SIAS were named in honor of Leonard Fuchs, a celebrated man botanist. There are many varieties of these lovely ers which now differ greatly from their ancestor, whose his-is very interesting. An English sailor lad, in the course of his travels, found this pretty plant in South America, of which country it is a native. He remembered that his mother was fond of flowers, and thought to take her something which would be rare. Thus the first fuchsia was carried to England.

Mr. Lee, a well-known Florist of London, first gave them to the public in the year 1774. He only learned of them by chance through a customer, who said :

"I saw in a window at Wapping a prettier flower than all your greenhouses can produce. The flowers bung like tassels from the drooping branches ; their color was of the richest crimson, and in the center were folded leaves of the brightest Tynan purple dye".

Mr. Lee was naturally excited over the description of this flower, the like of which he had never seen. He eagerly asked the exact locality of this particular window in Wapping, and at once hastened to see the novelty which his enthusiastic customer had described so well.

Sure enough, he had nothing in his conservatories to equal it. He knew in a moment its value and determined to secure it at any price. Knocking at the door he inquired for the mistress of the plant in the window, and upon her appearance at once offered to pay her whatever price she chose for her plant. But she refused point blank to sell it. Her dear sailor boy had brought that for her from far away over the sea, and she could not think of parting with it. It might be his last gift to her, who could tell ? It was a keep-sake and she would not part with it. Mr. Lee was more determined than ever to become possessed of this novelty ; so diving into every pocket he pulled out gold, silver, and copper; altogether he counted out a neat little sum amounting to more than eight guineas. He spread the money out before her, and said :

" All this money is yours and the plant is mine. I'll give you one of the first cuttings I raise ; and when your boy returns the plant will be quite as handsome as this one".

Money carried the day, and the woman, although unwilling, finally consented to part with it; while Mr. Lee, fearing, no doubt, but she would change her mind, hastily departed, taking with him the coveted plant. He at once proceeded to grow new plants, and having cut the fuchsia into joints, he planted these in hot-beds. He found that the pieces rooted easily, and it is said that in the short space of two months he had been so successful that he was the happy possessor of three hundred plants !

The first plant that bloomed was of course displayed in his show window. Here it was seen and admired by no less a person than a Duchess, and he sold it to her for a guinea. That very night My Lady gives a reception, and of course her rare and beautiful plant attracts much notice. So the next day brings Mr. Lee many customers, but unfortunately for him, only two plants were in bloom ; still, many are engaged, and before the next three months he had made a clear gain of three hundred guineas upon the fuchsia !

Whether he kept his promise to the woman, or if her new plant was as handsome as the original, I cannot say ; but we will hope for her sake that it was. This particular species of fuchsia is very seldom seen now, and is very inferior to the varieties now in cultivation.

There is a beautiful new fuchsia called "Storm King," which is considered by some to be by far the finest fuchsia yet produced. It is very double and of what is termed the weeping class, and it is always in bloom. The branches droop very gracefully and the blossoms are enormous. The buds sometimes take two weeks to expand and are of a glowing scarlet. The flowers are almost pure white, capped by a calyx of scarlet, and one can hardly imagine a more beautiful sight than one of these plants well covered with buds and blossoms.

Fuchsia fulgens is an old variety, but it is always a favorite, once its aquaintance is made. It is difficult to raise this variety from cuttings, but if planted out in summer and the buds pinched off so that it is not allowed to bloom the plant may then be carefully lifted in the fall and taken into the window garden, where it will bloom in February. This fuchsia has tuberous roots, something like the dahlia. The flowers are about four inches long and grow in clusters. The tubes and sepals are rose in color, the corolla crimson, and the leaves are large and light green.

There is no plant more easily cared for in the window garden than the fuchsia. Only be careful to put the pot in the sink and shower it plentifully with warm water at least once a week. This is very necessary, as the red spider has a particular fondness for this plant. This little pest may be kept down by showering frequently, and also spraying the inner surface of the leaves with a rubber plant-sprinkler. Fuchsias delight in a rich, light soil, and plenty of water. It is not necessary to have the sun directly upon them, and I have always found that they bloom much better than when not very near the glass, as they do not require a very high temperature ; but with plenty of light and air they are well suited to the living room. Those who can procure black earth from the woods will find that it is just the soil best calculated to make a luxuriant fuchsia, if a little sand is mixed with it.

Old plants of Fuchsia speciosa and Mrs. Marshall will bloom abundantly in January, and young plants ought to begin blooming about the same time. The young plants should not be allowed to become pot-bound. This you can easily tell by knocking the pot a little and turning out the whole ball of earth without disturbing the plant. If the roots are curled round on the outside of the ball of earth, you may be sure that your fuchsia needs more room, and a pot two inches more in diameter will be about the right size. They are very easily raised from cuttings, which strike root readily in damp sand ; but in California, where they almost grow to be trees, and easily cover a fence two feet high or more, when trained to do so, it it only necessary to break off a piece at a joint and stick it in the ground, and before long, behold ! you have a fuchsia ready to bloom. In the window garden the young plant after having taken root in the damp sand should be transplanted into a small pot of rich, light soil, and always watered with warm water.

The double fuchsias are of course the handsomest, and, although belonging to the class that bloom most in summer, they may be made to bloom during the winter months by allowing them to rest during the summer. This is done by keeping them in the shade with very little water until October, and by pinching off the buds.

Fuchsia speciosa is said to bloom nine months out of the year.

Below is a list of the most satisfactory fuchsias for the window garden : Fuchsia speciosa. Earl of Beacons-field, Mrs. Marshall, Carl Halt and Rose of Castile.

These all bear single flowers ; of the double varieties I advise the following: Elm City, Monstrosa and the new Storm King.

Omaha, Neb. Juan.