not a few orchids are "lost"—have been described that is, and named, even linger in some great collection, but, bearing no history, cannot now be found. such, for instance, are cattleya jongheana, cymbidium hookerianum, cypripedium fairianum. but there is one to which the definite article might have been applied a very few days ago. this is cattleya labiata vera. it was the first to bear the name of cattleya, though not absolutely the first of that genus discovered. c. loddigesii preceded it by a few years, but was called an epidendrum. curious it is to note how science has returned in this latter day to the views of a pre-scientific era. professor reichenbach was only restrained from abolishing the genus cattleya, and merging all its species into epidendrum, by regard for the weakness of human nature. cattleya labiata vera was sent from brazil to dr. lindley by mr. w. swainson, and reached liverpool in 1818. so much is certain, for lindley makes the statement in his collectanea botanica. but legends and myths encircle that great event. it is commonly told in books that sir w. jackson hooker, regius professor of botany at glasgow, begged mr. swainson—who was collecting specimens in natural history—to send him some lichens. he did so, and with the cases arrived a quantity of orchids which had been used to pack them. less suitable material for "dunnage" could not be found, unless we suppose that it was thrust between the boxes to keep them steady. paxton is the authority for this detail, which has its importance. the orchid arriving in such humble fashion proved to be cattleya labiata; lindley gave it that name—there was no need to add vera then. he established a new genus for it, and thus preserved for all time the memory of mr. cattley, a great horticulturist dwelling at barnet. there was no ground in supposing the species rare. a few years afterwards, in fact, mr. gardner, travelling in pursuit of butterflies and birds, sent home quantities of a cattleya which he found on the precipitous sides of the pedro bonita range, and also on the gavea, which our sailors call "topsail" mountain, or "lord hood's nose." these orchids passed as c. labiata for a while. paxton congratulated himself and the world in his flower garden that the stock was so greatly increased. those were the coaching days, when botanists had not much opportunity for comparison. it is to be observed, also, that gardner's cattleya was the nearest relative of swainson's;—it is known at present as c. labiata warneri. the true species, however, has points unmistakable. some of its kinsfolk show a double flower-sheath;—very, very rarely, under exceptional circumstances. but cattleya labiata vera never fails, and an interesting question it is to resolve why this alone should be so carefully protected. one may cautiously surmise that its habitat is even damper than others'. in the next place, some plants have their leaves red underneath, others green, and the flower-sheath always corresponds; this peculiarity is shared by c.l. warneri alone. thirdly—and there is the grand distinction, the one which gives such extreme value to the species—it flowers in the late autumn, and thus fills a gap. those who possess a plant may have cattleyas in bloom the whole year round—and they alone. accordingly, it makes a section by itself in the classification of reichenbachia, as the single species that flowers from the current year's growth, after resting. section ii. contains the species that flower from the current year's growth before resting. section iii., those that flower from last year's growth after resting. all these are many, but c.l. vera stands alone.
we have no need to dwell upon the contest that arose at the introduction of cattleya mossi? in 1840, which grew more and more bitter as others of the class came in, and has not yet ceased. it is enough to say that lindley declined to recognize c. mossi? as a species, though he stood almost solitary against "the trade," backed by a host of enthusiastic amateurs. the great botanist declared that he could see nothing in the beautiful new cattleya to distinguish it as a species from the one already named, c. labiata, except that most variable of characteristics, colour. modes of growth and times of flowering do not concern science. the structure of the plants is identical, and to admit c. mossi? as a sub-species of the same was the utmost concession lindley would make. this was in 1840. fifteen years later came c. warscewiczi, now called gigas; then, next year, c. trian?; c. dowiana in 1866; c. mendellii in 1870—all labiatas, strictly speaking. at each arrival the controversy was renewed; it is not over yet. but sir joseph hooker succeeded lindley and reichenbach succeeded hooker as the supreme authority, and each of them stood firm. there are, of course, many cattleyas recognized as species, but lindley's rule has been maintained. we may return to the lost orchid.
as time went on, and the merits of c. labiata vera were understood, the few specimens extant—proceeding from mr. swainson's importation—fetched larger and larger prices. those merits, indeed, were conspicuous. besides the season of flowering, this proved to be the strongest and most easily grown of cattleyas. its normal type was at least as charming as any, and it showed an extraordinary readiness to vary. few, as has been said, were the plants in cultivation, but they gave three distinct varieties. van houtte shows us two in his admirable flore des serres; c.l. candida, from syon house, pure white excepting the ochrous throat—which is invariable—and c.l. picta, deep red, from the collection of j.j. blandy, esq., reading. the third was c.l. pescatorei, white, with a deep red blotch upon the lip, formerly owned by messrs. rouget-chauvier, of paris, now by the duc de massa.
