230 



The Weekly Florists^ Review. 



December 24. 1003. 



PETRIFIED CALLA BULBS. 



A (lay or two ago I sent you ivliat we 

 thought was a petrified calla bulb. Some 

 time ago our men were digging open a 

 trench where there was a isteam pipe 

 buried for several years and one of them 

 unearthed this specimen. ^Yheu the pipe 

 was tirst put in it might have gotten in 

 with the filling material. It happened 

 to be buried mostly in gravel. Can you 

 make anvthing else out of it? 



A. F. J. Baur. 



The petrified ' ' something ' ' has ai 

 rived. But why, ilr. Editor, do you 

 send it to a simple gardener? 1 am not 

 a geologist. I wish I were. The state 

 geologist would be the proper person to 

 determine whether this was the petrified 

 corm of a Eichartlia Aethiopica or mere- 

 ly a fragment of some marine plant or 

 Crustacea that lived and died iu the early 

 ages of our planet, so distant in the re- 

 mote past that, like space and eternity, 

 the mind cannot grasp it. Without call- 

 ing yourself a geologist or even admit- 

 ting that you have a smattering of that 

 glorious science, the truths of which have 

 so enlightened and expanded our knowl- 

 edge of the earth's past history, yet it 

 is the duty of all intelligent men to ac- 

 quaint themselves with the great and 

 broad ti-uths of the science, and ho"- 

 many intelligent men can say that sucn 

 marvelous revelations do not interest them 

 is beyond understanding. There are Mil- 

 lions of smart men troubling themselves 

 about hazy traditions, fictions and ghost 

 stories in connection with man 's com- 

 paratively brief occupancy of this ter- 

 restrial sphere that are not the least 

 interested in the fact that it took two 

 millions of years to form the coal meas- 

 ures alone, or that perhaps another million 

 years the face of the earth was covered 

 with reptiles or kindred monsters, the 

 remains of which are now found in im- 

 mense quantities in our states of Vv'yom- 

 ing and Montana. 



Creatures with bodies seventy-five feet 

 long and a spread of wings 100 feet 

 across once flew over the city of London. 

 What a nice birdie to settle on the roof 

 of a greenhouse! But there were no 

 greenhouses then, no man in his most 

 primitive form, perhaps no true mam- 

 mal or warm blooded animal, no flower- 

 ing plant or fruit bearing tree. How 

 easy to be led off into the wonders of 

 the past, so I will pull up merely to say 

 that accepting the nebular system and 

 then following through the inorganic 

 rocks up through the carboniferous ido 

 through successive ages to the tertiary, 

 it is not difiScult for any of us to real- 

 ize the stupendous age of the earth, as 

 well as by the remains of former life in 

 these past ages to see the gradual devel- 

 opment from the minutest denizen of the 

 ancient seas up through the shell fish, 

 Crustacea, fish, reptile, bird, mammal 

 and, last of all, the crowning work of 

 the Creator, biped man, and later, much 

 later, a man with a conscience. 



John Fisk, professor of history, philos- 

 ophy and several other things at Har- 

 vard, one of America 's greatest men, 

 ■who died three or four years ago. in his 

 beautiful little book. Through Nature 

 to God, which every soul who can should 

 read, says, ' ' Man has without doubt ex- 

 isted on this earth a million years in his 

 present physical form but in a low men- 

 tal form. ' ' He then adds that there is 

 every evidence that man was on the earth 

 during and survived the glacial period. 



8ome bigoted or wilfully blind persons 

 nmy ask how John Fisk knows all this .' 

 From the vestiges that man has left be- 

 hind him. and great minds have made a 

 life study of prehistoric man, and sure- 

 ly they are a better authority on such 

 a subject than the great divines of the 

 past, present or future. The divines 

 have a different sphere of iisefulness and 

 when they antagonize the revelations of 

 science they always receive a ' ' solar 

 plexus, ' ' but they recover from the blow 

 and what they deny in this generation 

 they admit to be the indisputable truth 

 in the next. 



