May 27, 1876. ] 



JOUBNAL OF HORTIOULTUBE AND COTTAGE GABDENEB. 



407 



whatever. This was a point they were not at all considering 

 upon the question of adjournment. Let them pay their prizes 

 [hear, hear], because if this went farther, and they declined to 

 pay their prizes, they would not have a single exhibited plant 

 in their tent on Wednesday, the 2nd of June [hear, hear). All 

 he could say was that it was a very serious matter to take the 

 public in. 



The Chairman. — We do not propose to take the public in. 

 On the last occasion we did not consider the show suiJiciently 

 good to warrant us in charging the price fixed, and we altered 

 the admission to Is, 



Dr. Denny. — Very good so far, but what is to become of the 

 Society, my lord ? 



The CHAmuAN. — Perhaps you will find the money to put it 

 straight. 



Dr. Dennv. — Had we not better wind it up ? 



The Chairman. — I say, wait for ten days, and for God's sake 

 wind it up then. 



Mr. Denny. — Ton actually propose to do it before then. 



Mr. Andrew Murray reminded the Meeting that the Society 

 was not altogether insolvent, because they had a large amount 

 of stock at Chiswick, and various matters at Kensington, which 

 would bring in considerable sums of money. They had a large 

 number of subscribers and Fellows, and these prizemen, if they 

 were asked, would be only too glad to postpone pressing their 

 claims. 



Mr. H. S. Godson said that one and twenty years ago they 

 were in a position similar to their present one, and what did 

 they do ? They did not listen to the " cuckoo cry " uttered not 

 only by the present but by the former Council. Why did not 

 the Council and the Fellows put their hands in their pockets 1 

 He (Mr. Godson) was ready to put down £'20, and give £5 towards 

 the prizes [hear, hear]. Let one hundred others say the same, 

 and the whole business could be easily settled [cheers]. If the 

 present Council or the Royal Commissioners could not give 

 their time to the business of the Society let a Committee of 

 Investigation be appointed the same as there was twenty years 

 ago. At the time he referred to they paid everybody. Let 

 them now pay as honest men. Let every man put down his 

 name for so much. Whathad they been doing? They had been 

 inducing people to come there to South Kensington to exhibit 

 flowers and plants for the sake of getting prizes. Let them be 

 honest at all events, even if they spent the coats ofJ their backs 

 [cheers and laughter]. Let a Committee of Investigation be 

 appointed, and he should prove that Her Majesty's Commis- 

 sioners owed the Fellows .£9000. The question now was, Pay 

 or not pay. 



Mr. Andrew Murray seconded the motion proposed by the 

 Chairman, that the Meeting be adjourned for ten days. 



The Chairman then put the motion. 



Mr. W. Bull said he sympathised very much with the Council. 



The Chairman. — I have put the question of adjournment. Let 

 it be decided, and the Meeting will hear you afterwards. 



The motion was then put and carried, with a few dissentients. 



Mr. W. Bull said he desired to state that he heartily sym- 

 pathised with the Council, but then their great Show took place 

 next week and the meeting had heard nothing of what was 

 being done to carry out that Show. There would be no prizes, 

 and he thought there ought really to be some scheme laid before 

 them by which the prize money could be got [hear, hear]. He 

 was surprised to find that the Council was taking no action with 

 those who were the friends of the Society. The prize money 

 would not amount to more than £600 or £700. Therefore, let a 

 number of the Fellows subscribe to pay the prize money the 

 day after the Show. It was, he thought, a most humUiating 

 position for the Society to be placed in. 



The Chairman. — Mr. Bull's proposition will be considered. 



A vote of thanks was given to the Chairman, and then the 

 Meeting stood adjourned to Friday the 4th of June. 



[It was understood that Mr. W. Bull stated at the end of his 

 speech that he should put down £100 towards the forthcoming 

 prize-list. In the noise and confusion caused by the Meeting 

 breaking-up as soon as Mr. Bull began to address it, it was im- 

 possible to catch what he said.] 



EOYAL BOTANIC SOCIETY. 



The Exhibition at Regent's Park yesterday must, both as to 

 quality of plants and arrangement, be pronounced very su- 

 perior. On entering the marquee the bold masses of Azaleas, 

 Roses, and Pelargoniums were strikingly effective. Time only 

 permits a hasty glance, minus the awards, which were not made 

 when we left the tent. 



In the nurserymen's class for twelve stove and greenhouse 

 plants in flower Mr. B. S. Williams and Messrs. Jackson & Sons 

 staged admirable collections. Mr. Morse, Epsom, also sent 

 good plants. In the corresponding class for amateurs — ten 

 plants— handsome groups were contributed by Mr. Ward, gar- 

 dener to F. J. Wilkins, Esq; Mr. Chapman, gardener to J. Spode, 

 Esq.; Mr. Toms, gardener to H. Wetteuhall, Esq.; and Mr. 



Carr, gardener to J. L. Hinds, Esq. In these groups the Ixoras, 

 Ericas, and Azaleas were very fine. For six stove and green- 

 house plants equally good specimens were exhibited, Messrs. 

