104 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ August 7, 1866. 



the lovely beauty which must have existed in Eden when there 

 were no Adam and no Eve to appreciate that beauty. 



Well might poets sing of " the flowers, the beautiful flowers," 

 flowers, the stars of earth, even as the stars above us are flowers 

 of the sky ; but flowers are never so lovely as when associated 

 with the sweet flower-stars of humanity, whose mission it has 

 been to shine rays of comfort and of joy into many a heart 

 and many a home. My memories of Woburn are, and must 

 be, varied ; but not the least pleasant will be associated with 

 the buoyant life and animation of that beautiful afternoon, 

 when the groups of flowers seemed all the more beautiful 

 when blended and contrasted with groups of admiring ladies 

 and gentlemen ; when shrubs and evergreens seemed of a 

 richer hue, as they sent back the rich colours of the varied 

 dresses of the ladies ; when the closely-shaven turf seemed in- 

 stinct with life, as it rebounded to the elastic step of joyous 

 youth ; when the calm, unruffled lake became a polished mirror 

 reflecting the happy groups scattered along its banks. Ah ! 

 there is a happiness in having the power and the will to help 

 to make others happy. 



With such visions imprinted on my eyes, and the grand music 

 of the Guards ringing in my ears, I left the grounds of the 

 Exhibition, as trains, like " time and tide," will wait for no one. 

 I have since learned that besides those who were content with 

 the fine park, <fcc, 2600 went through the gates of the grounds 

 and conservatories, and upwards of 4000 attended the Show, 

 and no damage or anything done that could form a cause of 

 grievance or complaint. In walking round I heard several 

 gentlemen comparing such good behaviour with the sad con- 

 trasts that were exhibited in London on the previous days. 

 Among crowds there will always be a few of the fast ; but as a 

 rule the working classes are proud to be trusted, and, their 

 honour appealed to, will not abuse such confidence. In the 

 plant-houses and grounds a few men were stationed, as a matter 

 of prudence, but there was no seen or felt superintendence. To 

 the visitors on that day the enjoyment of these beautiful gar- 

 dens was entirely unrestricted, and the privilege was received 

 as a boon, and acknowledged as such by happy faces and quiet 

 orderly demeanour. 



Of the particulars of this Show I will not speak, for I scarcely 

 took a single note, and could not get near enough to read the 

 names and the addresses of the successful competitors, and it 

 would be invidious to mention only a few. I must bo content 

 with stating that there were between 800 and 900 entries, and 

 some of these, as in the case of collections and baskets, con- 

 tained a number of separate articles ; that the hardy fruit and 

 vegetables were on the whole good, and, as I understand, an ad- 

 vance on those of last year ; but, on the whole, the Woburn 

 exhibitors will have to make some progress in vegetables 

 before they rival those that used to be shown at Northampton, 

 Towcester, and Daventry. In one box were some very fine 

 Grapes, and there were good Grapes and Melons in other 

 classes. Our cottage friends must excuse me for saying that 

 their nosegays and flowers would be all the better if more taste 

 and care were exercised in the arrangement. In other classes 

 there were some nice arrangements of cut flowers, in which 

 most of the best of Beaton's Geraniums were shown, also the 

 same varieties grown in pots, and of them all I should be 

 inclined to select Donald Beaton as the best in its class. There 

 were also some pretty designs worked out with flowers, and 

 there was a large design in fruit, 8 or more feet in lengtb, by 

 about 4 feet in breadth, representing the arms and motto of the 

 Bedford family, very nicely done with black, red, and white 

 Currants. Considering the time that such a work must have 

 taken in fixing the berries, it is a matter of regret that the fruit 

 picture should be of such a short existence. Among the plants 

 brought by amateurs and gentlemen's gardeners, the most con- 

 spicuous were Fuchsias, Caladiums, and Ferns. Of the last 

 two there were good collections. In one place the tables were 

 not over-full, as some nurserymen who had promised their aid 

 were unable to send Eoses and other subjects, owing to the hot 

 dry weather. Mr. Woods, of the Nurseries, Hockliffe, had a 

 very nice general collection of plants in a young state, and they 

 seemed to attract much attention. Among these were several 

 plants of a seedling Petunia, which, if it keep true, will be 

 valuable for pot culture and flower garden decoration. On 

 seeing it at a distance, I took it for a nice striped Phlox. The 

 flowers are striped with about equal bands of crimson and 

 white. The individual flower when expanded is larger than 

 a shilling, and less than a florin, and the leaves are quite 

 as small as the old Petunia phcenicea. Its compact growth, 

 and the small size of the pretty flowers and foliage, if they 



continue so, will be great recommendations for out-door 

 culture. 



