walls of a room in the great Temple of
Karnac. at Thebrs. there are. perhaps. the
earliest art records Of plants existing ~ the
world to-day. \ series of exquisite carvings or
sculptures ad0rn the walls. and these are repre-
sentatons Il foreign plants collected ana
brought home by Th0thmes III on his triumph
ant return from Il campaign in Arabia. These
sCulptured records show not only IN the naturdI
aspect OF plant or tree but leaves and flowers
fruits scedpots are shown separately as ia
modern botanical works OF To-Day MI w
Flinders Petrie. the Well-knOWn Egyptian "N-
ulorer and archa.oogist. has taken casts ana
photographs Of these records and some OF these
may be seen in the museum at tdlr" H 'Hr
British Museum and elsewhere. These sculpt-
ured pictures for some were colored ori@lhaiy,
must not be confounded with the actual drItd
sDocirnens Of Egyptian garden and Wlld pants
that have been found preserved In the mummy
wrappings of Ahmes |. Rameses ii ana other
great men. and in the graves discovered al
Dalschur. Sahkara and DER 81 bahaTa @ @inese
actual flowers consisted Of blue and Whlle IotuS'
poppics narcissus grasses, palms. clover, par,
ley juniper and other plants when grew anu
nourished at least two thousand years DtloIs
cur Saviour was born at Bethlehem. Samples OF
these actual flowers as used IN the Iuneia, .
wreatns of Egypt four thousand years ago may
be seen in the museum at caro- as wen ds III
the British Museum and at Kew
Coming down to comparatively roueIH tIno9'
vovagers such as Drake and Raleigh, doubtless
brought home the useful. If not ornamental
plants. seeds and roots from lOrelSH Id"u9 :,
bacco and. above all. the potato. among the
number Even our Kentsh cherry yards anu
orchards owed their early beginnings 10 utts
brought over from the Continent by harris anu
,,tber of the royal gardeners at Hampton court
so late as the time OF Henry VIII. Ihen We
know that Tradescant fetched choice frult trtes
from France TO Hatfield where records OF MS
costs and expenses in so dong are sun pie
served In the present century the Dlrth OF lhe
modern plant collecting began with such mer-
chants and travellers az Reeves. PARKS. fortune
and others in China. the last two having Drth
sont out as collectors by the horticultural 80
c,etv. Messrs Veitch & Son. then OF Exeter
also sent out the brothers Thomas and w IMAM
Iobb the frst-named being especially success
ful Then men like Linden. Hartweg. Gardner
Wier and Roezl sent home the cream OF the
orchids and other rare plants Of South AmtrIca;
and Dr Hooker and Or. Thomson introduces
many orchids-Lum rhOdOdendrons etc'' Ho''i
Northern India-and were pioneers IN the SooI
work done afterward by Parish. Benson, Boxah'
Berkeley and many others Of recent years.
lust at the present time plant coiIectlH6. -
far nurserymen geneTally are o,is
mainly limited to orchids, OF whIch ehoiiiioSs
cargoes are now and then secured from poth the
Eastern and Western tropics. Oh these lhe Cal-
fovas and odontoglossums Of the West ana the
Dhalrnopsis dendrObes. vandas ana cyprlpeueS
If the East seem at present the most mdthetd-
bic i'm large quantities, from Whlch idCt Ne IiHy
observe that plants. like other things. have their
,,revailing vogue or fashion. and collectors. ike
ali her caterers for the pubic. must STUDY the
law Of supply and demand, the markets as rep
rcsanted now mainly by the London auction
rooms and the larger nursery gardens every
vbere Now and then a fine new or very rare
species is discovered and introduced, anu tleH
competition ensues and prices run hisn. heh
we come TO consider the actual pursuit OF COL