In the little farm in Genesee county, 

 X. Y., where the writer tries to grow our 

 staple flowers, the land has here and 

 there a large granite boulder; perhaps 

 a few rods farther on is a great slab 

 of limestone. Both the granite and 

 limestone must be countless ages older 

 than the soil or sub-soil, or anything you 

 can dig up for fifty feet beneath the 

 surface. These granite boulders and 

 limestone chunks were carried by the 

 glacier from hundreds, perhaps thou- 

 sands, of miles north and in its move- 

 ment south, as it slowly melted, it 

 dropped here and there pieces of rock 

 that it had scrajied off and carried along 

 from northern lands. In New England 

 and some parts of fertile Ontario you 

 will see the boulders so thick you can 

 jump from one to another for a mile or 

 more. This must have been where a 

 glacier took a long rest and deposited its 

 rocky increment. 



One day a few years ago one of the 

 men who was working on the laml 

 brought me two fossil horns, or what he 

 thought were horns of some ancient 

 short-horn cattle. They tapered from 

 the base, where they had grown on the 

 skull, and had the rings and were in- 

 deed very like petrified horns, but thev 

 were nothing of the sort. My learned 

 friend. Prof. Cowell, who is a geologist, 

 said they were the remains of some mol- 

 lusc and had come to where they were 

 found in the limestone deposited in the 

 glacial period. Now the petrified article 

 of Mr. Baur's is almost identical in ap- 

 pearance to a piece of those "horns." 

 It is possible that it may be the corm 

 of a ealla and the action of the gravel 

 has produced petrification, and I am go- 

 ing to submit tliis curious specimen to 

 the same learned authority and let you 

 know and apologize for this long yarn, 

 hut being indo<irs with a desperate tight 

 chest. I have nothing else to do. 



W. S. 



BROCKTON, MASS. 



The Crawford store and greenhouses, 

 owned by Cliarles Cooper, have been dis- 

 posed of at public auction. There were 

 seven greenhouses 20x100 and three hot- 

 beds 8x100, also machinery and two and 

 one-half acres of land. 



The Christmas trade is very heavy this 

 year and all the stores are doing a nice 

 business. There is a shortage of carna- 

 tions, especially white, which biing $3.50 

 to $4 per- 100 wholesale. L. J). 



Wixox.\, Mixx. — ilrs. D. Voelker, of 

 the Huff Street greenhouses has let her 

 place freeze up, as the high ))rice of coal 

 and sickness in the family did not war- 

 rant keeping them going. Ed. Kirchner 

 will tear down five of his houses iu the 

 spring and replace them with seven of 

 the Dietsch short-span houses. 



WANT ADVERTISEMENTS. 



Advertisements under this head one cent a 

 word, cash with order. Plant advertisements 

 NOT admitted under this head. 



WANTED — By March 1st. situation by all- 

 round man; would take charge of large 

 place in Florida; now employed on one of the 

 best places in this state: ten years In present 

 situation; wages wanted. $15.00 per week. James 

 Humphries, fi04 Oglethorpe St., Macon. Ga. 



WANTED— Manager and propagator: one who 

 thoroughly understands the growing and 

 propagating of all kinds of plants, summer propa- 

 gation of roses and shrubs; married man pre- 

 ferred: must be well recommended; state waees 

 and full reference. Address, care Florists' Re- 

 view, No. 10. Chicago. 



WANTED— Florist, single, to grow pot plants 

 and cut flowers and take e»"tlre charge; 

 state salary and reference. C. E. Tresch, Mari- 

 etta. Ohio. 



FOR SALE — Established greenhouses, floral 

 biislness and property, nursery, two dwell- 

 ing houses. 150U square feet of frreeuhouees; no 

 other Ln Southeastern Idaho; also supplies North- 

 ern Utah and Westei'u Wyoming; unexcelled 

 shipping facilities; six lines of railroad diverting 

 into rapidly growing towns and country; it's a 

 bargain, and the business should be continued; 

 must be sold on account of death. Address: The 

 Church & White Co.; Pocatello, Idaho 



SITUATION WANTED— By young single man 

 experienced as assistant florist; e^ood refer- 

 ence; state terms. Address Newton. 2025 Harlem 

 ave.. Baltimore. Md. 



