June 30, 1870. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



461 



the almost entire absence of small birds, with the exception o* 

 the common house sparrow. I did, indeed, once hear the song 

 of the nightingale, but it was from an unfortunate bird confined 

 in a cage. 



" Tourist's " reply is amusing. Certainly one does not ex- 

 pect to hear the songs of birds as one rushes along on the rail- 

 road, nor, I apprehend, would your correspondent " C. ;" but I 

 would defy " Tourist " to say with truth that he as a rule 

 heard or saw any small bird on his way from Lyons to Mar- 

 seilles. He might, indeed, hear occasionally a nightingale, as 

 it is a bird of passage ; but as to a thrush or blackbird, it is 

 not only a rara avis, but almost an incognita avis, for I know 

 something of that part of the country. The only fact which 

 he adduces — that after February a hedge-popper would be 

 snbject to fine and confiscation of his gun, proves exactly what 

 " C." asserts — the scarcity of small birds ; for it is well known 

 that insects and other vermin have increased at such a rate 

 in France from the destruction of birds by these valiant sports- 

 men, that it became absolutely necessary for the French legis- 

 lature to pass the law for their protection. 



" Tourist," at any rate, is not proficient in natural history, 

 or he would not assert that the thrushes slain in France for 

 the enjoyment of gourmands are bred in England ; for who ever 

 heard of the English thrush migrating? The bird he refers to 

 is the fieldfare or northern thrush, which alike migrates to 

 England and France in October. 



While I write, a friend tells me that he yesterday met a man 

 with a bundle of at least fifty thrushes, which he had magnani- 

 mously slain with the gun which he carried ; and on visiting 

 a nurseryman a few days ago I counted a dozen blackbirds, 

 which had been recently trapped, rottiDg under a bush. Would 

 that the poor British birds enjoyed a " closed season " which 

 the French legislature has found necessary to adopt to preserve 

 the very few small birds which are left in France. — Another 

 Tourist. 



THE TABLE DECORATIONS AT THE CRYSTAL 

 PALACE JUNE SHOW. 



Never had judges a more difficult task than that which pre- 

 sented itself to those who had to adjudicate on the table deco- 

 rations at the Crystal Palace on the 11th of June ; and never, 

 perhaps, were judgments more challenged by exhibitors and 

 the public generally than the decisions that were then made, 

 and this for very obvious reasons. These things depend so 

 much on mere taste — neither on the rarity of flowers nor the 

 beauty of the adjuncts — that persons would be, we might be 

 sure, ready to condemn any decision which did not fall in with 

 their own peculiar views on such matters. Hence, probably, 

 the advice given by a clever exhibitor to the Judges was a wise 

 one — "As goon as ever the cards for the prizes are put on get 

 out of the way, or you may hear something not to your advan- 

 tage ;" and, in fact, I believe one very irate person did begin 

 to remove his glass and china until stopped by the Palace 

 authorities. 



It was distinctly stated in the paper circulated by the Super- 

 intendent that the display was to be floral in its character, and 

 that beauty of arrangement would be the chief point to be con- 

 sidered ; and this was but just. If rare flowers or magnificent 

 china or glass were to decide the merits of the decorations it 

 is quite manifest that all would not be placed on a level, and 

 money would, as in too many cases, carry the day. There 

 seem to me to be certain canons of judgment and taste which 

 ought to be maintained on the subject, and as the position of 

 judges in such a case is to educate public opinion and not to 

 follow it, I would suggest that these ought to be as follows : — 



1. The greatest effect produced by the simplest materials 

 ought certainly to be considered an important point. 



2. That it is essential that the tables be not so crowded in 

 the centre that the view is distorted. 



3. That large quantities of strongly scented flowers should 

 not be introduced. 



4. That harmony of colouring should be considered, and the 

 effect of light on certain colours. 



For these there are good reasons. The first can hardly admit 

 of cavil. When the March stands took the world by storm I 

 well remember how charmingly simple were the Forget-me-nots 

 and Lilies of the Valley, and yet how very effective they were ! 

 And although there was some objection at first to the award, 

 yet after a time people began to see it was right ; and I believe 

 everywhere and in everything true taste iB always simple. What 

 is that which we call " cockneyism " but the flagrant violation 



of simplicity ? What is it we call " ladylike " in dress ? is it 

 not simplicity ? 