 Jackson & Sons, Mr. B. S. Williams, and Mr. Morse being 

 prominent amongst nurserymen ; and Mr. Ward, Mr. Chapman, 

 gardener to J. Spode, Esq., Hawkyard Park, and Mr. Toms 

 being to the front in the amateurs' class. Ixoras, Aphelexes, 

 and Clerodendrons were prominent in the collections. 



The Azalea classes were a show in themselves, so admirably 

 were the plants bloomed and exhibited. Amongst nurserymen, 

 for twelve plants in 1'2-inch pots, the examples from Mr. Turner 

 and Messrs. Ivery &c Son were well-finished densely-bloomed 

 plants. For six plants unlimited as to size of pot, immense 

 specimens were staged by Mr. Ward, Mr. Child, Mr. Wheeler, 

 and nice pyramids from Mr. Ratty. Amongst the nurserymen's 

 " giants," noticeable were those of Mr. Williams, Messrs. Lane 

 and Son, and very perfect smaller plants from Messrs. Ivery 

 and Son. 



Roses were an imposing feature of the Exhibition. In the 

 classes for six and nine plants Messrs. Paul & Son, Cheshunt, 

 Messrs. Lane & Son, and Mr. Turner staged splendid examples 

 of cultural skill, while an attractive bank of decorative plants 

 in the class for twenty in 8-inch pots was contributed by the 

 same renowned growers, those from Cheshunt being the best. 

 Messrs. Lane & Son sent excellent boxes of cut blooms, La 

 France being in splendid form. 



Heaths were very good. For six plants (nurserymen) Messrs. 

 Jackson & Sons, Kingston, and Mr. Morse, Epsom, competed. 

 In the class for twelve the same growers sent smaller but well- 

 grown plants. In the amateurs' classes Mr. Ward and Mr. 

 Wheeler had splendidly-bloomed globular specimens. 



Orchids were exhibited by Mr. Williams, who had healthy 

 handsome plants of Cattleyas, Vandas, and Cypripediums. 

 Messrs. Jackson & Son and Mr. Morse also contributed highly 

 interesting groups. Amateurs were represented by Messrs. 

 Ward, Ritchie, and Child, who had creditable specimens. 

 Exotic Ferns came from Mr. Wheeler, Mr. Ritchie, Mr. Carr, 

 and Mr. Williams, and good collections of flne-foliaged plants 

 from Mr. Legge, gardener to S. Ralli, Esq. ; Mr. Carr, gardener 

 to L. J. Hinds, Esq. ; Mr. Clark, gardener to A. Shuter, Esq. ; 

 and Mr. Wheeler. 



Pelargoniums were excellently exhibited by Mr. Ward, Messrs. 

 Dobson & Son, and Mr. James, Mr. Ward's plants averaging 

 5 feet in diameter. Calceolarias from Messrs. Dobson it Son 

 and Mr. James were sturdy well-bloomed plants. Mr. R. Parker, 

 Tooting, and Mr. Ward exhibited beautiful groups of hardy 

 herbaceous plants, and Messrs. Jackman it Son a fine collection 

 of Clematises. 



In the classes for new plants Messrs. Ivery & Son exhibited 

 Azaleas; Mr. Bull Pelargonium Beauty of Oxton, very telling, 

 also a bright Aucuba, Luteo piota, a quaint Pilocerus, a bright 

 Blandfordia, &o. Messrs. Jackman & Son had two handsome 

 Clematises, Alba magna and Mrs. Hope ; Mr. George Ivy-leaved 

 Pelargoniums; Mr. Foster and Mr. Turner superior Show and 

 Fancy Pelargoniums, the last-named exhibitor also showing a 

 new white dwarf Lobelia, Duchess of Edinburgh. Mr. Braid 

 staged his Pelargonium Duchess of Edinburgh, which is ex- 

 ceedingly free and floriferous. Messrs. James Veitch it Sons, 

 Mr. B. S. Williams, and Messrs. E. G. Henderson it Sons also 

 sent valuable collections of plants of considerable interest and 

 beauty, and Mr. Croucher staged a novel group of Agaves. 



CHAPTERS ON INSECTS for GAKDENERS.— No. 1. 



Many persons, who not only pride themselves on being well 

 ednoated but who really ara so, would be much perplexed if 

 required to answer off-hand this question, What is an insect? 

 As the story goes, at some party where the definition was 

 asked for, and a variety of replies, none deemed satisfactory, 

 had been given, a Scotchman with grave face announced 

 that he would end the difficulty, and having secured general 

 attention remarked, " Weel ! an insect is just an insect, and 

 that's all about it! " which was a catting of the Gordian knot. 

 And some of ns will remember the cut in Punch, representing 

 a gentleman standing on a railway platform in some perplexity 

 with a tortoise in bis hand and a lot of luggage about him, and 

 an obliging porter informs him when he asks what he will have, 

 to pay, that " rabbits and cats are dogs, but you won't have to 

 pay anything for that, because it's an insect ! " And many 

 other creatures as far remote from insects as are tortoises are 

 popularly reputed to belong to that class because of their mode 

 of life. 



All creeping crawling things are insects in the eyes of some 

 people ; I have even noticed the name applied to email gliding 

 mammals, such as the field mouse. Those with a little more 

 idea of the right mode of classifying animals may perhaps 

 derive some light through the circumstance that insects have 

 more legs than quadrupeds, birds, or reptiles; but if they would 



