OLD ESSEX GARDENERS AND THEIR GARDENS. 83
"Plantain or Musa, 24 feet high, the leaves 12 feet long, and 31/2
"feet broad; 3 feet 2 inches round the stem, and has abundance of
"fruit.
"A large Palm, 14 feet high, 4 feet round.
"Cereus (Cactus), 24 feet high, 1 foot 4 inches round.
"Male Papaw, 20 feet high, 3 feet 9 inches round, with several
"branches 71/2 feet long.
"A Rosa Sinensis or Ketmia (Hibiscus), 25 feet high, 1 foot four
"inches round.
"One Sago Palm, Toddapanna of Hort. Malab, 8 feet high, and 2
"feet round the stem, a fine plant; with a great number of very large
"plants, whose names would be too long to mention here.
"The back of these stoves had trellises, against which were placed.
"in beds of earth, all the sorts of Passion-flowers, Clematis's of all
"kinds that could be procured, and Creeping Cereus. All these mixed
"together, and running up to the top, covered the whole back and
"sides of the house, and produced a multitude of flowers, which had
"an effect beyond imagination; nothing could be more beautiful or
"more suprizing. There was also a Bamboo Cane 25 feet high.
"Next to this magnificent stove were two others, two degrees
"lower, but these were higher and longer than most that are to be
"seen. He had also several besides. His Anana stove was 60 feet
"long, and 20 wide. The collections of trees, shrubs, and evergreens,
"in his nurseries at his death, I had told over; and they amounted to
"219,925, mostly exotic. As this young nobleman was the greatest
"man in our taste that this age produced, I thought it might not be
"unacceptable to give you some account of the greatness of his
"genius ; but his skill in all liberal arts, particularly architecture,
"statuary, planning and designing, planting and embellishing his
"large park and gardens, exceeds my talent to set forth."
In August, 1742, he had written to Richardson's son:—
"You are not alone in lamenting the death of Lord Petre. I
"never was more affected; not only as my friend and my brother
"(so near was he to me, and I have much reason to believe there was
"no love lost betwixt us), but for the loss his family and his country
"will sustain. He was the Phenix of this age, who spared no pains
"in his building, gardening, farming, nurserys, stoves, to add new
"improvements and useful experiments for the benefit of his country.
"Oh! what will now become of his collections ?—I can say no more:
"I am so dispirited; but it was the will of God ; and we must submit;
"but never man dyed so regretted! How did I pray, and carp, and
"care to get every thing for him; because I saw every the last thing
" taken care of, and carried on to perfection; but, as Solomon says,
"I find all things here below, are vanity and vexation of spirit.' "
The name Petrea was conferred by Houstoun on a handsome
tropical American Verbenaceous shrub. Houstoun died in
Jamaica in 1733. His drawings and other botanical material