nd sheds its delicious musky scent in
the evening air. That it has been prized in the West for centuries we
know--for Shakespeare's Titania promises the ass to "stick Musk roses in
thy sleek smooth head." Hakluyt says that "Of later times was procured
out of Italy the Muske rose plant." And Bacon declares that while the
white double Violet is the sweetest of all, "next to that is the Musk
rose."

The original Musk rose bearing large bunches of single white flowers, is
now seldom seen except in very old gardens where it attains a great
size. Mr. Rivers, in the _Amateur's Rose Guide_, 1843, says that
"Olivier who travelled in the first six years of the French Republic,
mentions a rose tree at Ispahan, called the 'Chinese Rose Tree,' fifteen
feet high, formed by the union of several stems, each four or five
inches in diameter. Seeds from this tree were sent to Paris, and
produced the common Musk Rose." But wherever it can be found it should
be cherished for the sake of its scent, which is strongest in the
evening, especially after rain, filling the whole air with its
fragrance.

_Himalayica_ is a fine single white form of Moschata; and so is _Nivea_,
a large single variety from Nepaul, white, tinged with pink. Of the
double and semi-double hybrids, the _Fringed Musk_, a very old favourite
still in cultivation, _Rivers' Musk_, pink, shaded buff, and the
charming _Princesse de Nassau_, straw colour and very sweet, are all
good roses, coming into flower very late in the season, and lasting on
through the autumn. For pillars they are excellent subjects.

_Madame d'Arblay_ and _The Garland_ are hybrids of the Musk rose, which
only bloom in summer.

THE HIMALAYAN BRIAR, _Rosa Brunonis_,

is sometimes classed with the Musk roses: but this is an error, as it is
a distinct species, and is also only summer flowering. With its double
variety, it is a beautiful rose for pillar, arch, or pergola; the white
flowers are very sweet and borne in clusters. But it should be planted
where it can get plenty of sun to ripen the wood.

THE MACARTNEY ROSE, _R. bracteata_,

was brought from China in 1795 by Lord Macartney. The handsome shiny
evergreen foliage and large solitary white flowers with a mass of golden
stamens, make it a beautiful object. It does best, as do its hybrids, on
a wall in a warm dry position: but it will not flower until it is
thoroughly established. _Maria Leonida_ is a hybrid of the early
nineteenth century, v