Instead of dwelling on such generalities, it may be more 

 important to notice a few matters worthy to be considered, 

 adopted, or improved upon by other cottage garden societies. 



1. Even at the gates of the pleasure grounds there were 

 tables where necessary refreshments could be obtained, and in 

 the Exhibition grounds were spacious tents, well filled in the 

 afternoon by those who loved the " cheering cup ;" but no in- 

 toxicating liquors were permitted. I understood that all the 

 Committee of Management had to do with the purveyor was 

 that the supplies should be good, and charged for at a uniform, 

 merely remunerating, price. 



2. The classes of competitors were clearly defined, and any 

 differences in this respect were settled by the decision of the 

 Committee. Thus, Class A was reserved entirely for common 

 labourers, whose articles were marked with yellow papers ; 

 Class B was confined to mechanics, jobbing gardeners, and men 

 employed in noblemen's and gentlemen's gardens, who were 

 furnished with blue papers ; and Class C was confined entirely 

 to amateurs and gentlemen's gardeners, and these were fur- 

 nished with white papers. These papers, a specimen of which, 

 taken from a cheque-book, is annexed, the counterfoil remain- 

 ing in the hands of the Secretary, contain the No. of the ex- 

 hibitor, the class in which he exhibits, the No. which repre- 

 sents the article exhibited, and the signature of the exhibitor, 

 to the effect that the article was grown by himself, according to 

 Rule 2, which also states that an exhibitor can only take one 

 prize in a class. One of these papers so signed is placed on 

 every article exhibited. I will refer to this again presently. 



EXHIBITOR'S 



number. (1J 



EXHIBITOR'S 

 (1) NUMBER. 



1SG6.— Class A. 





Woburn, 

 No. 



Kind, 

 Name, 

 Residence, 



1866. 



WOBURN COTTAGE GARDEN SOCIETY. 



exhibitor's certificate. 



No. 10. 

 I hereby certify that the 

 exhibited by me are my own property, and were 

 grown by me in my own Garden, according 

 to Rule 2. 



Signed, Job Smith. 



3. The prizes offered were numerous — an excellent plan for 

 securing a great number of competitors. I have found great 

 difficulty at times in judging, when out of some twenty articles, 

 and with little difference between them in point of merit, only 

 two prizes were offered ; and if the Judges could scarcely 

 satisfy themselves, we maybe sure that many exhibitors would 

 be disheartened, especially when no extra prizes were given. 

 " Extras " were given pretty freely at Wobum, but the number 

 of prizes rendered them less necessary, except in particular 

 cases. Thus we find that in Class A, for Scarlet Runners, 

 dishes of fifty, eight prizes were offered, ranging from 5s. to Is., 

 for Broad Beans there were eight, for Cabbages the same, for 

 Long Red Carrots six prizes, and for Short Red Carrots six, a 

 good distinction ; for Potato Onions there were five prizes, 

 autumn-sown three, and spring-sown eight prizes, ranging 

 from 6s. to 2s., and the same principle was maintained through- 

 out with Peas, Potatoes, and everything else. For a basket 

 of vegetables of not less than six sorts, ten prizes were offered, 

 ranging from 15s. to 2s. In the other Classes, B and C, the 

 same principle was maintained, but fewer prizes were offered. 



4. Prizes are promptly paid at six o'clock in the evening of 

 exhibition, according to the sixth rule. This is a matter of 

 great importance, especially to working men who come from a 

 distance. It saves them time and labour, and is well worthy 

 the attention of many societies who aim at similar objects. 



5. Amid so many hundred entries this prompt payment, 

 could not be effected but for systematic arrangements, and the 

 admirable mode by which all the results can be easily seen in 

 the books kept by Mr. Gilby, of Woburn. Thus, the attested 

 paper above referred to must be obtained from Mr. Gilby at 

 least two days before the exhibition, and all articles must be 

 on the ground by nine o'clock on the morning of exhibition. 

 These papers, fixed to the articles, enable the Committee to 

 arrange all according to class, the colour showing at once 

 where they should go, and thus in common circumstances the 

 subjects would be fit for judging. To meet prejudices, however, 

 each paper is put in an envelope, gummed up, and merely 

 marked outside with the letter of the class, Asa, and there is no 



