[2] Many of these wanderers were sheltered and hidden by the Spaniards, among whom some at least felt kindly towards their English friends; and numbers afterwards escaped safely to England. [3] “This is a cruel determination for me to make—I mean, to retreat.”—From a letter of Moore’s. OUR LILY GARDEN. PRACTICAL AIDS TO THE CULTURE OF LILIES. BY CHARLES PETERS. A few years ago the culture of the lily received a great impetus from the arrival in England of “the golden-rayed lily of Japan.” Some bulbs were sent over to us from Japan which were said to be of a very large lily which grows wild upon the Japanese Islands. Fabulous prices were charged for the bulbs, and of those who had paid through their teeth for these rare bulbs very few obtained any recompense. The first consignment was a failure, but the gorgeousness of the plant was sufficient inducement to the Japanese growers to send over another batch. The bulbs rapidly became cheaper, and the lily at once rose to a foremost position amongst garden plants. The _Lilium Auratum_, or golden-rayed lily, is perhaps the most popular member of the genus. Its flowers are immense, indeed, it has the largest flowers of all the lilies. Of fine colour, producing many flowers on each stem, of great hardiness and of moderate ease to cultivate, it is not surprising that this lily should have attained its high popularity. The _Lilium Auratum_ is the most variable of all the lilies. There are eight named varieties. But even these are liable to considerable variation. If you were to plant one hundred bulbs, probably not more than three or four would be absolutely similar. This extreme variability is very remarkable, when we remember that this lily is a wild flower, but rarely cultivated until recently either in Japan or elsewhere. Vast numbers of the bulbs of this species are sent over to England from Japan every year, so that the species is by no means difficult to obtain. The bulbs are large, heavy, and if good, they are very compact. They are of a yellowish or purplish colour. When you buy bulbs of _L. Auratum_, do not go for the mammoth bulbs. These are very rarely the best, though always the most expensive. Buy small, very heavy bulbs, and purchase them from November to January. The shoots of _L. Auratum_ begin to show about the middle of March, though this lily, as indeed is every other, is very variable in this respect. The season has a lot to do with it. In a warm rainy year the shoots often appear in February. The time when the bulb was planted and the depth at which it was placed also affect the time at which the lily shows above the soil. When the shoot has appeared, it grows with great rapidity. We had a specimen in our garden which grew nine feet in twelve weeks! You could almost see it grow!