786 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



BOSTON. 



Trade Conditions. 



We liave not even yet been allowed sun 

 enough to warm tilings into normal 

 spring conditions. Has anything been 

 overplentiful, except possibly the lilies, 

 until Saturday, the 4th? Upon that 

 day there seemed to be a slight inclina- 

 tion to congestion of the market, mostly 

 caused by an increase in the carnation 

 output. Prices were variable through- 

 out the week, but averaged very well 

 for the time of year, and a great many 

 blossoms changed ownership. Quality 

 since the advent of a little sunshine has 

 been very good indeed. 



The lack of variety of flowers used in 

 this city is now quite marked, as bulb 

 goods are getting quite scarce, as is also 

 anything in the line of small white flow- 

 ers, a little spirea being about all in that 

 line to be found. The Liberty rose is 

 again on its feet and coming in very 

 freely, some of them nearly three feet 

 long. Like Longfellow's little girl, when 

 they are good they are "very, very good," 

 but when they are bad there are none. 

 Incidentally red roses suddenly became 

 very plentiful on the Saturday already 

 spoken of, caused by a falling oflf in the 

 demand. 



Various Items. 



The editor of the Review has kindly 

 asked me what I think of all this talk 

 about an employees' association, with a 

 request to think over its possibilities 

 for good and give his type a chance 

 at it. 



Now, I did not know there was any 

 talk about such an association and really 

 can see but little need of one so far as 

 New England is concerned. Understand- 

 ing that a national aff'air is under con- 

 sideration, I have an idea it might prove 

 a detriment to this section by getting 

 some of our best workers too much in- 

 terested in positions outside of their 

 natural bailiwick. This, of course, 

 might prove of advantage to individual 

 employees even if against the best inter- 

 ests of our community at large. 



Of course the purpose of such an or- 

 ganization would be to forward the in- 

 terests of the employee and might be 

 construed as against" those of the em- 

 ployer, whether actually so or not. Then 

 the society of the little white metal leaf 

 would have to lock horns with it. 



I do not know just what the legit- 

 imate functions of this labor trust might 

 be outside of keeping run of good posi- 

 tions and a line of men to fill them, a 

 possible assistance to members in con- 

 tention with unjust employers and a 

 standing inducement to all workmen to 

 train themselves up to the standard of 

 requirements for such membership; the 

 latter would seem to be its most com- 

 mendable feature, as well as its broadest 

 field of operation. New England has 

 too many floral employees unfitted for 

 recommendation, but everything here is 

 too scattered and on too small a scale to 

 be systematized, it seems to me. And, 

 too, our cooperative market, with its 

 efficient and accommodating manager, 

 takes the place of all this very nicely, 

 so far as ]ioston and a twenty or thirty 

 mile radius is concerned. Also, in this 

 day of colossal consolidation the next 

 thing to do is to Morganize labor as a 

 whole, irrespective of special trades, 

 isn't it? 



Away back in heathen literature 

 somewhere there is a sublime little story- 



ette about a man digging around in the 

 mud while all the time a crown hangs 

 suspended over his head for him to oc- 

 cupy any time he sees fit to straighten 

 up and fill it. The second case has just 

 come to light. One of nature's noble- 

 men has been engaged in the plebeian 

 labor of shipping roses and pinks when 

 stern Justice points at him and says, 

 '•Ecce homo; stand up and occupy thy 

 crown." Jack Minton is on jury duty 

 for two weeks. Now, ye florists, who 

 have broils and imbroglios, bring them 

 forth ! Hast imbibed of the cup that 

 both cheers and inebriates? Hast thou 

 stolen thy neighbor's sheep or looked 

 with lust upon anything that is his? 

 Come to this fount of justice and be 

 free! It is just the legal situation for 

 which lots of us have been looking. 



Statisticians tell us that our death 

 rate has been low during our long spell 

 of bad weather, but there surely has 

 been an alarming amount of sickness 

 among the florists, the case of Mr. Wood- 

 ward, of South Framingham, being the 

 only one, so far as I know, resulting 

 fatally. 



The last arrival upon the sick list was 

 E. M. Wood, of Natick, who was crit- 

 ically ill with nervous aff'ection, coupled 

 with weak action of the heart, for two 

 or three weeks. His improvement is 

 now very rapid and has been for a week 

 or more. 



The demolition of old Horticultural 

 Hall began upon schedule time, May 1, 

 and the building now looks much like 

 Admiral Cervera's fleet when Sampson 

 and the other giants got through with it. 

 J. S. Manter. 



CHICAGO. 



The Market. 



