March 2, I87S. ] 



JOURNAL OP HOBTIOOLTURR AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



178 



his plants and flowers in pots as might be approved by the 

 above-named Minerva, but to leave sufficient of each kind to 

 keep up the stock. To Thomas TasKell of Wyche he be- 

 queathed his Tulips. Of these Mr. Gilbert observes, " Mr. 

 Rea had the largest collection of any man in England, Eome 

 of which I lost by being beyond sea at his death." 



Rea planned the gardens of Gerards Bromley, the seat of 

 Lord Bromley, a title now extinct, and in the dedication to 

 the young lord of his " Flora, Ceres, and Pomona" be sajs, 

 " A little time may possibly produce such a garden as Gerards 

 Bromley, when yon shall be pleased to accomplish what was 

 there begun by your noble father." 



The'publication entitling Mr. Gilbert to a notice in these 

 pages is " The Florist's Vade-Mecum." This was published 

 in 1683, and other editions unaltered, though said to be "en- 

 larged," in 1093 and 17U2. Bound with it, and mentioned on 

 the title page, is " The Gardeners' Almanack for five years, 

 1683-1C87. With monthly directions what ought to be done 

 in either kitchen or flower garden for ever." The monthly 

 calendars have specified the signs of the zodiac influencing 

 the days, because at that time gardeners were guided by such 

 directions as this which he announces : " If yon prune your 

 Vines the moon in full, and posited in Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, 

 or Sagittary, neither worms nor birds will infest your Grapes." 

 Yet it is a good directory in floriculture. Appended to it is a 

 " Treatise of Auiioulas," of which he and others were great 

 patrons, as is told in this paragraph of its introduction : 

 " Peter Egerton of Boughton near Chester, Esquire : I cannot 

 but let every lover of flowers know his remov'd abode, to his 

 estate at the Hall of Shaw, near Manchester in Lancashire, 

 where he will keep up (and increase as new faces appear) his 

 choice collection of plants and flowers. The last April I waited 

 on him, before he removed from Boughton, and there found 

 many Auriculae's, that were not mention'd in this Compen- 

 dium, and also three or four that I afterwards saw in the 

 Fallace Garden at Worcester, belonging to Mr. Thomas Newton , 

 gentleman to my very good lord, the Eight Reverend Father 

 in God, James Lord Bishop of Worcester. So that from Mr. 

 Egerton's collection, who was the best florist in Cheshire, and 

 hath the same pre-eminence in Lancashire, and Mr. Newton, 

 who may challenge the same for skill in Worcestershire, and 

 myself in Shropshire, and consequently from the choicest 

 collections in these nations, I desire you accept the ensuing 

 catalogue of the best single striped, double, and double striped 

 Auricula's." 



Of the date of Mr. Gilbert's death I have no information. 

 There are no records of his will. Letters of administration 

 were granted to the estate of a Samuel Gilbert in March, 1692, 

 but I have no evidence that he was the author of " The 

 Florist's Yade-Meoum." 



EOYAL HORTICDLTUEAL SOCIETY. 



Febbcaby 24th. 



The adjourned Annual Meeting of the Fellows of the Royal 

 Horticultural Society was held in the Council Room, South 

 Kensington, last Thursday, under the presidency in the first 

 instance of Lord Alfred Churchill, and subsequently of Lord 

 Aberdare, President of the Society. The object of the meet- 

 ing "svas to reconsider the privileges of the Fellows for the year 

 1876, a committee consisting of Mr. Hardcastle, Mr. Wilson, Mr. 

 Freake, Dr. Pinches, Mr. Grote, and the Hon. R. W. Chetwynd, 

 having been appointed at the meeting of the 10th inst. to confer 

 with the Council with respect to this question. The result of 

 the conference between the Council and the Committee was the 

 compilation of an " Amended Summary of the Privileges of 

 Fellows for the year 1876." The Summary, copies of which 

 were circulated in the room, was as follows : — 



"Amended Summary of the Privileges of Fellows for the Year 

 1876. Admission lee, two guineas. A. Two-Ouinea Fellowship. — Each 

 two-guinea Fellow is entitled to one non-trautferable ticket, giving admission 

 to its owner on all occasions, with liberty to introduce personally two friends, 

 except to fetes, conversazirui, and flower shows, and on reserved occasions.* 

 B. Four-Quima FeUcwihip.—Each four-gninea Fellow is entitled to two 

 transferable tickets, admitting the bearer on all occasions, with hberty to 

 introduce personally loar friends, except to fetes, conversazioni, and tlower 

 shows, and on reserved occasions. C. SU-Quinca Family Tichti. — Two- 

 guinea and four-guinea Fellows, by raising their subscriptions to six guineas, 

 will be entitled to receive, in addition to the privilpges of four-guinea Fellows, 

 one extra transferable ticket, giving admission to the bearer on all occasions ; 

 and, except to fetes, conversazioni, flower shows, and reserved occasions, to 

 the whole of the owner's family resident in his house, including necessary 

 attendants not exceeding two. On promenade days nurses will not be ad- 



" The CouncilJreBerve'power on four occasions annually to have receptions, 

 at which none but Fellows and bearers of their transferable tickets shall have 

 a right to.be present ^-ithuut special iayitation. 



mitted, and children under twelve years of age must be accompanied by their 

 parents or grown-up member of the family. D. Twfnty-liuiii^a lAr'r Fellows 

 to have the same privileges as two-guinea Fellows; Ki\A Forty-tixL^nea Life 

 Fellows to have the same privileges as four-guinea Fellows. E. Twenty- 

 Ouinea Life Fellows, by paying two guineas annually, may obtain the privi- 

 leges of four-guinea Fellows. F. Thepriviletesof holdersof ten-guioea tickets 

 remain unaltered. G. To all classes of Fellows the following privileges: 



