DECEMBER. 261 



THE NATIONAL FLORICULTURAL SOCIETY : 



PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE. 



" The Committee have a large and open field before them in which to ex- 

 tend their operations ; and they deeply feel the amount of responsil)ility which 

 such an enlarging sphere of action will be sure to entail upon ihcm.'"—'Ea:tract 

 from First A nnual Report. 



It is not yet two years since the National Floricultural Society was 

 called into being, with the view of forming a competent tribunal 

 before which the merits of new Florists' flowers and garden hybrids 

 might be tested. That such a tribunal was necessary, was proved 

 to the originators by the number of new plants which were continu- 

 ally palmed on the public at high prices, by means of flattering 

 descriptions, and afterwards found to be inferior, or too similar to 

 existing kinds, or perhaps altogether worthless. Such a state of 

 things was producing incalculable mischief. A good thing in the 

 hands of a man unaccustomed to sell, or too honest to colour his 

 productions, often remained unappreciated, till the time had passed 

 in -which he should have benefited by it. On the other hand, a bad 

 thing, in the hands of a man less scrupulous, or a successful puffer, 

 realised a large sum ; the purchaser was duped and disappointed •, 

 the confidence of the public in the honesty of Florists was shaken ; 

 the whole system was deranged, and the wheels of the machinery 

 clogged and fettered. It was under this state of things that the 

 standard of the National Floricultural Society was raised ; and the 

 gathering around it of 205 members in the brief space of one year, 

 comprising the leading amateurs, nurserymen, and florists, proves 

 not only how much the want was felt, but proves also a confidence 

 in the early promoters of the scheme. And, looking to the past, we 

 think the workings of the Society have justified that confidence ; not 

 that we think it has been free from error, no human institution can 

 be ; but those who have purchased only what has received its mark 

 of approbation, will not say they have been deceived or their money 

 wasted. Thus far, we believe, the Society has done much to secure 

 for the honest trader a fair remuneration for his industry and skill, 

 has done much also to protect the credulous or unsuspicious from 

 deception and fraud ; and in having done this, it has in some mea- 

 sure restored the confidence of the public, produced order irom 

 disorder, and left the wheels of the machinery freed from hindrance 

 or impediment. 



But while we congratulate the Society on being able to dwell 

 thus pleasantly on the past, we must not let that arrest our activity 

 in the present, or dim our vision of the future. We must remember 

 that we cannot remain long stationary ; our march must be either 

 progressive or retrogressive ; and no lover of the art will be long in 

 deciding which it shall be ; and we hope he will be equally ready 

 to help in raising the lever which shall give to us the onward motion. 

 Every nurseryman and florist, from the humblest to the highest ; 

 every amateur — from him who finds pleasure and relaxation in the 



