New-York tribune., 1906-08-25
HUNTING ORCHIDS.
Il Specialists Search for Rare
!Specinea1s IN Tropic Forests.

Few lovers of that beautiful and fantastic
flower the orchid. have any idea of the terrible
dangers and hardships that faced by those
who go into the widest depths of tropic forests
I'm search of new and rare specimens. Such is
the mission OF Nelson E Fraser, an orchid
specialist. the representative of an English firm
of florists who arrived IN New York this week
en- route for Brazil and Ecuador, in whose for
ests rare specimens Of the coveted blossoms are
to be found. Mr.. Fraser who is a brawny Scot,
feet inches in height has visited every
tropical forest where orchids to be found
and has discovered several very rare specimens
One of these he discovered in a native burial
place in New Guinea only little more than a
year ago. under somewhat CHASTITY circum-
stances.
1.-The cemetery was kind of plateau among
the hills said Mr.. Fraser in an interview at
the Ashland House. land the bodies were simply
laid the rocks till the bones were bleached in
the / found the orchid rooted among the
bones covering them with a mantle of gorgeous
flowers.
"At first the natives refused to allow the
relics of their ancestors to be disturbed, but a
liberal supply Of mirrors and tinsel ornaments
which 1 had purchased from street vender
here in New York at last modified their views
on the subject Many Of the plants could not
be torn off the bones. and one skull removed
and growing out of the jaw"
Speaking of the hardships of orchid hunting
Mr.. Fraser said he had often had wounds all
over his body from the bites of the red spider
and other insects and from prickly brushwOod.
And even when the orchid has been found"
he continued "the task of getting it to Eng
land presents difficulties that are often in
superable For example, fine orchid is found
in very -of-the-way part of Colombia
hi,
stick and nailed inside box. These boxes are
conveyed on journey of several days to Bo-
gotta. whence another six days Journey takes
them to Honda, where they are placed on RATS
and conveyed down the Magdalena River to
Savanilla-a fortnights journey. There the
steamer is awaited. And when at last, after a
heavy outlay, the consignment reaches England,
quite half the specimens will be dead. In many
cases the whole of them will be too far gone
for recovery.
Three years ago L sent to my firm In Eng
land from Colombia 200 valuable plants, and
Of these only two survived the voyage. They
were sold for $40 each-not a high price when
one considers what they had cost.
Owing TO the extreme delicacy of some Of the
species, and the necessity Of protecting them
from sudden changes of temperature, 1t is often
necessary to hire the cabins passenger
steamers for the accommodation of the orchids.
When orchids are first taken out OF their
cases on arrival at their destination they look
sufficiently unpromising to the inexperienced
eye. Dry, shrivelled, and apparently lifeless, II
seems hardly possible that they viii ever re-
cover. By careful doctorlng. however. they are
brought back TO life.
"At the present day an orchid will generally
reach the Towering stage in about five years.
and until it flowers it's value is entirely specu-
lative It's species is. I'm most cases, readily de-
termined. but it may present some variation
which will greatly enhance it's value. For ex-
ample. certain orchid with a purple flower
may be worth about a dollar, while an example
of the same species with a white flower would
bring $780, The value OF plant depends upon
it's rarity and novelty, even more than upon its
beauty.
"On one occasion my firm sold an orchid Of
a fairly common species for 90 cents. When
it Powered it turned out to be entirely novel
variety, and the firm actually bought IL back for
$2.J 800.
MANY Of the most costly varieties Of the
orchid now on the market added Mr.. Fraser.
"have been produced by artificial hybridization.
This method of cultivation is a rather exciting
speculation II is kind OF Stock Exchange of
the horticultural world. Unexpected fortunes
await the fortunate hybriIizer who chances to
develop a novelty. But it is largely a matter
OF chance, for you can never reckon with GER
tainty on the result Of a cross between two
orchids. The same cross on two different ocea-
sions may result in the production OF quite diff
ferent varieties, and as 1t takes some five years
before the new plant flowers you will see there
is plenty of room for speculation.
1T must not be supposed that the orchid is
necessarily so expensive as to be beyond the
means of those of modest incomes. Rare and
novel species command extravagant prices, but
these are often not the most beautiful varieties.
and the rarities are always becoming common
AN orchid may fall from $3.50 to 81 within
few years, and a consignment of seventy thou-
sauJ plants may, in a single day, bring down
the price of a costly species.