I. To purchase for members of his or her own household, at the price of 

 £1 Is. each, non-transferable tickets, which entitle the nominee to all the 

 privileges of personal admission that Fellows themselves possess, except that 

 of admission on specially reserved occasions.* 2. To purchase, for £1 in. each, 

 books containing twenty-one orders of admission to the promenades (for 

 admission to which no money shall be taken a*, the gates). S. To purchase, 

 for £1 Is. each, books containing forty-two orders of admission on all days, 

 except shows, f.'-tes, conversazioni, promenades, and specially reserved occa- 

 sions.* 4. To admit, by personal introduction, fi'iends to the Gardens at 

 South Kensington on Sundays. 5. To admit friends daily (Sundays excepted) 

 by written order to the Gardens at Chiswick. U. To purchase, previous tu 

 the day of each show, tickets at redoced prices. 7. To obtain, upon applica- 

 tion, such seeds, plants, and cuttinos as the Society may have in sufticient 

 numbers to meet the P'ellows' appUcations. 8. To purchase the flowers, 

 fruit, Ac, grown at Chiswick, which may not be required by the Council for 

 scientific purposes. 9. To receive, on application in writing, a copy of the 

 publications of the Society. 10. To vote at all meetings of the Society. 



II. To give notice in writing of being relieved fr. m the yearly payments while 

 resident abroad. I'i. To free admission to the reading room and Lindley 

 library. Non-transferable tickets at 10a. Gd. per annum, admitting to all 

 shows, scientific meetings, and lectures of the Society ibot not to promenades 

 nor on reserved occasions!, and to the Chiswick Gardens on week days, will 

 be issued to bond fde gardeners recommended by two Fellows. All former 

 Fellows of the Society who have withdrawn therefrom, and who thall have 

 paid allsubscriptions due from them to it, will not be required to pay a fresh 

 entrance fee if they shall be re-elected in the year 1810." 



The meeting, which was not very largely attended, differed 

 as regarded the conduct of its proceedings from, it may be said, 

 all the public meetings of the Society held during the past three 

 years, inasmuch as there was an almost complete absence of the 

 contentions spirit which has invariably pervaded the discussions 

 at the meetings held in the time indicated. Both at the Council 

 table and in the body of the room an anxious desire for har- 

 monious action was manifested, which resulted, as might be 

 expected, in a satisfactory termination to the day's proceedings. 

 The members of Council present were, besides Lord Aberdare 

 and Lord Alfred Churchill, Sir Trevor Lawrence, Bart., M.P. ; 

 Colonel R. Trevor Clarke; Mr. Henry Webb (Treasurer); Dr. 

 Hogg, F.L.S. (Secretary); Dr. Denny ; Mr. W.B. Kellock, K.L.S.; 

 Mr. Robert Warner, F.L.S. ; Mr. Wm. Haughton, and Mr. F. 

 Campion. Amongst the general body of Fellows present were 

 Sir Henry Thring, C.B. ; Dr. Pinches, Mr. J- A. Hardcastle, Mr. 

 Godson, sen., Mr. Alfred Smee, Mr. G. F. Wilson ; Mr. Edgar 

 Bowring, C.13. ; Mr. H. Liggins, Mr. S. Hibbcrd, Dr. Masters, 

 Sir Peter Pole, Mr. West, Mr. Richard Redgrave, &c. 



The Chairman (Lord Alfred Churchill), in opening the pro- 

 ceedings, said that in the unavoidable absence of the President 

 of the Society, Lord Aberdare, he had been requested by his 

 colleagues on the Council to take the chair until such time as 

 the President should arrive. The amended summary of the 

 privileges of Fellows for the year 1876 was circulated in the 

 room, and he presumed that each Fellow was supplied with a 

 copy. He might remark that Lord Aberdare was most anxious 

 to address the meeting on the amended lules, as the subject was 

 one in which he took the liveliest interest, and his Lordship 

 hoped to be present before the meeting was brought to a close 

 [hear, hear]. The previous policy of the Council had been 

 characterised as a policy of restriction, but their present policy, 

 illustrated by the proposals involved in the amended summary 

 of privileges, was one of concession, for it was felt by them that 

 by treating the Fellows liberally the Society would be more 

 likely to obtain their support, and thus insure for it a career 

 more prosperous than its past one had been. At the present 

 time there was a greater necessity than ever for harmony 

 amongst the Fellows [cheers], because the income of the 

 Society had been diminishing for several years past. Under 

 ordinary circumstances the rent of the gardens should have 

 been paid this year; but the fact was the Council bad not the 

 means of discharging the rent, and accordingly the Royal Com- 

 missioners had given them three years more of grace in order 

 that the Society might be enabled, by means of certain altera- 

 tions, to raise their annual income to i'10,000. Their income 

 was little more than i:7000, and up to the present time this year 

 they had only received iiSOOO ; but of course the year was yet 

 young. It was to be hoped that those who were now being 

 liberally treated would come forward and aid the Society with 

 their subscriptions [hear, hear], and that the plan now proposed 

 would have the efiect of bringing a very large addition indeed 

 of numbers to the Society, and coijsequently a proportionate 

 increase of funds [hear, hear]. The Society's trade debts were 

 heavy, but if the proposals now submitted by the Council to 

 the Fellows were received by the latter in a generous spirit 

 and loyally supported by them, the Society would be able to 

 borrow money sufficient to discharge those debts, and to place 

 it in a more flourishing condition than it occupied hitherto 

 [applause]. It should be clearly understood that if they failed 

 at the end of three years to raise the income of the Society to 

 ^10,000 annually the Society could not exist any longer, and 



