The various vessels used for holding the flowers form a very important feature in the art of flower arrangement, and a great many varieties are utilized for this purpose. Certain arrangements require long-necked vessels of earthenware or bronze, while broad and shallow ones are used for others. A great variety of baskets, known as flower baskets, are also used. These vary in shape and size, and some are suspended, while others are placed upon the ground. They always contain an inner vessel for holding water. Another form of vessel very extensively used is one made of a cylinder of bamboo. This is generally formed from a section cut near the root, where the form is irregular and the joints are close together. These bamboo tubes are from one to two feet in height and from three to six inches in diameter, and sometimes have holes cut in the sides for inserting flowers. Bamboo vases in the forms of boats are often hung in Japanese rooms. Imitation well-buckets, made of lacquered wood or porcelain, are also employed for holding flowers. Always used in pairs, they are generally suspended over a pulley by a silk rope, and make a very effective and pleasing decoration for a room. One of the most important results of the study of this floral art has been in the direction of simplicity. It has created a love and an appreciation for the beauty of a single flower—for in its color and form, in its graceful stem and well-formed leaves, the votaries of this art find far more enjoyment than in confused masses of many colored flowers. While there is, no doubt, much in Japanese flower arrangement that is unintelligible to us and would fail to appeal to the uninitiated, there is also much that would be understood and admired everywhere by persons of good taste. It is indeed a wonder that our attention has not been more generally drawn to this interesting study, so suggestive of a new and promising field of artistic possibilities. Flower arrangement in Japan, like music, painting, and architecture, is in harmony with the peculiar and unique civilization of that country, and could not, therefore, be taken literally and grafted on to a civilization so radically different as our own. The principle, however, might be adopted and developed on lines in harmony with our arts and to the enrichment of our civilization. As an art it is full of possibilities, and would not only bring us into closer communion, and into a better understanding with nature and the floral world, but would also exercise a most æsthetic influence and add an unknown charm to our daily lives. [Illustration: Visit to the Chrysanthemum Show.] DANIEL WEBSTER WITH UNPUBLISHED MANUSCRIPTS AND SOME EXAMPLES OF HIS PREPARATION FOR PUBLIC SPEAKING By George F. Hoar SECOND PAPER