FOR RENT— Good chance for young man with 

 small capital: 600U feet of glass iu a live 

 Iowa city of lO.tOJ; steam heat: cheap rent; neces- 

 sary stock in good condition: pos8**8Pion given 

 by March]; write for particulars. C. G. Krieger, 

 Mason City. Iowa. 



FOR SALE— I have three nice greenhouses well 

 stocked with Easter and spring plants: pot- 

 ting shed. 12x50 feet; 1 large wagon shed, holds 2 

 wagons; 1 rose bed: about 25 sash for outdoor 

 beds; good will and fixtures of a stall in the best 

 market in Philadelphia; can get back price asked 

 in 6 months: have good reason for selling. Apply 

 to William G. Wenber, Powder Mill Lane. Frank- 

 ford. Philadelphia, Pa. 



SITUATION WANTED— In or near Chicago, by 

 young man of 20. with 5 years" experience. 

 Address No. 9. care Florists' Review. Chicago. 



FOR SALE— Three greenhouses: GOOO feet of 

 glass, newly built, well stocked; with one 

 acre or more of land; good retail stand: IS-year 

 lease: price, $:>. 000; half cash, balance on lime; 

 or will take a partner with $1 000 or $1 500. In 

 Chicago. Address No. 8, care Florists' Review. 

 Chicago. 



FOR SALE— Store and greenhouses: fully 

 stocked; long time lease; good location and 

 doing a good business: ill health cause of sell- 

 ing. Address John Hoeft, 920 N. Campbell Ave.. 

 Chicago. 



WANTED— A bright, hustling young man of 

 good address for a Chicago retail estab- 

 lishment; must be competent in decorating and 

 designing and a first class salesman. Address, 

 with references as to ability and character, stal- 

 ing wages desired, No. 205, care Florists' Re- 

 vtew. Chicago. 



f?OR SALE. — One 35 horse-power horizontal 

 Jj tubular steam boiler, all complete except 

 steam fittings. $70 00; one t»-in. Ericosou hot air 

 engine. $4.'i 00: one S-ln. Ericcsou hot air engine. • 

 $t'5(J0; one iMn. Rider hot air enerlne, $95.00: one 

 No. 5 Scollay. good condition. $50.00; one No. 5 

 Weathereds. good condition. $50 00: new guaran- 

 teed block pipe, full lengths, at 9^ els. ft.: sec- 

 ond-hand pipe as follows: 2-tn.. T.J^ cts ; IK-in.. 

 5*4 cts.; IM-ln. iH cts : 1-in, S'^ cts ; M-in.-Is cts.; 

 tecond hand pipe cutters. $1 50; No 1 stocks and 

 dies. $4 00; No. 2 stocks and dies. $5 (.R), Guaran- 

 teed -^-iu. hose, will stand 150 lbs. water press- 

 ure. 7'<i cts. ft.; not guarante^d. 4^ cts. ft ; also a 

 job lot'of old fire hose; send for price and quan- 

 tity. New greenhouse glass 16x24, double, nat- 

 ural gas made $3,50 box; lOxlS 14x20 double. $3.35 

 box: 12xlt>. Single. $2,40 box: 10x14. 12x12. single, 

 $2 2S box; SxlO double. $3.10 box. Lot of new cy- 

 press for benches. $.'tO 00 per lUUO ft. We furnish 

 evervthing for building. Metropolitan Material 

 Co., 1:>G5 Fl ushing ave., Brooklyn. N. Y. 



FOBS\L.E. 



Greenhouses; good location for both local and 

 shipping business: well stocked; winter coal 

 laid in: will sell cheap If sold at once; selling 

 on account of falling health 



JAS. RICHARDSON, London, Ohio. 



WANTED. 



Position as foreman or manager of an up-to- 

 date establishment, either retail, or wholesale 

 or mailing; am up In all branches: three years 

 m last place; 40 years old: married; prefer a 

 northern place: best of reference as to ability, 

 character aud honesty: strictly temperate; up 

 in building and heating: grew two million plants 

 the past season; state amount of glass and best 

 wages for an II'- TO date man. Address Lone 

 Star, No. till N. Washington ave., Dallas, Texas. 



