Ruffo Scilla coming to London as special papal envoy, and the duke of Norfolk being received at the Vatican as the bearer of the congratulations of the queen of England.
The martyrs take their name from Scilla (or Scillium), a town in Numidia.
Charming dwarf hardy bulbous plants of the liliaceous order, blooming in the early spring in company with Scilla sibirica, and of equally easy cultivation.
Besides these there are the various spring-flowering bulbs, such as the varieties of Hyacinthus, Tulipa, Narcissus, Fritillaria, Muscari or Grape Hyacinth, Crocus, Scilla, Chionodoxa and Galanthus or Snowdrop.
Among the land plants may be noted the blue anemone; the ranunculus along the road-sides, with a strong perfume of violets; the Malta heath, which flowers at all seasons; Cynomorium coccineum, the curious " Malta fungus," formerly so valued for medicinal purposes that a guard was set for its preservation under the rule of the Knights; the pheasant's-eye; three species of mallow and geranium; Oxalis cernua, a very troublesome imported weed; Lotus edulis; Scorpiurus subvillosa, wild and cultivated as forage; two species of the horseshoe-vetch; the opium poppy; the yellow and claret-coloured poppy; wild rose; Cartaegus azarolus, of which the fruit is delicious preserved; the ice-plant; squirting cucumber; many species of Umbelliferae; Labiatae, to which the spicy flavour of the honey (equal to that of Mt Hymettus) is ascribed; snapdragons; broom-rape; glass-wort; Salsola soda, which produces when burnt a considerable amount of alkali; there are fifteen species of orchids; the gladiolus and iris are also found; Urginia scilla, the medicinal squill, abounds with its large bulbous roots near the sea; seventeen species of sedges and seventy-seven grasses have been recorded.