The second reason ought to be equally as readily acknow- 

 ledged. It is true people do not talk across the table, and now 

 that the old custom of taking wine with one another is gone 

 out of fashion we do not require a clear stage and no favour ; 

 but withal, the coup d'osil of a dinner party ought to be con- 

 sidered, and to so divide the guests by tall and cumbrous deco- 

 rations as to make it two dinner parties is clearly a great 

 mistake. 



_ We have, by the diner a la Russe, got rid of the hot steaming 

 dishes with their strong savoury smells, but we do not want to 

 exchange that for the equally strong odour of highly scented 

 flowers. To have quantities of Lilies, Stephanotis, and such 

 flowers, is to load the atmosphere with perfumes which are 

 positively intolerable to some and disagreeable to many. 



With regard to the fourth, it must be remembered that there 

 are many colours which might harmonise well by day, but 

 which do not look well at night. Blues ought to be avoided, 

 as although the stands are exhibited by day, they are intended 

 for night when artificial light is used. All deep blue flowers 

 become nearly black at night, and yellows fade into whites. 

 Again, it must be remembered that a good deal of coloured 

 glass is necessarily now used — ruby and green for light wines, 

 and too much colour, then, in the flowers ought to be avoided 

 as tending to glare, the fault, par excellence, of bad taste. 



If these be correct canons — and if not I should be glad to be 

 shown where I am wrong — then, as it is easy to see where they 

 were adhered to and where not in the late display, we can at 

 once determine the correctness of the judgment. The three 

 most pretentious displays were those exhibited by Mrs. Green, 

 Messrs. Phillips and Pearce, and Mr. Holt. The first of these 

 was very recherche in its way ; the centre glass was magnifi- 

 cent, the flowers were of the choicest character, the china and 

 glass admirable, but it had the one glaring defect that it com- 

 pletely hid the company on one side of the table from the 

 other. At a stand-up supper at the end of the room or on a 

 buffet it would have been beautiful, but out of place on a dinner 

 table. Messrs. Phillips and Pearce's was perfection as far as 

 glass and china were concerned ; the little gondoliers placed on 

 pieces of sheet glass were exquisite ; but it had some great 

 defects — though not so seriously obstructing the view as Mrs. 

 Green's, yet it did so ; it was heavy, and tb.6 fault of intro- 

 ducing too many strongly scented flowers, and the heavy cha- 

 racter of the flowers themselves, also relegated it to the supper 

 table. It would have been impossible to have passed these 

 over, and therefore extra prizes, I believe of equal value to the 

 first and seeond, were awarded them. Mr. Holt's was a fresh 

 arrangement of the table which Mr. Wilkinson put up last year, 

 but not arranged with the taste with which that was. The 

 centre of the table was hollowed out and water introduced, but 

 the centre piece was heavy, and highly coloured candles in 

 highly coloured candlesticks had been introduced. Independ- 

 ently of anything else, its want of adaptability for general use 

 would have been sufficient to have condemned it. 



The first prize was given to a table which relied simply and 

 solely on its floral decorations ; there was not an atom of china 

 and glass on it, no excessive care had been taken with the 

 stands themselves, but the arrangement of the flowers was 

 admirable. They were placed in three of the well-known March 

 stands, while in narrow zinc troughs which encircled the table 

 were arranged light and elegant flowers and Lycopodiums. 

 The Becond-prize arrangement was somewhat similar in cha- 

 racter, but an oval-shaped glass stand in the centre gave variety 

 to it. In neither of these was there any obstruction of view, 

 while good taste was their general characteristic. 



I do not think that it is necessary to give any detailed de- 

 scription of the other stands. I have simply pointed out what 

 I believe to be defective, and also what I considered to be 

 points of excellence ; and it is so manifestly hopeless to describe 

 such things so as to give any accurate idea of them, that it is 

 better left alone. 



But I must say a word as to the single stands, and I am 

 sorry to say to a great extent little good can be said of them. 

 They were glaringly defective in many points, and the feat was 

 not to decide which was the best, but which had fewest faults. 

 One with a little attention might have been made very pretty, 

 and the idea was certainly novel. A light greyish blue base 

 was placed on a stand and filled with grasses and Poppies — 

 very simple, but withal it wanted something more. Had the 

 stand been ruby, and had blue Cornflower been used instead o£ 

 the Poppies, which so soon fade, it would have been very pretty. 



