d his
son to send to Cambridge a few flowers to serve as specimens of what
they could do. Now you may fancy the rage of the Harvard authorities
when on the arrival of the cases of flowers they found that almost all
of them had been broken to bits in the New York Custom House. There
was, however, enough left of the consignment to give to the Cambridge
professors the assurance that the two Bohemians were well equal to the
task demanded of them. Those who saw the shattered blossoms were most
enthusiastic, and Mrs. Ware and her daughter told the authorities to
order a limited number as a gift to the University. This second lot
came safely and were so beautiful that Harvard at once arranged that
the two Blaschkas send over to America all the flowers they could make
for the next ten years."

"My!"

"Yes, that seems a great many, doesn't it?" Mr. Cabot assented, nodding
to Jean. "But after all, it was not so tremendous as it sounds. You see
Harvard needed a copy of every American flower, plant, and fruit. The
making of them would take a great deal of time. Of course unless the
collection was complete it would be of little use to students. So the
Blaschkas began their work, and for a few years averaged a hundred sets
of flowers a year. Then the father died and Rudolph was left to finish
the work alone. You remember I told you that in true mediaeval fashion
they had kept the secret of their art to themselves; as a consequence
there now was no one to aid the son in his undertaking. Twice he came
to our country to get copies of flowers from which to work, toiling
bravely on in order to finish the task his father had begun. He said he
considered it a sort of monument or memorial to the elder man's genius.
There you have the story," concluded Mr. Cabot. "No other such
collection exists anywhere else in the world. Even with a microscope it
is impossible to distinguish between the real flower and the glass
copy."

"How were they made?" Giusippe demanded. "Was the glass blown?"

"No; the flowers were modeled. That is all I can tell you. The brittle
glass was in some way made plastic so it could be shaped by hand or by
instruments. Some of the coloring was put on while the material was
hot; some while it was cooling; and some after it was cold. It all
depended upon the result desired. But one thing is evident--the
Blaschkas worked very quickly and with marvelous scientific accuracy."

"It is simply wonderful," said Giusippe. "Even