The flora is a brilliant feature of the summer landscape. Tiger-lilies and showy compositæ, asters, cactus plants, cruciferæ, labiatæ, and many other European species abound side by side with tropical varieties. The air is full of insects, and the number and variety of the birds exceed those of Japan. Pigeons, butcher-birds, fly-catchers, woodpeckers, thrushes, larks, blackbirds, kingfishers, wrens, spoonbills, quail, curlew, titmouse, have been noticed. The ever-present black crows contrast with the snowy heron, which often stand in rows along the watercourses, while on the reefs the cormorant, sea-gulls, and many kinds of ducks and diving birds, many of them being of species differing from those in Europe, show the abundance of winged life. The archipelago and the peninsula alike, are almost virgin soil to the student of natural history and the man of science will yet, in this secluded nook of creation, solve many an interesting problem concerning the procession of life on the globe. So far as known, the Coreans seem far behind the Japanese in the study and classification of animate nature. The Coreans are not a seafaring people. They do not sail out from land, except upon rare occasions. A steamer is yet, to most Coreans, a wonderful thing. The common folks point to one, and call it “a divine ship.” The reason of this is, that they think the country of steamships so utterly at the ends of the earth, that to pass over ten million leagues, and endure the winds and waves, could not be done by human aid, and therefore such a ship must have, in some way, the aid of the gods. The prow and stern of fishing-boats are much alike, and are neatly nailed together with wooden nails. They use round stems of trees in their natural state, for masts. The sails are made of straw, plaited together with cross-bars of bamboo. The sail is at the stern of the boat. They sail well within three points of the wind, and the fishermen are very skilful in managing them. In their working-boats, they do not use oars, but sculls, worked on a pivot in the gunwale or an outrigger. The sculls have a very long sweep, and are worked by two, three, and even ten men. For narrow rivers this method is very convenient, and many boats can easily pass each other, or move side by side, taking up very little room. For fishing among the rocks, or for landing in the surf, rafts are extensively used all along the coasts. These rafts have a platform, capable of holding eight or ten persons. The boats or barges, which are used for pleasure excursions and picnic parties, have high bows and ornamental sterns, carved or otherwise decorated. Over the centre a canopy stretched on four poles, tufted with horsehair, shelters the pleasure-seekers from the sun as they enjoy the river scenery. In the cut we see three officials, or men of rank, enjoying themselves at a table, on which may be tea, ginseng infusion, or rice spirit, with fruits in dishes. They sit on silken cushions, and seem to