210 THE BOOK OF THE ROSE CHAP. 
It cannot be doubted that the popularity of the 
Rose, and its greatly increased cultivation, have been 
much fostered by Rose shows and by the National 
Rose Society which encourages them. With a 
possible exception in the matter of fragrance, I do 
not think that exhibitions have fostered any undesir- 
able qualities in the flowers: it is true that some 
modern show varieties are weak and difficult to 
erow, but they are often so lovely that it would 
have been a great loss if they had not been known: 
and even the few scentless forms would, I believe, 
have found a footing on their merits. 
A young exhibitor should begin by making sure 
that he knows a good Rose when he sees it—that 
he is well acquainted with the types and ideals 
which authority, as represented by the National 
Rose Society, requires. And the first thing to be 
learnt is that ‘‘ form,” the shape of the Rose, is the 
most important point of all. 
In Latin, ‘‘ forma,” shape, is ‘‘ beauty,” and 
‘“‘ formosus, ’ shapely, is “‘ beautiful.”” Form comes 
before colour as drawing before painting. A tumble- 
down cottage or a lopsided spray may be picturesque, 
but it is only formal beauty that is amenable to the 
strict rules necessary in competition. The ‘‘ tumble- 
down” style of beauty may be admired in the 
garden, but cannot be admitted to judgment at 
Rose shows. A Rosarian soon becomes accustomed 
to look upon form as the primal beauty of the Rose, 
and to regard colour, though necessary, as a 
secondary consideration. 
Unfortunately, no proper terms have yet been 
devised and used for the different types of form in 
Roses, for it cannot be denied that the expressions 
