Macao is exceedingly attractive in winter; but in June and the early part of July, when its gardens and lovely environs are brilliant with flowering trees, shrubs, and plants, it is one of the most charming places in the world. Few settlements in the East have as great a variety of shrubs and trees, for many of which the colony is indebted to the East India Company, who adorned their gardens and grounds with the finest that could be procured in India, and the various islands of the East. The beautiful nym--called the Pride of India--is here seen growing in the Government Park; and the gardens of the foreign residents are beautified with a variety of flowering trees, among which are the _Bauhinia_, _Poinciania_ and _Lagerstrœmias_. The delicate, crape-like flowers of the latter are almost unequalled, and, as an ornamental tree, it has few compeers. Among the flowering plants, several species of hibiscus, the magnolia, plumoria, oleander, and jasmine flourish in great profusion; while of creeping plants, the _Quisqualis Regina_--which was in bloom--exceeded in elegance all the flowering vines we had seen in the East. The lotus, also, with its delicately tinted flowers, and the regal blossoms of the night-blooming cereus,--_Cereus grandiflora_,--both flowering in July, delighted us with their resplendent beauty. The deliciously soft atmosphere of the bright evenings in early summer, at Macao, is unrivalled; and every one goes forth to enjoy “the quiet and the beauty of the scene.” The native Portuguese ladies--who rarely venture out in winter--then saunter in little groups along the beautiful Praya Grande, or, seated on the green (the Alameda) which adjoins it, may be observed quietly listening to the music of the military band. The whole circuit of the settlement is only eight miles, and yet there is a great variety of interesting points in the scenery,--the suburbs affording many charming walks besides that of the Praya. Among these, the finest and most desirable for enjoying the refreshing summer breezes, is the winding road which passes over the high ridge of cliffs that face the sea. This road--which skirts, in a part of its course, the finely curved shore of Cacilha Bay--is called the _Estrada de Cacilhas_. The pandanus, or screw-pine, grows in wild luxuriance at various points along its border, and the gullies that seam the steep hills around which it winds afford a variety of beautiful ferns. There are, also, at the more elevated points of this road fine sea views, where the air is always delightfully invigorating. The _Estrada_ is therefore the favorite promenade of invalids, and foreigners generally, who, if they manage to exist through the exhausting heat of the tropical summer, may here be seen at evening in large numbers walking, or being borne around the cliffs in their sedan-chairs. The precipitous and rocky formation near the shore of this part of the peninsula, together with the old