under such circumstances the dealers began to stir in earnest. from the first, indeed, the more enterprising had made efforts to import a plant which, as they supposed, must be a common weed at rio, since men used it to "pack" boxes. but that this was an error they soon perceived. taking the town as a centre, collectors pushed out on all sides. probably there is not one of the large dealers, in england or the continent, dead or living, who has not spent money—a large sum, too—in searching for c. l. vera. probably, also, not one has lost by the speculation, though never a sign nor a hint, scarcely a rumour, of the thing sought rewarded them. for all secured new orchids, new bulbs—eucharis in especial—dipladenias, bromeliace?, calladiums, marantas, aristolochias, and what not. in this manner the lost orchid has done immense service to botany and to mankind. one may say that the hunt lasted seventy years, and led collectors to strike a path through almost every province of brazil—almost, for there are still vast regions unexplored. a man might start, for example, at para, and travel to bogota, two thousand miles or so, with a stretch of six hundred miles on either hand which is untouched. it may well be asked what mr. swainson was doing, if alive, while his discovery thus agitated the world. alive he was, in new zealand, until the year 1855, but he offered no assistance. it is scarcely to be doubted that he had none to give. the orchids fell in his way by accident—possibly collected in distant parts by some poor fellow who died at rio. swainson picked them up, and used them to stow his lichens.
not least extraordinary, however, in this extraordinary tale is the fact that various bits of c.l. vera turned up during this time. lord home has a noble specimen at bothwell castle, which did not come from swainson's consignment. his gardener told the story five years ago. "i am quite sure," he wrote, "that my nephew told me the small bit i had from him"—forty years before—"was off a newly-imported plant, and i understood it had been brought by one of messrs. horsfall's ships." lord fitzwilliam seems to have got one in the same way, from another ship. but the most astonishing case is recent. about seven years ago two plants made their appearance in the zoological gardens at regent's park—in the conservatory behind mr. bartlett's house. how they got there is an eternal mystery. mr. bartlett sold them for a large sum; but an equal sum offered him for any scrap of information showing how they came into his hands he was sorrowfully obliged to refuse—or, rather, found himself unable to earn. they certainly arrived in company with some monkeys; but when, from what district of south america, the closest search of his papers failed to show. in 1885, dr. regel, director of the imperial gardens at st. petersburg, received a few plants. it may be worth while to name those gentlemen who recently possessed examples of c.l. vera, so far as our knowledge goes. they were sir trevor lawrence, lord rothschild, duke of marlborough, lord home, messrs. j. chamberlain, t. statten, j.j. blandy, and g. hardy, in england; in america, mr. f.l. ames, two, and mr. h.h. hunnewell; in france, comte de germiny, duc de massa, baron alphonse and baron adolf de rothschild, m. treyeran of bordeaux. there were two, as is believed, in italy.
and now the horticultural papers inform us that the lost orchid is found, by mr. sander of st. albans. assuredly he deserves his luck—if the result of twenty years' labour should be so described. it was about 1870, we believe, that mr. sander sent out arnold, who passed five years in exploring venezuela. he had made up his mind that the treasure must not be looked for in brazil. turning next to colombia, in successive years, chesterton, bartholomeus, kerbach, and the brothers klaboch overran that country. returning to brazil, his collectors, oversluys, smith, bestwood, went over every foot of the ground which swainson seems, by his books, to have traversed. at the same time clarke followed gardner's track through the pedro bonita and topsail mountains. then osmers traced the whole coast-line of the brazils from north to south, employing five years in the work. finally, digance undertook the search, and died this year. to these men we owe grand discoveries beyond counting. to name but the grandest, arnold found cattleya percevaliana; from colombia were brought odont. vex. rubellum, bollea c?lestis, pescatorea klabochorum; smith sent cattleya o'brieniana; clarke the dwarf cattleyas, pumila and pr?stans; lawrenceson cattleya schroeder?; chesterton cattleya sanderiana; digance cattleya diganceana, which received a botanical certificate from the royal horticultural society on september 8th, 1890. but they heard not a whisper of the lost orchid.
in 1889 a collector employed by m. moreau, of paris, to explore central and north brazil in search of insects, sent home fifty plants—for m. moreau is an enthusiast in orchidology also. he had no object in keeping the secret of its habitat, and when mr. sander, chancing to call, recognized the treasure so long lost, he gave every assistance. meanwhile, the international horticultural society of brussels had secured a quantity, but they regarded it as new, and gave it the name of catt. warocqueana; in which error they persisted until messrs. sander flooded the market.
