peonies, roses and so forth, are treated as special shows, and are removed or hidden when out of bloom. There is another remarkable feature of the Japanese gardener's art. He dwarfs trees so that they remain measurable only by inches after their age has reached scores, even hundreds, of years, and the proportions of leaf, branch and stem are preserved with fidelity. The pots in which these wonders of patient skill are grown have to be themselves fine specimens of the ceramist's craft, and as much as £200 is sometimes paid for a notably well trained tree. There exists among many foreign observers an impression that Japan is comparatively poor in wild-flowers; an impression probably due to the fact that there are no flowery meadows or lanes. Besides, the flowers are curiously wanting in fragrance. Almost the only notable exceptions are the _mokusei_ (_Osmanthus fragrans_), the daphne and the magnolia. Missing the perfume-laden air of the Occident, a visitor is prone to infer paucity of blossoms. But if some familiar European flowers are absent, they are replaced by others strange to Western eyes--a wealth of _lespedeza_ and _Indigo-fera_; a vast variety of lilies; graceful grasses like the eulalia and the _ominameshi_ (_Patrina scabiosaefolia_); the richly-hued _Pyrus japonica_; azaleas, diervillas and deutzias; the _kikyo_ (_Platycodon grandiflorum_), the _giboshi_ (_Funkia ovata_), and many another. The same is true of Japanese forests. It has been well said that "to enumerate the constituents and inhabitants of the Japanese mountain-forests would be to name at least half the entire flora." According to Franchet and Savatier Japan possesses:-- Families. Genera. Species. Dicotyledonous plants 121 795 1934 Monocotyledonous plants 28 202 613 Higher Cryptogamous plants 5 38 196 --- ---- ---- Vascular plants 154 1035 2743 The investigations of Japanese botanists are adding constantly to the above number, and it is not likely that finality will be reached for some time. According to a comparison made by A. Gray with regard to the numbers of genera and species respectively represented in the forest trees of four regions of the northern hemisphere, the following is the case:-- Atlantic Forest-region of N. America 66 genera and 155 species. Pacific Forest-region of N. America 31 genera and 78 species. Japan and Manchuria Forest-region 66 genera and 168 species. Forests of Europe 33 genera and 85 species.