There was a sudden change to cooler 

 weather the latter part of last week, 

 but the supply seems not to have been 

 lessened by the change and prices are 

 still very easy. Tea roses are still 

 quoted at .$4 to $6, but very few in- 

 deed are sold at the top figure, and 

 some excellent stock has gone begging 

 when offered at $4, especially Brides, 

 which do not move as well as ]Maids. 

 The great bulk of the good stock is sold 

 at from .$2 to $4, and the ordinaries are 

 jobbed oflf at $1 to $2, and even lower. 



Beauties seem to have suflfered more 

 than the teas from the season of sum- 

 mer heat, and good ones are very scarce. 

 The few really first-class ones bring $3 

 a dozen, but $2 to $2.50 is more of a 

 quotable figure, and from that they grade 

 down to .$1 per hundred or per bale, 

 as may happen. 



Caniatioiis. especially the colored 

 ones, shdw the cff'ects of the heat badly. 

 A very few extra fancy still bring $3, 

 but good fancy go at $1.50 to $2, and 

 really nice flowers can be had for $1.50, 

 while Scotts, etc., sell at 75 cents 

 to $1. And a buyer who will clean up 

 a mixed lot can get figures as low as 40 

 cents a hundred. 



Lilies and bulbous flowers are still 

 very slow. Fine Poet's narcissus that 

 sold well last year goes begging for a 

 customer at any price this season. Too 

 many cheap roses and carnations to be 

 had. Arbutus seems to be in the same 

 class. 



What little demand there is comes 

 from outside points. Local demand is 

 practically dead. It is the moving sea- 

 son, and this always deadens local de- 

 mand. 



Clab Meeting. 



At the meeting of the florists' Club 

 last Friday evening the entertainment 

 committee, consisting of Edgar Sanders, 

 P. J. Hauswirth and E. F. Winterson, 

 was instructed to arrange for a picnic 

 some time in June or July. Mr. J. P. 

 Sinner, of the firm of Sinner Bros., was 

 elected to membership. Mr. Paul Ko- 

 panka responded favorably to a request 

 for a paper and w'ill read one upon cy- 

 clamens at the next meeting (May 17). 

 The secretary was instructed to com- 

 municate with those on the printed pro- 

 gram who had not yet read their essays 

 and endeavor to have as many as pos- 

 sible ready for the next meeting. The 

 secretary presented his apologies for 

 failure to get out notices for the last 

 two meetings and promised better for 

 the future. 



The transportation committee report- 

 ed having issued a circular letter regard- 

 ing the Bufl"alo trip as per instructions 

 given at the previous meeting, but that 

 it was too early to report results. The 

 letter will be found printed elsewhere 

 in this issue. The club hopes for a gen- 

 eral and early response. 



Various Items. 



Kennicott Bros. Co. liad a fire scare 

 last Saturday. The place became en- 

 tirely filled with smoke, and as its 

 source could not be discovered crossed 

 electric wires was suspected. The fire 

 department was called and the firemen 

 discovered that the smoke was coming 

 in from an adjoining basement in which 

 a pipe connecting a boiler with the 

 chimney had become disjointed. There 

 was a good deal of excitement before 

 this discovery was made and the street 

 was filled with fire apparatus. 



A good many changes are now taking 

 place in the wholesale section. Weiland 

 & Risch are already established in 

 their new place in the basement, while 

 Benthey & Co. have taken the corner 

 position and will be installed by the 

 time this appears in print. They will 

 liave much more space than before. The 

 Poehlmann Bros. Co. have taken the 

 place leased by John Muno in the base- 

 ment and have also secured the adjoin- 

 ing space, giving them much larger quar- 

 ters, and Mr. Muno will take the place 

 they now occupy on the second floor. 

 This building will be occupied very 

 largely by wholesale florists. 



J. F. Kidwell & Bro. have bought the 

 place formerly conducted by John Blanck 

 on 43d street and will continue it as a 

 branch of their Wcntworth avenue es- 

 tablishment. 



One of Mr. John Muno's daughters 

 was married last Tuesday to a Mr. Phil- 

 lips. 



Heavy rain fell here last Monday 

 night, but suburban places only a few 

 miles west were not favored. And they 

 needed rain, too. 



John Mangel's window was particu- 

 larly attractive last week. The short 

 stemmed flowers were in the center and 

 the heights graded gracefully up each 

 side, while in the center was a tall, 

 slender vase of Beauties. The colors 

 were well harmonized, suflicient green 

 was used to avoid any glaring efi'ects, 

 and the form combinations were excel- 

 lent. That it was appreciated by the 

 people was evidenced by the number at- 

 tracted to it. 



Mr. N. A. Schmitz, of the Guardian 

 Angel Orphan Asylum, will decorate the 



